TromboneChat

Anyone know what model Yamaha and bore size Curtis Plays?

I always thought it was an Olds Opera 551 with 8.5 bell ???

Interview with Curtis Fuller by author (Eddie Lee Elsey Jr.), 5 May 2007

Author: What equipment do you primarily use?

CF: I had a William White mouthpiece that was given to me in the military but the first mouthpiece that I had was a Rudy Mook [sic.]. I was told that the standard for measuring a good mouthpiece was that if you took a quarter and it fit inside the cup and it was level with the rim, then you would have a good mouthpiece. My quarter was level with that mouthpiece and it worked for me. 1 never fished around with too many other mouthpieces.

As far as trombones, back in the day, I played on a sterling silver Olds trombone but now I've changed for the first time in years to a darkish green-gold Yamaha trombone. I'm old fashioned in my horns and triggers just get in the way. I also can't play horns with triggers because of my lung operation in 1994 and those horns are just too heavy for me.

Elsey, Eddie Lee Jr., "A Comparison of Two Distinctive Jazz Trombone Artists, David Steinmeyer and Curtis Fuller" (2008). Dissertations. 1108. https://aquila.usm.edu/dissertations/1108

Wouldn’t it be great if someone interviewed Curtis Fuller and posted it somewhere. I can’t believe this hasn’t been done since 2008. Interview him live, stream it.The man’s a legend.

Thanks

Hit up David Gibson, he was an admin on the old forum.
He was close with Curtis up in NYC.
Also, a great player and a nice guy.

And J Priester too. And Grachan Moncur.

Bach5G wrote: ↑Thu Jun 25, 2020 9:31 pm And J Priester too. And Grachan Moncur.

And the father himself...

back in the day, I played on a sterling silver Olds trombone
I don't think Olds ever made a sterling silver bell as part of it's regular production line. I think he's mixing it up with Nickel-Silver plating of the Olds Opera.

Arrowhead wrote: ↑Tue Jun 30, 2020 6:14 pm back in the day, I played on a sterling silver Olds trombone
I don't think Olds ever made a sterling silver bell as part of it's regular production line. I think he's mixing it up with Nickel-Silver plating of the Olds Opera.

Arrowhead,

I believe you're right. Many folks confuse "Nickel-Silver (which contains no silver) with Sterling Silver.

It's reasonably clear that Curtis was never a "gearhead" who obsessed about his equipment – I expect that, to him, a trombone was just a tool to make music. He also apparently never had a drawer full of mouthpieces either - he may have played whatever came with his horn, as long as that quarter fit into the cup!