Any Pros play the Schilke 51D?

[jearnhart]

Just out of curiousity, does anyone know any pros that play on the 51D?

[davewerden]

It's hard to keep track because people keep changing mouthpieces! But I'd be willing to be that many of Brian Bowman's students who are now pros use the 51D.

[bbocaner]

Last time I saw him, Hiram Diaz in the Marine Band was playing a 51D. He checks in on the forum here once in a while.

[highpitch]

A 51D works pretty well on a Willson 2950 in my opinion.

Not so much on a Besson.

DG

[euphdude]

When I saw Don Palmire at the Army conference a couple of years before he retired, he was still playing a large shank 51D on his Yamaha 842/642. He has since switched to Jupiter and now Adams, but I don't know if he has switched mouthpieces.

On a related note about large shank Schilke 51Ds, I'm curious to see if anyone has ever done a back to back of the old 51D with the hybrid Bach/Remington taper and the current ones using the more traditional Bach style. I would be surprised if there wasn't some difference. I happened to see one of the newer ones (didn't play it) in a box of mpcs at Chuck Levins. The end of the shank had an obvious "flare" at the very tip. It almost seemed like they kept the original taper and then flared it quickly at the end so the shorter shank would work. I'm no mouthpiece design expert, but at first glance, this fix seemed somewhat crude. Perhaps this was the only way to minimize the differences when changing the shank profile. I looked at a couple of other newer large shank Schilkes, and they all had this obvious flare.

[mbrooke]

Just out of curiousity, does anyone know any pros that play on the 51D?

Roger Behrend used a 51D for his entire career with the Navy Band. His son Bobby, who is now in the Navy Band, uses a 51D. Brandon Jones said he won a seat in the Air Force Band using a 51D. Jennifer Cox in the Air Force band uses (or at least used to use) a 51D.

Mike

[jkircoff]

There's a general impression I'm under that people looking for an "American" sound use Schilke 51Ds with Willsons, and people looking for a "British" sound use Denis Wicks with Bessons.

[daruby]

There's a general impression I'm under that people looking for an "American" sound use Schilke 51Ds with Willsons, and people looking for a "British" sound use Denis Wicks with Bessons.

Not a bad general impression. I would add that the American sound is more frequently a Schilke 51D or BB1 med shank with a Willson 2900 as opposed to the larger 2950 or 2960.

[jkircoff]

Not a bad general impression. I would add that the American sound is more frequently a Schilke 51D or BB1 med shank with a Willson 2900 as opposed to the larger 2950 or 2960.

Thanks Doug. I play a Sterling Virtuoso with a SM3X in a band with someone who plays a Willson 2900 with a Schilke 51D. We definitely produce different sounds...never mind the intonation quirks between the two horns I'm constantly battling!

[booboo]

There's a general impression I'm under that people looking for an "American" sound use Schilke 51Ds with Willsons, and people looking for a "British" sound use Denis Wicks with Bessons.

I think you may be right, but I'd say that certainly up to about 25 years ago the divide in equipment choice and concept of euph sound on either side of the atlantic was much more evident. I think maybe thanks to 40 yrs of itea conferences and now youtube we are all exposed to different playing cultures a bit more. Certainly if you listen to the top british globe trotting soloists now you can hear a more modern and 'transatlantic' approach compared to the top british players of the 60's/70's who were very much brass band soloists. I'm sure if you got Steve Mead, David Childs or David Thornton to play a Wilson and a 51D they wouldn't sound so different to when they use their Bessons/Stirlings and Wick mp's. Likewise, Mr Bowman would likely still be recognisable on a Besson/Wick combo.