Reed trumpet/ trumpophone

[Rosco]

The guy who does my saxophone maintainence has a curious hobby- taking bits of different instruments and splicing them together to create odd new instruments. His latest creation is a digeridoo with a tenor saxophone mouthpiece, crook and bell (a digeriphone? a saxodoo?). He also created a very nice Dizzy-style upturned trumpet, using bits from old trumpets and a piece of a saxophone crook.

So, I asked him if he'd ever considered putting a saxophone mouthpiece on a trumpet. A light bulb went on over his head and he started rummaging around for bits and pieces to use.

So, I'd like to know if anyone has any knowledge about trumpet/ saxophone hybrids. Eddie Harris used a reed trumpet and Roland Kirk played a 'trumpophone'. Anyone know anything about these instruments? I'm very interested in how they were they created- it's a little more complicated than just jamming a sax mouthpiece onto a trumpet. Are there any other players who used similar instruments?

If the guy can build the thing, I'm totally up for playing it!

[mikeweil]

Eddie Harris stated it was easier on the chops playing with a reed rather than a bowl shaped mouthpiece. You could see the thing rather nicely on the cover of Free Speech.

Edited August 24, 2007 by mikeweil

[Rosco]

Eddie Harris stated it was easier on the chops playing with a reed rather than a bowl shaped mouthpiece.

I would imagine so. I used to dabble in the trumpet but the trumpet is an instrument that won't stand for you dabbling. You gotta play that sumbitch for two hours a day just to keep your lip in shape. At the time, I couldn't devote that kind of time to it and never did develop much in the way of an embrochure.

[Eloe Omoe]

Eddie Harris stated it was easier on the chops playing with a reed rather than a bowl shaped mouthpiece.

I seem to remember that Eddie had also written an instructional book on how to play the reed trumpet (which he held the U.S. patent to). Maybe it's still available from his website.

Edited August 25, 2007 by Eloe Omoe

[JohnS]

There's somthing called a slide saxophone. Snub Mosley was an exponent long ago. A little like an alto sax mouthpiece and crook with a slide sort of describes it.

[mikeweil]

Eddie Harris stated it was easier on the chops playing with a reed rather than a bowl shaped mouthpiece.

I seem to remember that Eddie had also written an instructional book on how to play the reed trumpet (which he held the U.S. patent to). Maybe it's still available from his website.

Hmmmmmm ...... if one looks there, one finds a reference to the reed trumpet on the cover of The Eddie Harris Intervilistic Concept for all single line indtruments.