Brass Chats Interview with Charles Daellenbach

The world-famous Canadian Brass came to play in Hartford, Connecticut this past winter, and the Monster boys were fortunate enough to snag some tickets. Obviously, seeing the Canadian Brass is a bucket-list concert item—and if you haven’t checked that box, when all of the sheltering-in-place is behind us, do it!!—but even COOLER was the fact that Charles Daellenbach (tuba player/performer extraordinaire and founding member of The Canadian Brass) sat down with us after the show for a beer and a chat!

The gracious Mr. Daellenbach was generous with his time and shared so much. You’ll hear great stories, all the way from Arnold Jacobs to tales from the road (like headlining a….hang on…..Country and Western Festival?!).

As with each of the Brass Chats, there’s plenty here that stays with you after the interview, and lots of ideas that you can start to implement the minute you finish watching. Charles tells us about why many freelancers fail to find work, how ideas are everywhere all the time for the taking, how to put on a show without selling out, and much more.

We hope you enjoy! Love,

Tom, Chris, and Joel—Monsters.

Brass Chats Interview with Michael Davis

If your supplemental musical web surfing has not brought you into the path of this month’s Brass Chatter, you’re probably living in a house made of rocks and need to go out back to see if the pterodactyl holding your internet connection in place is still alive. Test it by poking him with a stick, and once he (this is a Flintstones joke kids, stick with us for a sec) looks at the fourth wall and says “hey….it’s a livin!” ….you’ll know the problem is fixed. Now that your connection is fixed and you’ve gone back inside under your rock roof and sat down in your rock chair, we have two jobs for you:

Job One: watch this Brass Chat! Michael is a dude who….just knows. You name it and he’s played it, and you’ll hear about a bunch of it here, from playing with the Rolling Stones to Buddy Rich to Broadway. You’ll also get to learn how he built his business from the ground up, what his most moving performance was, his thoughts on learning how to improvise, and the most important element to his success. Speaking of that…..

Job Two: start exploring the boundless universe of amazing things that our friend Michael Davis! has created! Your jumping-off-point is hip-bonemusic.com, where you’ll find yourself up to your eyeballs in books, instructional videos, online lessons, and other treasures. You should also check out his fabulous interview series called Bone2Pick.

Michael is a huge inspiration to all of us in the brass world, and he was one of our funnest and funniest interviews we’ve ever done. We hope to get him back on for round 2 someday. Until then: this interview was a ridiculously easy edit—-there was so much amazing stuff in there that we basically kept everything. So, enjoy!

Love,

Joel, Tom, Chris - Monsters.

Brass Chats Interview With Jack Sutte

Happy New Year everybody! Thanks for being Brass Chats fans. Exciting stuff to come this year! Okay, enough of that——on to this month:

Remember last month when we opened with “Michael Sachs is….not like us”? Well…..had we interviewed this month’s guest first, he definitely would’ve gotten that sentence. JACK SUTTE! Is……Not. Like. Us. (In a good way but) Not. Like. Us.

Tune up the video to feast upon stories about his first day on the job in Cleveland back in 1999, playing Tomasi—in high school 🤮🤮🤮—and if your screen doesn’t recognize those, they were barfing faces—, why he doesn’t have a daily routine (?!), and how he switches between playing orchestral 2nd trumpet and the most challenging solo repertoire ever written. He’s on a quest to record every trumpet sonata in existence, and we are not joking, so if you want to troll him, WRITE SOME MORE TRUMPET SONATAS SO HE’LL NEVER FINISH. …but he’s damn close, so get moving!

Speaking of getting moving: it’s our hope that this month’s (and every month’s) Brass Chat is part of the tonic you need to motivate, inspire, and encourage you down on your paths of musical productivity in the new decade. We have big goals, and so do you. Thanks Jack Sutte, for helping us take the first step!!

Love you all,

Joel, Tom, Chris - Monsters.

Brass Chats Interview with Michael Sachs

Michael Sachs is….not like us.

His trumpet sound is comprised of equal parts pure molten gold, Old-Testament-fire-and-fury, new puppy fur, goose-pimple-shivers, maple syrup, Mahler’s image of heaven, heartbreak, and electrocution; our sounds are comprised of equal parts desperation and diarrhea. He’s spent more hours deciphering voodoo elements and tweaks of trumpet construction (MANY details in the interview, that you can try!!!!) than we’ve spent actually playing the trumpet…..he knows how to approach James Stamp exercises, and we, as it turns out…….don’t.

Want to learn how to play Stamp? You’ve come to the right place!

