TromboneChat

Hi y’all!

So this is something I’ve been contemplating about for some time. I play tenor trombone, however I aspire to become a bass trombonist one day. But I unfortunately don’t have access to a bass trombone, as money is tight in my household to buy even a used one and my high school only has tenors. My band director is a bass trombonist himself so naturally I went to him for advice. He recommended me to buy a smaller bass trombone mouthpiece, specifically the Bach 2G, to use on my tenor as an alternative to buying a bass trombone. But I’ve been doing some research and I found that some people say that it’s a poor choice as it would develop bad habits to one’s playing. So I decided to make this post to see what other people think. So here’s my question: Is it the best idea to buy a bass trombone mouthpiece for my tenor and if so, which ones would be the best? If not, what would be the better choice?

I'd probably just wait until you have a bass. You can practice in that range and get acquainted with it on your tenor mouthpiece and tenor trombone.

Burgerbob wrote: ↑Thu Nov 23, 2023 3:22 pm I'd probably just wait until you have a bass. You can practice in that range and get acquainted with it on your tenor mouthpiece and tenor trombone.

Thanks for replying! What tenor would you recommend? I currently have an unnamed large shank mp from my school and I’ve been meaning to get an upgrade.

That's a totally different question! But something standard like a 5G or 4G is the best place to start.

If you want to be a bass trombonist in the future, a Bach 3G or 2G will work just fine on large tenor.

I did something similar. Unfortunately, the local shop had only 1.25G available... I didn't know any better. It was... quite a bit bigger than I should have been playing at the time, although my teacher at the time seemed to think it was okay.

I've had mixed results with students. Some seem to really take to switching between sizes pretty easily, others not so much. There's only one way to try out and generally would encourage it and yes, a 2G or 3G size is probably more palatable than something enormous like I did. I would just make sure I was being extremely intentional about it and mindful that it may be detrimental and if you feel like it is, addressing it with your teacher.

In my opinion it depends on your tenor.
Using a bass mp on a small tenor will probably not work.
Whereas on a large tenor it sounds less hard in the lower range. Normally I play a Wick 4 for the complete range, but to play only bass I use a 1,5G and to play only upper range a 6,5.
Without question the bass trombone sounds better with the big mp and the small tenor with the small one, but I don´t want to carry three trombones with me, so it is a compromise that works for me.

What tenor are you playing on? Presumably a large bore with a trigger?

A 2G is a perfectly respectable bass trombone mouthpiece, at least here in the UK, especially when starting out. I use a Symington regularly and sometimes in a large tenor as a small bass.

That said, are you playing parts that can't be played on your regular setup? Playing bass trombone is as much attitude as kit.

My first “bass trombone” experience (5 years ago) was playing on a cheap student model large bore f attachment horn using a Bach 1 1/2 G. Not great but it definitely worked till I got my bass a year later. Note: This was recommended to me by my teacher at the time, as I have rather large lips.

Last night l played bass on my Bach 36, with a Kelly 1 1/2G!

Pezza wrote: ↑Sun Nov 26, 2023 12:41 am Last night l played bass on my Bach 36, with a Kelly 1 1/2G!

Pezza wrote: ↑Sun Nov 26, 2023 12:41 am Last night l played bass on my Bach 36, with a Kelly 1 1/2G!

Kelly makes a small shank 1 1/2G. And if so, why?

JeffBone44 wrote: ↑Sun Dec 17, 2023 8:12 am

Pezza wrote: ↑Sun Nov 26, 2023 12:41 am Last night l played bass on my Bach 36, with a Kelly 1 1/2G!

Kelly makes a small shank 1 1/2G. And if so, why?

Looks like they do, at least in Lexan.

I suppose it's for those band directors who haven't just drunk the "darkest is bestest" Kool-Aid, but get an IV infusion of it every morning with their oatmeal.

That said...
I keep a Curry 3D with my Olds R-20 Recording, just for emergencies. Then again, I also keep a Bach 3G with my P-24G. I seldom use either one, but they've come in handy a few times.

There are some older small shank bass trombones (and not just a tenor with an F-attachment). Also, it's a great fit for a Yamaha 321 Euphonium.