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Mutes
Mutes, as well as simply making your instrument quieter can also
change the tone colour produced.
There are various different types of common mutes.
straight
Mute The most common mute, it makes the sound quieter,
thinner and slightly shrill (some describe it as "nasal"). |
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Cup
Mute
This looks like a straight mute with a cap on the end, giving the
instrument a softer, muffled sound. Some Cup mutes (such as the
Denis Wick) are "adjustable" whereby the distance of
the "cup" from the instruments bell can be adjusted to
make the sound bigger or smaller. |
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Harmon
Mutes
These are also known as ET mutes, bubble mutes or Wa-Wah Du-all mutes
depending upon which manufacturer you choose. With this kind of mute
the bell is closed off entirely with the sound coming out of a small
hole in the mute only.
This produces a sound like a straight mute with a more "metallic" edge.
Adjusting the "pipe" on the bottom of the mute further
changes the effect of the mute. |
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Plunger
Mutes
These mutes create the "doo-wah" effects used in Jazz music.
This same effect can be made using a hat (known as a Derby mute). |
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Bucket
Mutes
Also known as "Velvet-Tone" mutes these (bucket shaped)
mutes contain soft muffling material that makes the instrument sound
soft, smooth and velvety. |
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Stopping Mutes
These are a specialist French horn mute which replace the hand for
the traditional "hand-stopping" effect As an added bonus
they give an exact semi-tone transposition every time. |
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Other Mutes
As well as the standard mutes Humes & Berg produce even more models
used particularly in the Jazz idiom -many of which were originally
designed for Glenn Miller, including the Clear-tone, Pixie, Wee-Zee,
Buzz-Wow and Mel-O-Wah. |
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Practice
Mutes
The single aim of these mutes is to reduce volume to allow practice
in places where making a loud noise is not an option. |
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Materials
Most mutes are made of aluminium, this produces a brighter sound
than wood or fibreglass. Some metal mutes have copper ends making
the sound more full.
Makes
The most popular models in the UK probably come from Denis Wick,
although Humes and Berg is particularly popular with Jazz musicians
and Jo-Ral has a following amongst more orchestral based players.
All these makes are freely available (although the Humes & Berg supply
can sometimes be a little sporadic). There are other very good makes
available such as Tom Crown and Peter Gane but we generally do not
recommend them due to very poor availability.
Yamaha Silent Brass systems
A step on from the traditional mute is the Yamaha "silent brass" system.
This consists of an (almost) silent "pick up" mute that
is connected to an electronic box of tricks. This feeds the sound
back to you through earphones. |
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A
truly fantastic invention, the silent brass system (now
available for all brass instruments) has completely revolutionised
practice for many city dwellers, players with young families
and frequent travellers.
The secret of its popularity is the ability to hear your playing
at a normal volume, whilst others only hear a whisper - thus eliminating
the resistance from over-blowing which characterises most other
practice mutes.
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The internal electronics can also enhance the sound digitally, to
mimic the acoustics of a larger room - with a choice of "clean" or "echo
enhanced" sound.
You can also play along with your favourite pre-recorded music by
plugging in a CD player and use the output jack to connect to an
external amplifier or recorder.
The mutes are also available separately - so you can use your system
for more than one instrument. |
The silent Brass systems comes as a package with everything you need
to get started:
• Mute
• Personal studio
• Cables
• Belt loop
• Earphones
• Battery
• Case/bag (PM1 & PM2 only) |
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An
added extra available is the ST5 digital effect System for
wind instruments. This device adds a new dimension to the
silent brass system.
A range of 32-high resolution digital effects including reverbs,
delays, distortion, pitch change, modulation, dynamics and 4 band
EQ can be used -up to 6 at a time -to alter and enhance your sound.
50 preset effect programmes are provided, and memory for 50 user
programmes lets you store your own creations.
The built-in tuner, metronome with rhythm patterns, and phrase sampler,
make the ST5 a powerful practice tool. Inputs for external sources
such as recordings allow real-time pitch-change so you can play along
with any music. |
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A
case must protect your valuable instrument when being transported
and stored, yet should remain lightweight and compact so
as to make carrying it around as practical and pleasurable
as possible. In addition a case should look and feel good
and hopefully have additional space for keeping music and
other spares and accessories. Cases and bags can be divided
into three main categories. WeÕve listed the popular
makes of each sort.
Traditional Cases
Made from wood or moulded plastic frames, these are the cases your
new instrument will come in. Designed to fit your specific instrument
these are strong and safe - but sometimes a little heavy or cumbersome.
WeÕve listed the replacement cases for popular instruments.
Gig Bags
Made from either leather or synthetic material (with heavy padding
on the inside), these bags are designed for maximum practicality
for players on the move. They are lightweight and compact and can
be carried on the shoulder or as a backpack. The drawback is an
inherent reduced level of protection (even with the best quality
bags).
The most popular gig bags available are the Vincent Bach range.
These come in either leather or fabric and offer both quality and
value.
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Hybrid
case/bags
A number of manufacturers (notably BAM and Pro Tec) offer cases,
which combine the protection of a case with the practicality of a
bag. These are produced using lightweight moulded foam, which is
covered in a fabric or leather outer protection. The result is a
lightweight, compact, safe and stylish case. |
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A
word about Colours!
A number of the bags and cases listed come in a variety of colours.
We generally only stock bags in black (as this is by far the most
popular option), all other colours are to special order. |
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There are
a large variety of instrument stands available, however Konig & Meyer
stand out as offering by far the best quality, safe and long lasting
stands available.
Made in Germany they are a little more expensive than some makes on the
market, but investing in anything less is probably a false economy. |
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A
Range of Brass Cardholders and Lyres available, made by Boosey & Hawks
and Lewington.
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| The number one
enemy of all brass instruments is saliva (which is blown through
the instrument during normal playing). Dried saliva can seize up
valves and slides, and the general "gunk" that it carries
can accumulate on the inside of the leadpipe, mouthpiece and slides. |
Valve
Oil
To keep valves working properly there is a whole range of oils available.
Each player will have their favourite, with popular brands being
Besson, Al-Cass and Blue Juice. For rotary valves care should be
taken to use a specialist "light" oil (such as Superslick
key and rotary oil) - which has a "needle" allowing oil
to be applied with precision to difficult spots. |
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Tuning Slide Grease For valve slides again
there are a number of brands. We recommend using a silicone
based lubricant, rather than a water based one (such as Vaseline)
which can dry up causing slides to seize. |
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Trombone Slide Cream There are a number of
specialist trombone slide lubricant systems available (such
as "Superslick" and "Slide-O-Mix") these
all revolve around coating the inner slide with silicone
and then spraying water onto the surface in fine droplets
which act like ball bearings between the outer and inner
slide. |
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| Brushes To clean
the inside of the instrument a variety of different brushes are recommended.
A small (conical shaped) mouthpiece brush to clean out your mouthpiece,
a long "flexi" brush for cleaning the leadpipe and valve
slides, and a thicker diameter valve brush for cleaning the insides
of the valve casings. |
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Cloths
For the exterior of the instrument lacquer and silver cloths are
popular items. |
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