Sleep apnea – What they don’t tell you! (Part 7)

written by Bruce Chidester on April 25, 2024

Short but helpful suggestions: Handling the hose- To keep from being strangled to death with your hose, run it from your machine over the back of the headboard and down to your pillow. In this way it is controlled and you will not fight it all night as you move around. Use the least amount of tension on the mask straps and still have an air tight seal. Those with stuffy noses from allergies can find relief with Vicks VapoRub. Each night I unscrew the lid, stick my nose into the jar just enough to feel the ointment, then draw…

Sleep apnea – What they don’t tell you! (Part 6)

written by Bruce Chidester

Do you have to use your machine every night? NO! Knowing that involuntary habits can actually be retrained made me wonder if the Bipap/Cpap therapy is something that needs to be continued indefinitely. My answer to that question (in my case) is an emphatic No! I began my test to…

Sleep apnea – What they don’t tell you! (Part 5)

written by Bruce Chidester

#1 Complaint- Dry mouth After visiting with other sufferers of Sleep Apnea, the most consistent complaint seemed to be dry mouth. The dryness in my mouth each morning was so severe that I eventually developed a lesion in the back of my throat which progressed into a serious problem. After…

Sleep apnea – What they don’t tell you! (Part 4)

written by Bruce Chidester

Setting up the equipment The next step after gleaning this useless information was to receive your own machine which will solve all of your Sleep Apnea problems. My first question at that time was, “How can an involuntary action (apnea episodes) be retrained to become voluntary actions”? I was assured…

Clocking Mouthpieces- A Practice from the Past

written by Bruce Chidester

My first introduction to clocking a brass instrument mouthpiece began several decades ago when I was returning home from Willard Elementary School in Moline, Illinois. On the way home I stopped at a local gas station to visit with its owner. That day I happened to be lugging my Olds…

Substantiating Evidence That All Trumpet Mouthpieces are Not Equal (or consistent).

written by Bruce Chidester

In a previous post, I addressed the practice of “Clocking” your mouthpiece (“Clocking” Your Mouthpiece Part #2 – Trumpet Blog (thetrumpetblog.com). At the end of my post, I admitted to the possibility that rotating one’s mouthpiece can and did change the sound as well as a resistance factor. In the…

Musician Humor

written by Bruce Chidester

From time to time I am sent musician jokes from friends and I thought these were worth posting. A seasoned musician will understand clearly what is going on for we have all been there. Enjoy. A very intense, self-absorbed saxophone player is sitting at the bar after playing all night.…

Practicing on the Road

written by Bruce Chidester

Much discussion has been raise over the noise factor when practicing on the road and for that reason I wanted to give just another suggestion for solving this problem. Next week I will be on one of our vacations and because of the luggage limitations, I will not be able…

The Great American Shoot Out Part 5- String Trio vs. Brass Trio

written by Bruce Chidester

In our ever-continuing struggle to gain prominence in the world of instrumental performances, I have now posted the 5th in our series entitled “The Great American Shoot Out” which compares music written for various ensembles and solo instruments to the technical ability of the Trumpet. Vivaldi composed this number (La…

The Best Tongue XRay

written by Bruce Chidester

If you ever wondered what was going on in your mouth while playing your Trumpet….. Check this out …..and Trombone.

Required Listening Assignment

written by Bruce Chidester

As the interest in Trumpet choirs continues to grow, some ensembles seem to occupy the highest level of professionalism. Such is the case for the San Luis Obispo County Trumpet Alliance and their most accomplished director Warren Balfour. I have had the pleasure of knowing and following this remarkable ensemble…

Possibly The Most Difficult Record Copy Ever Made

written by Bruce Chidester

One of my all-time favorite Dixieland groups was Kenny Ball And His Jazzmen. A list of their successes in the early 1960s would include the following- Midnight in Moscow, The Green Leaves of Summer, Sukiyaki, Hello Dolly and When I’m Sixty- Four. But the most impressive recording in my opinion,…

How to Play a Low F in Tune

written by Bruce Chidester

Not often, but enough to learn this trick, we are asked to play a low F. Usually it is required by someone who knows nothing about our instrument or acceptable orchestration practices. Or, in the case recently, where I arranged a number which required the first trumpet to exceed what…

Trumpet Tips

Perfect Pitch and How You Can Develop It

written by Bruce Chidester

Perfect pitch, also known as absolute pitch, is a rare and highly sought-after ability in the world of music. It refers to the ability to identify and reproduce any musical note without any reference point. This means that someone with perfect pitch can hear a note and immediately know its…