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Thread: New to Brass - not music

  1. #1

    New to Brass - not music

    Hi guys,

    This is my first post. I'd like to fill you in on my background so you know where I'm coming from and then ask your help on which euphoniums to consider.

    I have a music degree with an emphasis in theory and composition. after college I taught choral music for 15 yrs. then became a school adm. for the next 20. 6 months ago I decided I wanted to learn an instrument and picked up a trumpet and an Arban's book and went at it. I played this summer in the local community band and enjoyed it immensely. About a month ago my band director told me he needed another euphonium player for a Tuba Christmas he was organizing. I balked, at first, but he said with my music background and armed with the treble clef parts, I'd do just fine. As you might suspect from this post, I have now lost interest in the trumpet and I'm working on the euphonium. Three Tuba Christmas's and an ad lib jazz gig in a month and I'm hooked.

    My problem is I've been using the school's instruments so far. All our euphoniums are used by students, so I can only use them for performances and occasional practice. I'm looking to buy my own.

    I've been playing a Yamaha student model and like it. I need to spend $500 or less and don't mind how banged up it is, just need one to help me learn the euphonium placement of pitches and to learn the bass clef fingerings. If all goes well, I'll get a better one later.

    Besides the Yamaha's, are there other brands I should be looking for in my price range to consider.

    Thanks for any help.

    John


  2. #2

    New to Brass - not music

    Welcome to the forum!

    The Yamaha 321 is a great horn for someone in your position. It is very tough to find one for $500 or less, though. But it's been around for decades and you might luck out and find a tough-looking one for your price. Some of the American brands can be found now and then with 4 valves for a cheap price (again, it rough condition).

    If you can use a 3-valve horn, there are many more choices. I just posted about a used King 3-valve with bell front (see below). It looks rough but the seller says it works fine. It has front valves, like most American brands used to.

    There is also a Yamaha 301, which is like the 321 but with 3 valves. It's an upright horn with side valves.

    This is where I usually post horns for sale when I find them:

    For Sale, Wanted to Buy

    Dave Werden (ASCAP)
    Euphonium Soloist, U.S. Coast Guard Band, retired
    Adams Artist (Adams E3)
    Alliance Mouthpiece (DC3)
    YouTube: dwerden
    Facebook: davewerden
    Twitter: davewerden
    Instagram: davewerdeneuphonium

  3. New to Brass - not music

    I've also seen Bach copies of the Yamaha 321, but I'm not sure what the model is. They seem to work just as well as the 321's, and you might be able to find one cheaper.

  4. #4

    New to Brass - not music

    Thanks for your responses,

    So, would you say the lower models, like the Yamaha 200 series would frustrate me quickly. I like the one I've played, but I've played it very little. If I thought I was going to be quickly frustrated, I would probably wait a bit and go for something in the $1,000 bracket. I would like to be able to practice quite a bit so I would feel comfortable for this summer's concerts.

    John


  5. #5

    New to Brass - not music

    Originally posted by: JohnB

    So, would you say the lower models, like the Yamaha 200 series would frustrate me quickly.
    Well, it's all relative. The 200 series is about like the American student lines, such as the King I mentioned above. They play fine for what they are. The next line up, the mid-range models like the 321, are a bit better. Then you go to the pro horns and they are even better yet. I think you get your money's worth with any of the lines. As you move up, you will enjoy the qualities of each.

    Many professional orchestral trombonists have a 321 for the few times when they need to play euphonium. They might appreciate a better horn, but it's not worth the money for their use.

    I have a pro horn with a medium-size bell. Now and then I would like to have a larger bell, but it's not worth the money to me to buy/keep both (even if I had the money!). You just have to decide on your financial pain/gain ratio!

    Dave Werden (ASCAP)
    Euphonium Soloist, U.S. Coast Guard Band, retired
    Adams Artist (Adams E3)
    Alliance Mouthpiece (DC3)
    YouTube: dwerden
    Facebook: davewerden
    Twitter: davewerden
    Instagram: davewerdeneuphonium

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    West Palm Beach, FL
    Posts
    3,853

    New to Brass - not music

    (snip...) As you might suspect from this post, I have now lost interest in the trumpet and I'm working on the euphonium.
    Yea... another convert! . I'm a 'trumpet refugee' too (about 40 yrs ago though). Once I got accustom to the mellow tone, I was hooked. Dave Werden makes a lot of good suggestions. If you can find one, the Yamaha 321 would be a good choice.

    Welcome to the world of 'low brass'.
    Rick Floyd
    Miraphone 5050 - Warburton BJ / RF mpc
    YEP-641S (recently sold)
    Doug Elliott - 102 rim; I-cup; I-9 shank


    "Always play with a good tone, never louder than lovely, never softer than supported." - author unknown.
    Symphonic Band of the Palm Beaches
    El Cumbanchero (Raphael Hernandez, arr. Naohiro Iwai)
    Chorale and Shaker Dance
    (John Zdechlik)

  7. #7

    New to Brass - not music

    Originally posted by: RickF
    (snip...) As you might suspect from this post, I have now lost interest in the trumpet and I'm working on the euphonium.
    Yea... another convert! . I'm a 'trumpet refugee' too (about 40 yrs ago though). Once I got accustom to the mellow tone, I was hooked. Dave Werden makes a lot of good suggestions. If you can find one, the Yamaha 321 would be a good choice. Welcome to the world of 'low brass'.
    It has become an easy switch for me. As a choral director I used to like the men's groups best because of the "popping" overtones. I hear the same in the euphonium.

    John


  8. New to Brass - not music

    In my hobbiest's opinion...
    Get yourself a decent Yamaha 321 / King 2280 / Conn 191. At the time I got my Conn last year, there were three Yamaha 321's, which went for 800-1200 dollars off of e-bay. I paid 850 for the Conn, and with the exeption of a pencil eraser sized dent near the bottom bow, was pristine. I suspect that if you remain a hobbiest, that horn will suit you just fine. (My teacher, a bass trombone player, has a 321 that he plays when he needs a euph, and in spite of being a bass trombone player, likes the small shank vs the large shank.) I suspect if the euph bug bites you hard, you could then upgrade to a more professional level horn.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    West Palm Beach, FL
    Posts
    3,853

    New to Brass - not music

    Bearphonium makes some good recommendations. Although the Conn he mentions is actually model 19I (as in 'I'). It's almost exactly like the King 2280 - to my eye anyway.





    Bach also makes a stencil copy of the Yammaha 321 (YEP-321). It's a Bach 1110 I think.

    See this discussion for more on Bach and King:
    Bach 1110 and King Legend 2280
    Rick Floyd
    Miraphone 5050 - Warburton BJ / RF mpc
    YEP-641S (recently sold)
    Doug Elliott - 102 rim; I-cup; I-9 shank


    "Always play with a good tone, never louder than lovely, never softer than supported." - author unknown.
    Symphonic Band of the Palm Beaches
    El Cumbanchero (Raphael Hernandez, arr. Naohiro Iwai)
    Chorale and Shaker Dance
    (John Zdechlik)

  10. New to Brass - not music

    I play on a King 2280 with a Schilke51C4 mouthpiece. The combo makes a nice sound. What mouthpiece are you using now?

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