Band and the Power of the Suffix

So, last week on Facebook, a friend asked for recommendations on musical instruments for her 11 year old son to try. Since she asked my opinion, the trombone!

Hawthorne Junior High Marching Band

I played the trombone and loved it. My mother made, and I mean “made” me  because she played the trombone as a kid. My first high school t-shirt said, “Loud, Proud Poky Pep Band Member.”

There are many reasons the trombone is the instrument to play. You don’t have to worry about breaking and supplying reeds like the woodwinds to.  During marching band season when practices are in the early freezing cold, you can wear mittens and still play.  Trombones get to be loud in the pep band and often have fun solos. During football games, you can play the sliding crescendo with the kickoff’s rise and decent and the whole arena can hear you.  You can “accidentally” empty your spit valve on the saxophones if they are getting a little irritating or too-cool-for-school. 

When I was in band, I was the only girl who played a low brass instrument until my friend Nicole joined with the baritone. Apparently when my mom was young, there was a lot of drama among the predominantly female flutes and clarinets and she wanted to spare me that. My experience being the lone female among the trombones set up my social comfort nicely for the predominantly male settings of engineering.

My friend’s son is only allowed to begin with the trumpet, clarinet or saxophone. I get it. Fine. It is a rather large instrument, so I suggested he start with the trumpet. The trumpets and trombones are bound by brass. Transitioning to the trombone after the trumpet is pretty straightforward.

So note. He can begin as a clarinetist, saxophonist or trumpeter. The suffixes become especially important as a young band member when you get to the trombone. I was a trombonist, but in my excitement during seventh grade PE when telling my peers I was in the band, I mixed up my suffixes.

If you don’t talk to your kids about suffixes, someone else will. 

My peers talked to me to the point of terrible teasing that didn’t fade for what seemed like forever. When I told my mom about it, she encouraged me to laugh with them and play louder. So, I did.

When I got to high school, there was more teasing along these suffixed lines from my upper class volleyball teammates but a swift blast from my horn pointed right at them quelled it quickly. Words and suffixes are powerful, but they were no match for the trombone and any loud, proud pep  band member.