Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: Stuffy Festivo

  1. Stuffy Festivo

    I complained here about my Festivo being stuffy maybe a few months ago. A few people kind of piled on and suggested I was just a silly trombone player, and that the compensating range is always stuffy, so stop crying about it.

    Well, it turned out that there was a leak in the compensating circuit on the second valve. So second line B was squirrelly and unplayable, along with any other note that used the 4+2 combination.

    So Wessex paid to have it fixed at my local shop, and the local shop did a great job. I don't know how they fixed it, because the leak was in a place where you couldn't even see it, but it plays like it should now.

    Just because someone is a silly trombone player doesn't mean they don't recognize when a horn isn't playing up to snuff. It took me a year and a half to figure that out, and I had to fill it with water, spray soapy water, and stuff a rag up the pipe to isolate the leak, but I finally found it, and Wessex did honor their warrantee. And now I have my very ergonomic euph back again. Just thought I'd share a happy ending to this story.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    West Palm Beach, FL
    Posts
    3,850
    Glad to hear you figured out the problem and that Wessex paid to get it sorted. Great news!
    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)

  3. #3
    Glad it worked out! Thanks for sharing.
    John 3:16


    Conn Victor 5H Trombone
    Yamaha 354 Trombone
    Conn 15I Euphonium

  4. #4
    Thanks for reporting back. Very good news!

    No one should call you silly. I think many of have experienced unexpected problems with new horns. When I first tried a Prestige at Brasswind it played horribly. I was quite sure it had a leak and reported it to the store. One of the Sterlings I received came with a similar tiny leak and I could tell the horn didn't feel quite right. (The factory said this can happen. The manufacturing and cleaning processes can leave a thin spot, which may open up with the stresses of shipping. It's rare, but...) And another horn, I think it was a different Sterling, played VERY stuffy. A little fooling around showed me that a piece of a packing peanut had found its way inside the horn and was in the smaller tubes where it could affect things. At least that was a simple "fix!"

    Of course, we are only guessing when a member reports a problem such as yours. A few times I HAVE found a need to help trombonists understand why a compensating horn feels so stuffy. Most doublers are used to a 4-valve non-comp such as a Yamaha 321. Those are less stuffy by their nature. (It's one of the reasons I want to get my hands on the Adams Sonic, a 4-valve 3+1 non-comp.) And it is not at all uncommon for the 24 combo to be flat on a low B. I think that is because it is hard to make the 2nd valve compensating (rear) loop short enough in its 180 degree turn.

    Trombonists often provide a refreshing perspective. You folks can correct any note's intonation more easily and accurately than we can, for one thing. (Frankly, I'm not sure how any of you can stand to play euphonium, because non of them is without pitch issues somewhere.) I've also found it instructive when I hear a trombonist play a euphonium. They don't always have the correct "warm air" concept, but it is interesting to hear how a horn responds when played with a more direct air stream.

    Anyway, I'm glad you can start having more fun with the Festivo now!
    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

  5. Quote Originally Posted by davewerden View Post
    Thanks for reporting back. Very good news!

    No one should call you silly. I think many of have experienced unexpected problems with new horns. When I first tried a Prestige at Brasswind it played horribly. I was quite sure it had a leak and reported it to the store. One of the Sterlings I received came with a similar tiny leak and I could tell the horn didn't feel quite right. (The factory said this can happen. The manufacturing and cleaning processes can leave a thin spot, which may open up with the stresses of shipping. It's rare, but...) And another horn, I think it was a different Sterling, played VERY stuffy. A little fooling around showed me that a piece of a packing peanut had found its way inside the horn and was in the smaller tubes where it could affect things. At least that was a simple "fix!"

    Of course, we are only guessing when a member reports a problem such as yours. A few times I HAVE found a need to help trombonists understand why a compensating horn feels so stuffy. Most doublers are used to a 4-valve non-comp such as a Yamaha 321. Those are less stuffy by their nature. (It's one of the reasons I want to get my hands on the Adams Sonic, a 4-valve 3+1 non-comp.) And it is not at all uncommon for the 24 combo to be flat on a low B. I think that is because it is hard to make the 2nd valve compensating (rear) loop short enough in its 180 degree turn.

    Trombonists often provide a refreshing perspective. You folks can correct any note's intonation more easily and accurately than we can, for one thing. (Frankly, I'm not sure how any of you can stand to play euphonium, because non of them is without pitch issues somewhere.) I've also found it instructive when I hear a trombonist play a euphonium. They don't always have the correct "warm air" concept, but it is interesting to hear how a horn responds when played with a more direct air stream.

