TromboneChat

Did you have an Easter gig? Tell us about it!

4 hour vigil mass last night, 4 hours of masses today. A good time- almost finished an entire book!

I had a rehearsal at 7:30am for services at 8:30 and 10:30. During the rehearsal I got a text asking if I could do an Easter gig at 9am because their lead trombonist was sick. Amazingly, I was able to find someone for them who missed the rehearsal but made it to the gig on time and sightread the music on the gig. They loved him.

Oh, my own gig was fun and easy, and at a really nice -- not stuffy or weird -- church.

Organ with brass quartet.

Our organist pulled out a different fanfare, titled "An Easter Fanfare" by Carla Giomo. Turned out to be pretty good!

My quintet got hired months ago, but then a couple of weeks ago the music director calls and says the church has split up, but not to worry because the half of the church he was with decided to honor the original deal - but there was a catch.

So we all agreed to the deal.

The catch was that we had to play 2 services - one for a brand new Lutheran congregation and one for the Baptists - an hour apart in the same sanctuary.

Biggest case of religious whiplash I've ever had. One group very detailed and methodical, the other severely disorganized and chaotic. Not to mention the content of the sermons. One group had a choir and did a number of hymns, another had a praise band and hardly knew what to do with a brass quintet. One group's equipment all worked and the other (on the same stage immediately after) delayed the service to figure out how to hook up an ipad.

Anyway, we got double the dose of religion today, and a brilliant lesson in organizational dynamics. These two groups have entered into a relationship that in the end will save them both, but from this point of view looks backwards and upside down.

The half of the church that split that got expelled from their building needed a new home and was taken in by a church on the decline that has more building than it needs and not enough funding. It's tragic in a way, but you can tell the group that is going to land on its feet and the group that will hopefully learn some good habits from their new tennants.

We opened with the Bankelsangerlieder and ended with Achieved Is The Glorious Work, on two very different ways of looking at the world that have been thrown together and must now coexist. It was more than just an Easter gig this year.

5 songs today instead of usual 3. “Music” (chord sheets) had been available online since Wednesday. Got everything ready. Second song was new, first measure at practice I noticed song was in E, and not the C I had…Singer switch. No big deal, transposed and kept going. “Praise” was first song, trumpet time. Trombone and euph shared next three. Last song at end of the service started with euph. Leader wanted some rumble leading into the song, bass guitar, drums, and euph down in tuba range provided plenty of rumble. For the ending part switched back to trumpet for a big ending. Sure would be nice if we had a few more brass players!

For many years I have been fortunate to play Easter and some services around Christmas at Trinity Church Copley Square in the heart of Boston. They have a very fine organ that was recently renovated and an excellent, well-funded music program with a fine amateur choir, a music director (currently an award-winning organist named Colin Lynch), and an associate director who is also an extremely fine organist. The recently retired MD was Richard Webster, who may be familiar to some of you as a prominent composer/arranger of church music. We play services at 8, 10 and noon with 25 minutes of preludes prior to each. The contractor is a good friend and one of Boston's finest trumpet players, and my colleagues on the gig are all fantastic. I feel very lucky.

I played my usual .500 bore horn, just to be different.

Had a wonderful time with a simple two song set at our church, piano, alto sax, violin, and me and my 4BF…it surprisingly blends well, but then again, we’ve been playing together for a few years now! ‘He Lives’ was in good form today. Easter, of course, is always special!

Since a few years, Easter has been a high tide for musical shows for me, because the principals want to get out of the shows. And as Hamburg is the German Broadway, I'm usually quite busy with that. On Friday I also played my first show of a new Disney show that premiered last Sunday which is 'Hercules'. I think it's been a touring production in US before for a short time. Fun to play, because the music is very much gospel-influenced. But a heavy book (no rests and a lot to play) with lots of 'real' bass trombone stuff and some nice funky tenor riffs. Did the same yesterday. On Saturday I played a double show of 'Frozen'.

So nothing special for Easter but this developed to be my Easter gig since a few years.

I went for a 3 hour walk in the countryside with my wife.
The trombone stayed in its case

Fidbone wrote: ↑Mon Apr 01, 2024 2:01 am I went for a 3 hour walk in the countryside with my wife.
The trombone stayed in its case

Even so, she must have been glad you brought it along

ithinknot wrote: ↑Mon Apr 01, 2024 2:59 am

Fidbone wrote: ↑Mon Apr 01, 2024 2:01 am I went for a 3 hour walk in the countryside with my wife.
The trombone stayed in its case

Even so, she must have been glad you brought it along

Unlikely

Six piece wind ensemble with organ and choir. Two services both packed. After the first, a kid came up to me. He has been playing trombone for a year, so I got to encourage him a bit. That was the best part.

Only one this year. Easter morning mass in Basel. Mozart Missa Brevis in Bb major

Visiting my 91 year old mother in law in the hospital after she fell and hit her head. Brain bleed. That was my Easter gig.

A bit of a tough week prior for me on bass, but took the new alto to the dance for the first time Sunday and enjoyed playing a few services for the masses.

A little busier than prior years...

Friday, a "Stations of the Cross" walk playing with the Salvation Army outdoors at lunchtime, then a Tenebrae service in the evening (both bass trombone).
Saturday, a funeral for a congregant whose church disbanded a year ago but still managed to regroup all of the choir for the occasion, then a Catholic Vigil service that evening (both of these on trumpet).
Sunday, Sunrise service with a pianist friend at a Presbyterian church, followed by a morning service at the same Catholic church as previous Vigil observance (both on trumpet).

Kingfan wrote: ↑Mon Apr 01, 2024 6:30 am Visiting my 91 year old mother in law in the hospital after she fell and hit her head. Brain bleed. That was my Easter gig.

Oh, no! I hope she's going to be okay.

I had 3 Easter gigs this year. The first was Saturday on tuba. Sunday was a bit hectic… I had two services back to back at different churches. And I only had 10 minutes to leave Easter Mass with the bass trombone… then drive WAY over the speed limit in town to get to my next gig playing lead trombone… I ran in just before the downbeat. At least I planned ahead and had my instrument and music set up prior to my first gig.

Good church, good music, one rehearsal, one service. All Doug Elliott mouthpiece trombone section. Truth be told the trombone section was me and the Lord of the Rims himself. Class act dude.

I did a performance at an old folks' home for Easter. I mostly sang but then used the trombone where appropriate to add to the performance. I had a violin player and a pianist backing me up. I told the story starting with the suffering of Christ through the resurrection with the music.
It was fun.

I have a wonderful recurring gig with a brass quartet at a Catholic church every Easter. It's on Holy Saturday, so I'm still free to attend church with my family Sunday morning.
Players are good and the pay is excellent.

I played bass bone in a brass quartet. Played a lot of the 2nd bone parts down an octave to give the group a solid bottom.
One 2 hr rehearsal. One service on Palm Sunday and 2 services on Easter Sunday.
An easy $800!