The only "beef" i have with you is your continued harping on his subject on my website, Mr., Burger. And I am going to solve it by simply eliminating all further posts from you regarding this matter. That goes for everyone else who is involved in it. Fight it out among yourselves. Send emails. Text each other until you are blue in the face.. Start your own websites about it. Bring it to the TTF. I really do not care. I am through with it, myself. I will give everyone one warning about this and then simply delete further posts.

That's the way it's gonna go.

Deal wid it.

S.

"Several people seem to have had a beef w/Mr. Burger"

Really - who, beside those who have read the rants here? What else have I done but served my country and hundreds of schools as a volunteer - working my ass of to promote the good will of the American people overseas, entertaining troops from the US and our Allies who risked their lives on a daily basis, and sacrificing my own health to serve others, only to end as a disabled vet with a minimal pension?

I have great respect for you and your work, but I expect better of you.

I have posted my email and phone number - you have a beef with me - call me, and I will resolve it. Does that sound like someone hiding from their responsibility?

Eric Burger
916-200-5507
tromboneburger@yahoo.com
www.ericburger.us

Yup



Careful with your visuals, Tony. Your terms. It's important to be accurate.There is no "resistance" in the lungs except perhaps resistance to being inflated. The possibility of resistance doesn't start until the vocal cords/lower throat area, and that's not necessarily a very good place to use in this mater except for certain effects. We resist" in the soft machine from the back of the tongue/soft palate area on through to tongue/hard palate/teeth region, the relative closing and/or opening of the jaw and finally, the lips.

If what you are doing is working...and I know his from painful experience...try to be accurate about what really is happening. Or simply...fuggedaboudit and keep playing. Being inaccurate can lead you down some strange, strange roads.


Yup.

Precisely.

An example of how I worked on moving the focus from my air to my chops.



(That's not resistance, it's the power against which you must resist.)


Yup.

Sump'n like that, anyway.

Stay on it.

Later...

S.

It is now in The Alley (http://openhorn.com/index.php?topic=1197.0), as is my final say on the matter.

Give it a rest.

S.

OK. That's it. I've had it. Enough of this tedious shit. Whyn'tcha both drop it? It's a years-ago misunderstanding over a dollar-three eighty horn or two. I dunno what happened and I'm beginning to think no one else really does either. Several people seem to have had a beef w/Mr. Burger; no one I know has had a serious beef w/dj. That's all I really know, and it's good enough for me.

Here's what I'm going to do.

This topic is now closed, and I am moving it here, to The Alley area. Why am I moving it instead of simply removing it? Because if either of you want to pursue legal means the evidence of what happened here will still be available, but since it will have a different URL it won't be plastered all over Google.

End of story on this site.

Duke it out between yourselves, guys.

This is a brass discussion group, not a small claims court.

Sorry.

Later...

S.

Does anyone notice any delusion?

First - why would someone send a rare and valuable horn across the ocean without payment first?

Second - has anyone noticed how the story has changed?

Third - instead of writing me back directly(I wrote him to his new email), he posts yet new accusations about another horn he sent me! This time a Recording! When did this happen?

Forth - he never ever has denied that I didn't ask for the horn, and he doesn't deny that he refused to send the return postage (there is no COD from Army Post Office). Here is the law, and what I used:

TITLE 39--POSTAL SERVICE
 
                          PART IV--MAIL MATTER
 
                     CHAPTER 30--NONMAILABLE MATTER

 
Sec. 3009. Mailing of unordered merchandise

    (a) Except for (1) free samples clearly and conspicuously marked as
such, and (2) merchandise mailed by a charitable organization soliciting
contributions, the mailing of unordered merchandise or of communications
prohibited by subsection (c) of this section constitutes an unfair
method of competition and an unfair trade practice in violation of
section 45(a)(1) of title 15.
    (b) Any merchandise mailed in violation of subsection (a) of this
section, or within the exceptions contained therein, may be treated as a
gift by the recipient, who shall have the right to retain, use, discard,
or dispose of it in any manner he sees fit without any obligation
whatsoever to the sender.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I exceeded the requirements by trying to return it to him at his expense - but he refused or forgot.
As a person who wishes to do things right, I have tried to make some type of remedy to satisfy him, EVEN THOUGH I am under no legal or moral obligation. If that is not good enough for all of you - then I can't speak to the fantasy world you live in.


DJ - At anytime since you sent the horn, if you felt I stole your property or anyone else's you had possession of, you could have pressed charges through the postal authorities or The US Army or my chain of command. All you would have had to do is demonstrate that I asked for the horn in some way. But you could not, because I did not - it is a simple thing. All our communications demonstrate I did not ask for or want the horn. I am now back in the States, and if you still really think I stole your property in accordance with postal laws (a felony), then I suggest you press charges, or at least take my offer or some other (if you would care to communicate directly with me), or just shut the hell up. You are embarrassed that YOU blew it, and are trying to make up for it in the eyes of your friends by attempting to slander me. If the horn belonged to Barlow - have him call me. But this is the last I will ever think of it unless you do.

If you forgot - you sent the horn late 1999...

Eric Burger
916-200-5507
tromboneburger@yahoo.com

I've always felt that most low brass folks over teach breathing and many times end up causing negative unintended consequences for their students.

I've noticed the cause and effect relationship but couldn't exactly say what what going wrong.

My old theory was that the students had unbalanced embouchures to start with or were made unbalanced by overdoing the breath obsessed teaching. That is, If you take an unbalanced/uncoordinated chop and blow a hurricane force wind thru them, the problems might get better for a short while, however ultimately they become far worse than they started.

While working on embouchure balance stuff this summer, I've made some observations in my own playing. By balance I mean balance with and between the lips/tongue/air aim and with the larger embouchure/blow. Through a bunch of experimentation, I observed I was out of balance on the Embouchure/blow ratio. Too much resistance controlled from the blow and not enough at the chops. By purposely moving some of the resistance/focus from my lungs to my lips(i.e. moving the resistance closer to my chops) my chops worked much better for me.

I noticed a dramatic improvement in my extreme ranges both high and low. I'm practicing in the high range up to and around high Bflat'(above the treble clef) and down to the double pedal ranges every day. As well as a big improvement in large interval slurs.

My theory is that when the most is being asked of your chops, at the extreme edges of your range, the balances are more important. The face muscles are relatively weak muscles and they much be perfectly balanced to have the leverage to do the job.

An example of how I worked on moving the focus from my air to my chops.

When I would do a slur over multiple partials, before I would just push a little more air(from my lungs) to get the higher note. The result is I would usually briefly chip the partial in between and when I reached the upper note my lips would feel out of balance, in the sense that they were topped out and we unable to shift to go any more in that direction. Now, I don't really change the air I just squeeze the air more with the lips. The results is I don't chip the in between notes and I feel a good grip on the upper note. ( there are obviously other things going on. Such as shifts and what not. I'm just pointing out what I was consciously trying to change. ceteris paribus).

 My favorite analogy for blow/chop balance was always the garden hose. To increase the stream of water you can either turn the clumsy knob at the faucet OR you can use your highly dexterous  thumb over the end of the hose. I'm trying to use more thumb and less faucet to get back into what is balance for my body.

due to differences in players physical and mental make up everyone will find a different balance. I'm just trying to find mine.

I'm curious if others players have noticed the same thing. I'd hate to be another player teaching students in a well intentioned but ultimately detrimental way.

P.S. This is all practice room stuff. I don't think about this at all when performing or while playing music. And even during the exercises I'm not thinking about all this stuff. I simplify it to focusing on one or two things. Like, Keep the blow constant or on the feel of my lips squeezing in concert.

This is simply something I incorporate into my practice to attain strength through balance. My aim is to train the soft machine, my personal version of Brass Calisthenics a la Caruso.

Tony

The band is always looking for work, as is every other great band in NYC. Probably too late for the post-Potsdam thing, though. The logistics of booking a 20+ piece band of working NYC musicians are complicated. Travel costs particularly. The flights, etc. are already booked. I know, because I am driving up in order to do a clinic beforehand and perhaps hook up some other work in the area.

Plus...the band is big and thus expensive. Not many clubs can afford to pay a band like that and deal with hotel and travel costs.

However...if you know anyone in Toronto who needs an itinerant trombonist (or anywhere else w/in say a couple of hundred miles of Potsdam), I'll be fairly close that November week or two and mobile because I'm driving.


No. Just met him, actually. (It's a big city...)

A fine player. Nice to work with, too.


Will do. Thanks for the tip. Send me a PM or email with his info and I will get on it the day after the Labor Day holiday is over here. Who's the right person to contact at U of T? Trombone, brass, jazz or latin bands...whatever.


Get in touch if you're coming...I can usually get people into most interesting gigs I play w/out a music charge, plus the rehearsals are sometimes better than the gigs.

Later...

Sam

Very cool Sam,

Amazing projects to be a part of.

Checked out some videos of The Mambo Legends on youtube, I'd go down to Detroit this weekend to see you guys if I wasn't busy. If the band is ever looking to come up to the Toronto area give me a shout. I have two friends who own a club Lula Lounge, that could be a good fit. They've brought up Isaac Delgado, Klimax etc. and could possibly work towards making something like that work. Possibly after that SUNY Potsdam gig?

Do you play with David Miller often? I had the opportunity to play 2nd trombone with him with La India's band a few months ago in Toronto. He's a beast and a very nice guy from the soundcheck/gig I got to hang with him at. I'm sure you must play together being in that scene in NYC.

I saw your posting about clinics in the area. It would be worth getting in touch with Humber College, and UofT to see if they'd be willing to do it. Denny Christianson is the guy at Humber, I can get you his specific contact info if you want but I know it's on the website. Al Kay was head of the brass department but has taken a year sabbatical.

All the best and hope to cross paths with you sometime soon. I gotta get down to NYC to visit again soon.

I used a 15C when I was trying them.

But I'm convinced its too big.

Once I have one in my possession, I'm going to talk to either Houser Mouthpieces about getting a piece like the one that came with my mellophone (1/2 way in between a trombone and trumpet piece) or see if Volkwiens repair department or anyone else could make me a leadpipe that accepts this shank.

Yeah, I'm weird.

And I don't care about sounding like any alto I've ever heard.

Thanks for the advice!