Want to learn some trumpet tweaks that you can do, today, to make your horn play better? You’re about to listen to the right guy! (…it’s a wormhole, but it’s worth it!)

Want to hear what a big-5 principal learned from watching Nolan Ryan (one of the greatest pitchers of all time) warm up? Hit that play button.

Hanging with Michael Sachs was an absolute treat, and he was generous with his time and info—we’ll hit him up again someday, because the hour wasn’t nearly enough!

Happy Thanksgiving! We love you all and we’re thankful to all our Brass Chats guests, thankful that we get to do this, and thankful that you like watching.

Love,

Monsters

Brass Chats Lesson with John Rommel

From the desk of Tom Brown, 1/3rd of Monster Oil:

“It was 1998.  I had just finished up my undergraduate degree and was trying to figure out why I still had fundamental issues with the trumpet.

I had countless friends who went on and on about what Indiana University Professor John Rommel had done for their playing, so I gave him a call. That first hour I had with him was the most inspirational hour of my trumpet career.  

In this lesson he had the courage to tell me I was fundamentally playing the trumpet incorrectly, that there was an easier way, and then proceeded to tell me how it could be fixed. 

Fast forward to the summer of 2018.  I purchased a 2000 Lincoln Town Car station wagon (don't ask) that had a tape deck.  So I went into my garage and the first tape I pulled out of an old box (full of maybe 200 tapes) was THIS lesson.  So....this was meant to be.

I called Professor Rommel and asked him if he'd be ok with us releasing it as a Brass Chat.  He said sure (mostly).  So I spent a fair amount of time cleaning up the sound quality which was pretty bad.  And I must say the tape is as inspirational today as it was then.  

Thankfully for you, I don't do much playing in the lesson.  He talks most of the time, and the info is applicable to pretty much anybody who plays, not just me.  

Don't worry, this isn't a substitute for a proper Brass Chat with Mr. Rommel, but we thought you might find it interesting.”

There it is—fabulously inspiring raw trumpet content, rescued by pure serendipity from the bowels of an old stinky cardboard box. Your brain is like a stinky cardboard box right now; fill it with this tape to fix!

Love,

Monsters

Brass Chats Interview with Thomas Gansch

Here is our prescribed method for watching this, our latest installment of Brass Chats, in FOUR easy steps:

1. If you’ve never watched Thomas Gansch and Mnozil Brass perform before, find them on Youtube and watch them blow a couple tunes out of the water. If you’re already familiar with them, go watch your favorite one

2. Search for your jaw on the floor, wipe your tears away, mend the shattered pieces of your broken heart, and pull yourself back together as you get ready for step 3

3. Watch this interview with our new favorite human being, Thomas Gansch

4. Go back, armed with what you now know about fearlessness, individuality, sound concepts, performing concepts, artistry, emotion, theater, Al Pacino, and much more, and repeat step 1 for a whole new experience

This method will be the best hour and a half you’ll spend all year on becoming a better artist. If we still haven’t sold you (which, why are you even on this page), within this Brass Chat you will find Thomas Gansch’s ruminations on:

• the beginnings of Mnozil

• the correct and incorrect pronunciations of Mnozil

• the key to cosmic understanding

• finding his own musical identity

• falling in love with jazz

• the best trumpet player that has ever walked this planet

• how much he practices per day

• who he wants to play at his funeral

• the most important thing in life (spoiler alert: it may or may not be five hundred dubba C’s in a row)

• the secret to his unstoppable endurance

• his daily warm-up/routine

• Mark Gould

• his biggest vice

…and much more. Eat up, you savages!

Love,

Monsters

PS: if you’ve never seen Mnozil, start looking for the next time they come to town. It is a different, much better experience than watching them online, and is worth missing your grandma’s birthday, or taco night, or church, or your kid’s recital, or your kid’s first steps, or your kid’s birth, or whatever you people do in your free time. Cheers!

Brass Chats Interview with Chad Winkler

Chad Winkler is magical, on so many levels. Well…at least two: …okay, two and a half:

First level, obviously, would be his trumpet prowess. Second level, there’s this. …I know, right?! And the half-level? Chad tells us his favorite magician in the famous Monster Round.

Why on earth do you care about that? …You don’t, of course. But maybe you will care about:

• What he learned from George Vosburgh

• Chad playing the Posthorn solo at Mahler’s grave

• Chad’s obsession with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra

• The best horns Chad’s ever played

• The meanest thing he’s ever said to a student

• How a warmup should never last more than ten minutes

• and much more.

