Jump to content

Bass Trombone


Mitchell

Recommended Posts

Okay, so, I've recently taken up the Bass Trombone. Cool. Cool. It's intense. I likes da low notes.

I did a bit of looking around and I found a slide position chart, so I can figure out all the notes and stuff.

The only thing is:

THE BASS TROMBONE IS SO HEAVY, AND IT KILLS MY WRIST TO JUST HOLD IT.

Let alone to reach the D valve with my thumb.

So, is there a way to not kill myself playing trombone, or am I better off learning the tuba?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oh please! Learn like the rest of us and get used to it! Stop complaining about the weight. If you want to play low notes, that's the trade-off.

Just remember, you always could have played piccolo.

Don't wonder why you piss me off so much.

I only asked for a little help, to maybe see if I wasn't holding the instrument right. I posted the thread for a bit of help, not for a bunch of pricks to tell me to stop complaining.

(at least Robin helped.)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Do you have a teacher? All instruments have a proper way to hold them and an improper way and its not easy to explain how to do it correctly in email without seeing what you are doing. For instance, though I am a bass trombonist, I took some violin lessons and about 90% of the lessons were focused on the various ergonomic problems - my neck, my wrist, my elbo, etc. etc. I don't think the teacher could have guided me through text, she had to see what I'm doing and fix each subtle problem and point out to me when I got lax and resumed the problem. Yes, the bass trombone doesn't have as many ergonomic issues to resolve, but it is a heavy instrument and if you are holding it correctly, then you have some muscles to build up. Why don't you invest in the book "The Art of Trombone Playing" by Ed Kleinhammer - see page 14 "Holding the Trombone". It is quite a bit heavier than the tenor instrument if thats where you are coming from (when I first picked up the tenor I almost dropped it because it was so much lighter than I expected compared to the bass) so its more important your ergonomics are correct. IMPORTANT: the wrist must be straight or it will tire quickly. The left index finger rests on the shank near the mouthpiece to balance the instrument.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

tsk tsk. No wonder your wrist hurts.

It goes like this: Thumb around the bell brace and/or on the thumb valve. Index around the mouthpeice shank. The other 3 around the inner slide brace.

I held the tenor so weird because I just took it and learned it without any instruction.

You lead to your own demise then.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
  • 5 weeks later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...