Tools of the Trade
I currently use the following tools in my recording efforts:
- 2008 15.4″ Apple MacBook Pro, with 4GB of memory and a 2.5 GHz Core 2 Duo Intel chip.
- iLife 09 GarageBand. I have considered upgrading to Logic Studio, but have not yet made the jump. I expect to do that shortly and will report here on any issues I encounter.
- Alesis MultiMix 8 Firewire. I recently purchased this little mixer in order to better record both my over-dubbed productions and to record my band when necessary. I like what I have seen so far- especially vis-a-vis the pre-amps. I will be reporting on this device as I use it more.
- m-Audio Ozone MIDI controller. I observe from m-Audio’s web site that they appear to have discontinued this piece of equipment, which I consider to be a shame. While the Ozone does have some drawbacks, which I shall cover in a future post, i have found it to be a solid machine that does most of what i need from it.
- Audio-Technica ATM 350. This is a top of the line professional performance microphone and it has proven to be an excellent addition to my toolchest. Much of the recording done thus far was recorded with this little clip-on, and I can say that I have been very happy with the results.
- Shure SM-57: I purchased this microphone in order to better record both my vocals and my instruments, without the necessity of changing my clip-on mic from one instrument to another. I have been very pleased with this microphone. The Shure SM-57s have a well-deserved reputation for quality and I have not been disappointed. I shall be adding a SM-58 to the collection shortly for better vocal recording quality.
- Unknown Chinese-made recording microphone. This has the name ‘GA’ on it, and otherwise I know nothing about it. It is a recording microphone that I use in conjunction with my microphone stand when I require a standing microphone (for when I am using my tuba or need to do a quick-change between instruments). It has also been a fair vocal microphones, though not up to the standard of the classic Shures or even the Audio-Technica.
- Alesis SR-16 drum machine. I have found that the tempos in the Alesis and the tempos set by Garageband do not appear to match precisely, though this may be due to the difficulty of starting them precisely at the same moment. The SR-16 has a good trad jazz beat, but so far I have not had time to explore its ability to create custom tracks. I hope to do that soon, so as to add a variety of jazz tracks to my repertoire.
Instrumentation
- Bach Stradivarius 180-43G trumpet: This seems to be a fairly rare make here in the United States. I purchased it in Japan in 1993, and have so far not encountered anyone who has the same horn over here. Please feel free to correct me if I am in error.
- Holton 1912 tenor trombone: This is a handmade Frank Holton horn from the year 1912. It is a silver exterior with a gold brass interior, and lacks a screw joint to connect the bell to the slide. It is also lacking a slide lock, so one is required to keep hold of the slide at all times, as the alternative can be disastrous. I had the slide rebuilt when I first obtained this horn and it serves as my trad jazz horn, as it has an excellent tone for that type of music.
- Mirafone 12834 BB-flat five-valve tuba: This horn looks like a CC tuba- most folks who see it think it IS a CC, but it plays in BB-flat. Five valves and the model number doesn’t seem to relate to Mirafone’s nomenclature. This is a very rich-sounding instrument and while I regret that I have yet to master the high range, it does do very well in the mid and low range. This is my regular instrument for playing bass lines- I no longer use the MIDI keyboard.
- Reynolds Contempora 49622 baritone horn: This horn belonged to a friend’s father. When his father passed away, my friend was kind enough to give it to me. Since my friend also passed away soon thereafter, this horn has a high degree of sentimental value. I use this horn primarily for practice, although it has a very nice tone with a bit of bite. I use it occasionally on parts that call for more mellow tone than trombone but still require some brassiness. I find it very useful for playing bass trumpet parts and Latin music.
- Yamaha YEP 321S Euphonium: This instrument dates all the way back to 1979, and is the first ‘good’ horn I ever owned. I have played this in every conceivable type of music, from concert band to Dixieland bands (in place of tuba) and it is still in excellent condition. I rarely play it these days, as I do most of my playing on trombone, but it still has a special place in my collection.
- Yamaha YSL 646 B-flat/F Tenor Trombone: I may be misremembering the model number on this horn, but it is either a 646 or a 647. I purchased this instrument in 1984, and have played it ever since. Although it is not my first choice in jazz bands, it is a superior horn and produces an excellent symphony sound. A drunk fell on this instrument in 2002 or 2003, and it was subsequently rebuilt, thus it is in virtually new condition at present.
- Yamaha YBL 613G Bass Trombone: I purchased this instrument in 1991, and it is the instrument I normally use when playing in big bands, as I normally play bass trombone in such groups. It has the reddish-gold brass bell that Yamaha produced for a short period in the late 1980s and early 1990s and has a superb sound. In fact, one of the bandleaders I have played with likes it so much he prefers this horn to my Holton as a jazz horn.
The above instruments are those that I use on a regular basis. I have played all of them publicly and at least semi-professionally at one time or another. I also have a variety of non-standard horns, including a German-made B&S post horn, and a Getzen alto bugle, for which I also cannot recall the model number. I’ll add these horns to the list once I get back to my studio and have them in front of me. Finally, I possess my mother’s Steinway model ‘S’ grand piano, her cello and a Gibson Epiphone bass guitar, which at this stage are little more than props as I have yet to master the least aspects of these instruments.