Intrigued? Tantalized? Invigorated? Motivated? Fumigated? CONSTIPATED?!?! US TOO!!!!!!!!

Enough poop jokes. Go get better at music! It’s BRASS CHATS. Hit it!

Love - Monsters.

Brass Chats Interview with David Bilger

Welp, another month has come and gone since our last chat, which means at this point you’re stuck in a rut with no motivation, no practice material, no fun, and stagnant musical bones. Lucky for you, this month’s Brass Chatter is David Bilger, principal trumpet of the Philadelphia Orchestra—and as you might expect, he is an all-around winner.

Within these walls, you will find out:

• the details of Dave’s entire routine

• the hardest things he had to play in the Philly audition

• Dave’s Mount Rushmore of trumpet players

• the most important characteristic shared by Dave’s best students (…do you have them?)

• what Dave learned from Ray Mase

• the secret code that Dave and Tony Prisk share before every performance

• stories about Dave and Mike Sachs battling it out in the Dallas finals, Mark Gould telling Dave he needs to learn to play like a Jew, and other yarns

• how trumpet’s really not that big a deal

He’s a fountain of information, and when you’re done here with us you should go check out his Play With a Pro project. Dave’s a treat, his comedy chops are on point, and his trumpet chops are pretty good too. May this provide fuel for this month, and beyond!

And don’t forget, if all this puts lube on your mind, coupon code “Bilgeriferous” will spot you 16.66%—just click “products” atop this page, and go nuts!

Love, Monsters

Interview with Scott Laskey - Brass Chats

So, in December of 2017 we went on an epic adventure and filmed 10 episodes of Brass Chats around the country. Among these was Scott Laskey, who we caught up with at the Midwest Clinic in Chicago.

After the trip we had some planning to do, including the order in which these Brass Chats should be released. We based our decisions on a few criteria, and ended up deciding (back in December) to release Scott's chat in September, 2018. 

If you're here, you probably know by now: Scott passed away about a month ago. He will be dearly missed by the trumpet, brass, and music communities. We very much regret that he never got to see this Brass Chat, which is absolutely fantastic and will be appreciated and combed over for many years because of the wide array of topics he covers, and the wisdom he brought to the table.

In a first for Brass Chats, we have decided to release this Chat unedited. We don't want you to miss out on any part of this interview, which was among his last. It runs for about one hour and fifteen minutes, and as you'll see, could have gone muuuuch longer if time had permitted. If you need more motivation to watch, the following phrase might help: "Bud Herseth's mouthpiece."

There will be no coupon code this month. Don't buy Monster Oil... Instead:

1. Email [email protected] with your best Scott story. This is something his family has set up, and we can't wait to see the final product, so don't delay.

2. Grab your favorite Laskey mouthpiece and play as loud as you're able for as long as possible in your next practice session.

We will miss you, Scott! Thanks for everything you did for the trumpet world, and thanks for hanging out with us. 

Buckle up, it's Brass Chats time! This month's candidate is a real treat. If you want to know:

• what it was like playing with Chris Martin
• how many practice hours you should be putting in on your instrument
• how to get an efficient warm up in twenty minutes
• how to be a more consistent player

...look no further than Brass Chats, Season 2, Episode 7: Tage Larsen. He's the 4th/utility trumpet player with the legendary Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and if you listen to him chat with us for a bit, you just also might hear about:

• his favorite new exercise craze
• singing in a reggae band
• just what in the heck he has to do with the Mighty Mighty Bosstones.

Join us! Thanks Tage!!!

He practiced five hours a day for like ten straight years, keeping detailed logs the entire time, and he shares these logs with his students.

He played with a good handful of principal trumpets in Houston, informing his second-trumpet expertise more than nearly any other player—ever.

He almost stopped playing in Houston 'cause he couldn't figure trumpet out. 

He rides escalators in the wrong direction.

He changed his trumpet playing completely using a dental apparatus (could you do the same?...it's like a get-good-quick scheme. People like that, right? You guys like that?).

It's been a "long time" since he cried himself to sleep. (sure, Tony.)

He has the inside scoop on what it's like to play with Dave Bilger.

And of course—he passed the Monster Round with flying colors.

He is.....the Most Interesting Second Trumpet Player in the World.

Monster Lesson: when your creative juices aren't flowing, steal and modify something someone else has created. This applies HEAVILY to trumpet. And jazz. And making blog posts. We'd like to thank Dos Equis Beer. Prost, Prisk, and enjoy this month's installment of Brass Chats!!!