In going over some old articles from various journals and magazines, I came across several tidbits  some may find interesting.

Comments and Quotes ......Various Topics...Various Players.

Robert Weast on "quick fixes"...
Many players seek simple, neatly packaged answers which they accept wholeheartedly as the full truth.  Conversely, they a just as ready to reject partial statements as being completely wrong.  It is seldom possible to make a singe statement which can stand on it own;  which is complete within itself;  which is not self-limiting.

Robert Nagel on strength...
Power, range and endurance belong to those who know how to rest.

Mel Broiles on Professionalism...
Remember th old saying, "your're only as good as your last note?"  Well, today your're only as good as the note you are playing right now!

Mel Broiles on Musicianship...
Someone once told me that there are two basic types of trumpeter, the "blowers" and the musicians.

Mel Broiles on the Embouchure...
The highest group of trumpet fatalities result from a poor embouchure formation and most of these are from poor practice habits.

Mel Broiles on Embouchure Development...
You would think that every player would have enough sense to maintain the embouchure high enough on the lip to become anchored so as to survive the punishment it most certainly will receive.  Yet each generation of young players musit learn this for themselves and many massacre the flesh trying to play too high, too loud, too soon.

Mel Broiles on Beauty and Control...
...any ear recognizes the sound of beauty and there is no denying it from a passage that is uttered with a sense of love or conveyed with affection.

Mel Broiles on Practice Habits...
...for without good practice one's performances will steadily decline as surely as the sun goes down.

Mel Broiles on Orchestral Playing...
The two greates handicaps of players are:  1.)  talking too much during rehearsal or performance, and 2.)  losing the bar count thereby risking a secure entrance.

Mel Broiles on Section Playing...
A good section is marked by a good solid forte in all voices, and a beautiful blending of all voices in a piano passage.  the inner voice player, wiith an eye on the conductor and an ear cocked towards the 1st trumpet, carries the obligation to gear his hemperament to that of the lead player.   While he may feel deprived of the lead initiative, this need not be the case, for the 1st player will deeply appreciate that inner voice who can interpret in an identical fashion all entrances and phrasings right on the Button.

Mel Broiles on B-flat Trumpets...
As one performs pieces further back in musical literature he will realize this is no place for a B-flat trumpet.

Mel Broiles on Mental Concentration...
Certainly a mento preparation is an absolute necessity for a high entrance on the trumpet.  To those who perform a repeated work night after night falls the difficult task of recalling some enthusiasm of that first reading.

Mel Broiles on Criticism of Others...
Human nature being what it is, I hope we can realize that criticism of another's performance could perhaps be a reflection of our own sins.

Mel Broiles on Professionalism in Music...
...put the horn where your mouth is, if you can't prove it there, you're wasting time.  Patience, control and self-discipline are the qualities of strength of character to call upon if a player is to survie professionally. In return, those moments of beauty or thruth in a performance are precious, and tend to soften the blows of heartbreak that every serious musician lives with in music.  One should be reminded that any conductor must not only endure trial for his interpretation, but yours as well.

Mel Broiles on Making Music...
Making good music is also a privilege not to be abused by a thoughtlessness of indicriminately using either double forte, double piano or vibrato in the wrong place.

Maynard Ferguson on the "Shake"...
He puts down the hand shake because it hurts the lip;  he calls the hand shake the "cardinal sin" as every ofher note is extra pressure.

Maynard Ferguson on Mouthpiece Pressure...
Only use it "when desperate or drunk."  Says correct type of pressure is from within, not mouthpiece pressure.  And then, we finally heard it. Maynard related that he was having some dental work done.  His dentist asked, "How much pressure do you use?"  Maynard replied, "Lots!"

Maynard Ferguson on Tension...
Says any form of uptightness destroys energy and coordination.  "Energy is breath and breath is energy."

Bill Chase on his Early Training...
Said he played all wrong for years.  He played with the mouthpiece rim on the tip of the upper lip.

Bill Chase on Arm Pressure...
He avoids arm pressure by holding the horn by his fingertips during some practice sessions.

William Vachiano on Instrument Choices...
He uses the C trumpet most of the time, lots of D and some B-flat.  He has three trumpet out for each lesson.  A teacher once told him, "Don't be a hero and try to play everything on the B-flat trumpet.  A Player must be at ease so get the right equipment to be at ease.  Use various horns for comfort."  He hears pitches and plays pitches on any horn.

William Vachiano on Practicing...
He believes as Schlossberg did that "One must practic his liabilities."

William Vachiano on Orchestral Playing (1973)...
The Met Orchestra is the highest paid job in the world.  The average salary is $17,000 and has year round employment, with 7 weeks vacation. The first trumpet gets double.

Jimmy Maxwell (Tonight Show Orchestra)  on Learning...
Says he studies with people whom he sits next to.

Bill Dishman