    Anyway, I'm glad you can start having more fun with the Festivo now!

    I always enjoyed it unless I was down low. It felt lik the spit valve was open, but just for a couple notes. I was aware that the blow between euph and bone could be a little disorienting, so at first, I was believing the people (folks I trust, but who hadn't played the horn) telling me that's just the way it is and to get used to it. A large enough mouthpiece (Yamaha 60) almost made it feel better, but obviously didn't make the horn play very well. But eventually when I pulled the tuning slide and stopped it up with a rag, I could actually hear the leak. It was probably on the valve casing, between the comp loops for the 1st and 2nd valve, so I couldn't see it, but I could put a q-tip in there and interrupt the hiss.

    I have very little experience with pro euphs, when I was in the Navy band (late 80s) I played a Willson for a while, so I don't have any recent experience to compare with. I do have some older 24i and 2280 horns, but that's all I have to compare the asian horn with. I bought it because of the ergonomic setup, as a possible replacement for simple bass trombone parts, which for me just hurts to play, ergonomically.

    Yeah, adjusting to the intonation aspect of valve playing has been interesting. I'm so used to having 4 different versions of each position, that the on/off nature of valves just seemed impossible. It has opened my eyes to different approaches with alternate fingerings, but I refuse to lip notes (although sometimes I think I apply some pretty heavy "eyebrow English"). The 24i and 2280 were attractive to me because of the tuning systems, and the Horn Guys treatise on the 2280 really opened my eyes to a lot of options.

    I love to listen to recordings of you "valve natives" to see how you do things like grace notes, bend notes, glissando, rips, half-valve and other techniques. The trombone allows a lot of vocal type expression which is hard to sacrifice when moving to valves, but what you gain in facility almost makes up for it.

    Anyway, thanks all for the inspiration I get from you that keeps me learning and enjoying valves. I'll never give up the trombone, but as I get older, it puts a bigger strain on me. I know I shouldn't admit this, but the euphonium allows me to actually sit back in my recliner and relax while I play, which I know is bad form, but it's such an enjoyable way to spend an hour.

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by hyperbolica View Post
    II love to listen to recordings of you "valve natives" to see how you do things like grace notes, bend notes, glissando, rips, half-valve and other techniques. The trombone allows a lot of vocal type expression which is hard to sacrifice when moving to valves, but what you gain in facility almost makes up for it.
    Here is one approach to doing a gliss. Normally we use a mushy-push of the valves involved but sometimes it is not workable that way.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXMX1gxt2Uk

    You know Patsy Cline's recording of "Crazy", right? I tried to emulate that on my euphonium, to the extent that made sense. In this rendition I use some pitch bending (with the lips), a gliss, lip-only ornaments, and rhythmic displacement.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWltaKeU5oU

    Here is a video I did regarding the uses of alternate fingerings:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nklNJEj_Fk0

    I've actually done a small book on the uses of alternates, which I find helpful for intonation and handling certain technical passages:
    http://www.dwerden.com/eu-books-fingering.cfm

    Back when I played a Besson I got used to using 4 for the upper F (concert), 2-4 for the E just below, and 1-3 for the Eb. On some horns, or in some contexts, 1-2 is handy for the high A (normally a bit flat using 2). Etc.
    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

  7. Quote Originally Posted by davewerden View Post
    Here is one approach to doing a gliss. Normally we use a mushy-push of the valves involved but sometimes it is not workable that way.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXMX1gxt2Uk

    You know Patsy Cline's recording of "Crazy", right? I tried to emulate that on my euphonium, to the extent that made sense. In this rendition I use some pitch bending (with the lips), a gliss, lip-only ornaments, and rhythmic displacement.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWltaKeU5oU

    Here is a video I did regarding the uses of alternate fingerings:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nklNJEj_Fk0

    I've actually done a small book on the uses of alternates, which I find helpful for intonation and handling certain technical passages:
    http://www.dwerden.com/eu-books-fingering.cfm

    Back when I played a Besson I got used to using 4 for the upper F (concert), 2-4 for the E just below, and 1-3 for the Eb. On some horns, or in some contexts, 1-2 is handy for the high A (normally a bit flat using 2). Etc.

    Thanks for all that. I've started practicing some of those valve effects, they're not easy.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •