<p>Righto, I realise this really isn't about majoring in music as such, however it seemed the most appropriate forum post this in.</p>
<p>In year 8 I began my musical journey with Trumpet. To be honest I didn't think it through as well as I should have, but none the less I enjoyed it and played for 3 years. At the end of last, I was approached by my Wind Orchestra conductor about playing the Euphoniun instead of Trumpet. It really was unfair - the choice was up to me but the question was bound to be answered with the optioned they desired as if I did not accept the Eupho position I'd be effectively stuck on 3rd chair (the other trumpeters have been playing far longer than I so I mostly played 2nd or 3rd prior to this) for the rest of my time in the Orchestra (Year 11 which I'm in now and Year 12). </p>
<p>Hesitantly I agreed to play the Eupho, however now I'm entirely regretting it. Music is supposed to be something you love, and honestly I do not like my new instrument at all. My parents, who aren't exactly reeling in huge salaries, had even gone out and purchased me a new Trumpet after hiring for 2.5 of my 3 years of learning and now it sits in my cupboard at home. Playing it successfully is almost impossible as every time I try, I'm simply offset by the larger Eupho mouthpiece and it feels uncomfortable. I'm not even practicing my parts (in-class and band) for the Eupho because I simply do not enjoy the instrument enough to want to try, and now my teacher has been continually pointing out that I'm the "best" Eupho player in the school and I need to live up to that by actually giving a damn, something I just cannot do. I sit in band watching the Alto Saxes and Clarinets and Trumpets and Flutes and every other instrument there is playing intricate melodies while I'm stuck with boring and dry pieces with no flavour at all. Going back to what I said earlier, I look back in retrospect and wish I took Clarinet or Sax (Alto/Soprano) instead because I wouldn't find myself in the predicament I'm in now and I just have a feeling I'd enjoy them more.</p>
<p>In summary, I hate my instrument. I can't just quit now because my parents have had to fork out cash for lessons (which I assumed were for the Trumpet until I was informed of my new instrument) and even the hire of the Eupho, which is completely unfair because it was never my choice to play it at all. As a result, I'm stuck playing something I despise for the rest of the school year (until November, I'm Australian). </p>
<p>I realise I don't have much of a question in all of this, it was more like a rant that I'd been storing up inside for the 3-4 months I've been playing this, but anyway, does anyone have any suggestions as to what I could do at all? </p>
<p>Do not continue if it gives you no pleasure. Do not bend to the needs of a program or the urgings of a band/orchestral teacher. The decision to play in your case is a personal choice, based on the satisfaction you glean from your participation with music. The switch to euphonium was not a conscious, directed, goal oriented personal choice. If you enjoy playing the trumpet, by all means return to it. </p>
<p>This is clearly not a case of wanting to expand by doubling on instruments, a desire to progress musically, or an additional option to pursue at an advanced level in college or avocationally. My guess is you said “yes” in the spirit of cooperation and fellowship. Talk frankly with the conductor, and detail your preference and desire to return to the trumpet.</p>
<p>He will either accept your desire and allow you to return to your primary, tacitly agree and continually hound you, or or be steadfastly opposed. If the latter two scenarios surface, I would seek alternative playing opportunities through other programs or community orchestras. If he places self-serving interest above your own needs, bail out.</p>
<p>The choice is a continued self-fulfillment or a growing dislike of what once was a source of pleasure.</p>
<p>The lesson/instrument costs and rental agreement can probably be renegotiated. You may have a “hit” and have to absorb some early return charges on the rental instrument, or worst case pay the full rental price. If the instruction is through the school, it should be easily changed; if contracted privately, it can either have been a monthly contract or pay as you go scenario. I don’t think it was a school year contract, as that is not the norm for private instruction in the States.</p>
<p>Edit: If your parents bought you a trumpet in lieu of continued rental, my take is that they are supporting your musical endeavors. I would venture they will have few issues by taking a slight loss on euph lessons and costs rather than see you abandon your love and pursuit of the trumpet.</p>
<p>However, my tuition is through the school, so the cost covers the whole year.</p>
<p>If I wanted to progress musically however, I would most definitely take up Saxophone as a means of doing so, as I’ve discovered that aside from my pursuits in Trumpeting, Saxophone has become an instrument I’ve grown to appreciate and love. As a matter of fact I’ve a friend in a similar position who was somewhat forced into taking up the Sax over the Trumpet.]</p>
<p>Edit: Returning to the Trumpet will be a problem however, as I’ve grown acustomed to the larger Eupho mouthpiece now, and the Trumpet mouthpiece is far to small for me to comfortably play anymore.</p>
<p>Unless you investigate what if any accomodations can be made, you’ll never know. At least see what options are available.</p>
<p>As for the mouthpiece issues, my experience is in strings, so I can’t speak to the embrochure adjustment issues. There are students/parents here with experience that will hopefully comment.</p>
<p>I’m hesitant to suggest adding the sax given you were talked into the eupho, as it might compound the issue unless the program needs sax players. You might be opening a can of worms if the conductor is uncooperative. I see a return to the trumpet as a more viable option. You may face embrochure issues with the sax as well.</p>
<p>Your story takes me back. I was a trombonist who dabbled in baritone horn (a lot like your eupho) back in high school. In senior year my director needed one more body on the sousaphone for football marching season. Since I could read bass clef and knew fingerings, he tapped me.</p>
<p>I hated that bloody thing. I never got used to the size of the mouthpiece and tended to play everything an octave high since I was used to the bari horn.</p>
<p>After about the second football game of fall season I went to my director and told him that I’d committed to football season and I fully intended to honor that commitment, but not to assume I’d play it for concert season. I told him, essentially, that he could have me on the 'bone or the bari but, one way or the other, he needed somebody else for tuba because I’d sit out my last season rather than play that thing anymore.</p>
<p>He thanked me both for helping out during football season and for my honesty about the horn and I was back on the trombone when concert season started.</p>
<p>It should matter to your teacher if you’re getting something out of your musical experience. You’ve given this other horn a shot and it didn’t work out. It’s his problem to find another eupho player and, frankly, one of the trombones will have a much easier transition since the mouthpiece is the same size for each horn. If you have to threaten him, do it. You should be enjoying band.</p>
<p>If you think the Euphonium mouthpiece messed up your trumpet embouchure, wait till you see what the sax does to it.</p>
<p>It is difficult to play the Euph and trumpet at the same time. However, it should really not be that difficult to go back to trumpet once you give up euph. There will be a time period of adjustment, just like there was going the other direction. But it should be sooner, because you will have some muscle memory.</p>
<p>The sax uses different muscles and mouth placement. If you are sincerely concerned about the outlay of money on your parents’ part, I don’t think you should be considering moving to a new instrument.</p>
<p>If you were stuck on 2nd and 3rd trumpet because you hadn’t been playing that long, you will be even worse off on sax, starting now.</p>
<p>But really, years spent in practice is not an absolute. There are students who start late, and quickly overtake, because they learn how to effectively practice, and because their basic love of the instrument comes through.</p>
<p>If this were a vote, here is mine:
Quit Euphonium. Tell your teacher you miss the trumpet too much.
Skip the idea of a sax for now. Going from trumpet to euphonium to sax will just make you seem wishy-washy, and lacking commitment. Pick one thing, and see it through. In this case, trumpet.
<p>My advice would be to talk to the music director and tell him that you just don’t like the Euphonium and you want to switch back to the trumpet. The one thing that will drive anyone away from music is playing something they don’t like. Switching to an instrument you don’t love to ‘be the best’ is self defeating, because to be the best simply because no one else is playing it at all well isn’t much of anything. It would be like being in an orchestra that had lot of talented violinists, but no good violists, switching to viola because you would be ‘the principal’, even though playng the viola turned you off <em>shrug</em>.</p>
<p>It would be better to be dead last on an instrument you love to play then being first on something you wanted to melt down for razor blades.</p>
<p>I have more then a little experience with that, my S has been in programs with kids who were forced to play a musical instrument by their family, and even though some of them became quite good, it was obvious they didn’t want to be there and it brought down the level of the whole program because of that. Play it because you love it,not because someone says ‘they need it’. Switching for marching band is one thing (as some talked about), switching because the director needed an instrument and because you might be first stand but you don’t like it, forget it, isn’t going to work IME.</p>
<p>As far as the mouthpiece goes, that revert back if you go back to the trumpet.It is going to take practice, it is no different then dropping an instrument and going back to it, it takes time to get back what you had.</p>
<p>There’s just one problem with enjoying band - I don’t. The same could be said for everyone else. The conductor is an absolute tool and we’ve no choice in whether or not we want to play. I think I’d enjoy the Euph a little more if I could play in our jazz band, but there’s no room for it and the same can be said for Trumpets - we already have about 5 and they don’t need another.</p>
<p>Also blinx, I couldn’t care less if I was on 4th or 3rd chair should I start the sax. I never minded it with the Trumpet because I was playing something I enjoyed. I don’t play to be the best, I play because I enjoy it.</p>