what's the easiest to play?

[jamesfrmphilly]

i started to comeback on a large bore horn with a Monette B1-1 mpc.
i got really tired.
i went to a ML (.460) bore and a Bach 5V and now i play with less fatigue.
so I'm wondering if one of the smaller bore horns like a 6310Z or a B6 would be easier to play.
by easy, i men putting in long hours of practicing scales and such.
i read a post that said cornets were easier to play than trumpets, any truth to that?
I'm looking for the combination that will let me put in the time i need to get my fingers working.

[Gnostic]

I think it's always better to get your mouthpiece together first then settle in on a horn that you enjoy playing. It's usually better to start with a good medium sized all around mouthpiece then if you want something larger and or smaller you can get that later, but keep the same rim.

I would suggest trying a B4S and B6 Kanstul M series at $65 each. You can also have custom work done by Jim New at Kanstul for just $100 per mouthpiece.

David

[Tootsall]

I started out to learn trumpet at age 50. I began with an old Bundy and "whatever" mouthpiece came with it (actually, I think it was a Bach 7C cornet piece!). Over the intervening 6 years I went through a Besson "International", a Bach ML37S, and now a Schilke B1. Mouthpieces changed as I "mucked about" trying to find the right one. I've still got a gold plated Dennis Wick and four pieces of Warburton bits to unload when I'm not feeling lazy about listing on Ebay. I did "discover" for myself that each horn had a particular mouthpiece backbore/gap design that seemed to suit it best WITH ME ON ONE END.

While all of that was going on I also took up cornet and flugelhorn. At the "end of the day" (OK...for the present time ) I've settled on the equipment that is in my signature line. They seem to work best for me, on my horns, with the way I play.

Assuming that you have a horn that is "in tune with itself" (all three of mine are pretty darn good), and you are able to match up a mouthpiece with the right backbore/gap/throat design the only thing left to consider is the rim diameter and cup shape. I happen to like the size that I'm using now and have decided to stop mucking about and just learn to play them. They give me the best range/endurance/tone quality for where I'm at now. Oh sure, if I were using the flugel more I might go for a GR flugel piece, but I'm really considering upgrading the flugel at some time "down the road" so I'm leaving that change for later.

As for which horn is easiest to play (trumpet or cornet.... OR flugel), I found that they are all different. Not necessarily one being easier than the other but that the styles of music require you to learn different skills to play each of them. I think that I like the flugel for its need for subtlety or "touch". The cornet is great for lyrical passages that require musicality; it's great fun to use when working through Arbans exercises (and it has helped me develop vibrato, soft attacks, playing at ppp levels, etc.). I think I could easily live with the cornet and trumpet and get rid of the flugel completely if I had to. The trumpet is, of course very bright sounding in comparison and seems to help me learn control at the higher dynamics. And I have to use it in 95% of what I play in community band so I better be able to get around it.

And, it's just plain FUN to be able to pick up one or the other and do something different for a while. If one type of instrument happens to be the one used for the type of music you LIKE to play, then it's also probable that that will be the instrument you find easiest to learn on. So really, it's "whatever turns your crank". At least, that's my experience.

If "fingers" are where you feel a need for exercise, start working through the different scales; get in there with four or five sharps or flats and they're sure to get a good workout! And be patient; it's a long road that really has no end and where progress is sometimes difficult if not impossible to measure.