Re: Re: How much difference is there..........


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Posted by Benade-boy on September 21, 2000 at 00:58:31:

In Reply to: Re: How much difference is there.......... posted by Art on September 20, 2000 at 22:39:02:

Good points, Art! But I would add the following...

(Please read and digest this info before starting your flame throwers, folks!)

Finish does indeed affect the sound of the horn.

It MAY NOT be noticed by all, and for MOST PEOPLE it is a negligible difference at best. We did a controlled "working experiment" at my university using eight of the same exact horns, but with several stripped, two laquered, and two silver. We had all eight owners play each horn once, using pre-selected excerpts. The owner played his personal axe first as a sort of benchmark (all players on familiar turf, so to speak...) and then randomly played the other seven to the 25 or so listeners.

The "unfortunate victims" sat in a very large room facing the wall. The players sat in the center of the space with instructions to point the bells at a certain area on the wall. We picked both grads and undergrads to be the performers.

RESULTS: We had a fine time making sure that all respondants used the same lables for what they heard (i.e. "dark" is mostly fundamental, "bright" is high in overtones, etc.). Most players "felt" differences, even if they heard none. Players and listeners sometimes perceived the opposite characteristics. So what YOU hear is not always what the audience or your colleagues hear...

But, IN GENERAL, most players felt and heard laquer as being mildly inferior to everything, silver was sometimes brighter (more overtones and therefore more color) and stripped brass more dead and sometimes a good bit larger in feel (to players) or presence (listeners and players). Most agreed that for the particular make and model of horn tested, stripped sounded more "orchestral" and silver more "chamber" or "soloistic". So, you can sometimes make a small horn feel and play a bit larger by stripping it. Conversely, a plated BAT is huge-sounding, but has some color and clarity of attack as well. A 3/4 with plating can sometimes sound euph-like, and a jumbo Conn stripped can quickly get quite muddy.

There are some people that are alternately hurt or helped by finish, and some that could play with the exact same (good OR bad) sound on a fiberglass hell-o-phone.

Regarding your "care" comments on stripped brass: each polishing removes metal...not a lot, but enough to warrant caution over the long haul. Because, regardless of finish, thinner versus thicker metal is a MAJOR factor in sound quality. I shine up my old horns only once a year, but try to wipe them down each day if I remember. The best stuff in the world to shine nickle-silver bow guards and trim is called Simi-Chrome. It is a rather abrasive paste from our friends in Germany. I can only find it in motorcycle shops in my neck of the woods, but some enlightened music retailers will stock it for their shop employees for tough jobs that can't go under the evil buffing machine.

This is, of course, all in my humble-but-observant opinion. Keep in mind that I have a very good ear, as I have a full-time orchestra gig. However, please keep in mind that my gig is lousy, so I am definately no genius!! :'o

Later!












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