TromboneChat

This pic was posted on FB by someone. I don't think they took it, despite claiming they did*. Does anyone recognise the location &/or instrument? I just wonder if it belongs to anyone here.

* 1. They struggle reading bass clef
2. Their standard instrument is a JP. Not a JP Rath, the basic one
3. They also have posted Maniacal4's "Bohemian Rhapsody", claiming that it had taken them months to record.
4. I've sat next to them. They play neither in time nor tune. I might last 30 secs in a professional environment, they wouldn't.

It's not Aspen, Ravinia, Vail... Some other outdoor venue with an arching roof and the triangular ceiling treatment. Nothing showed up in a short search.

It's a modern Haag contra, if that narrows down anything.

If your bass is a JP, it seems unlikely you spend the cash on a new Haag contra... Someone is trolling pretty hard.

Burgerbob wrote: Mon Mar 16, 2026 2:53 pm It's a modern Haag contra, if that narrows down anything.

It's a start. I'd not heard of them, I wonder if they have?

MStarke wrote: Mon Mar 16, 2026 3:00 pm If your bass is a JP, it seems unlikely you spend the cash on a new Haag contra... Someone is trolling pretty hard.

JP straight tenor.

Yeah, there's trolling on line, and there's trolling (walting?) online and then pitching up to play in person. Claims 2 BMus's, an Mmus and studying for a MEng and PhD in music.

Know anyone with a Haag contra?

I have seen a picture of James Markey with what could be that exact contra. And the conductor COULD be Andris Nelsons, so this might be the Boston Symphony.

Jim also uses an ipad for pretty much everything.

So that's swarm intelligence here. Better than any AI, at least for now

Yup, that's Jim's POV at their summer venue (Tanglewood)

https://www.instagram.com/markeybone/p/DL5LDC9A2y6/

To add another data point...

That venue could well be the Koussevitzky Music Shed at Tanglewood...

See the image on this page:
https://www.bso.org/tmc/musical-life

NUTS...

Someone beat me to it...

I've attended at least 15-20 summer concerts at Tanglewood - either in the Koussevitzky Music Shed or on the lawn behind, so this venue is quite familiar to me. This particular concert (Götterdämmerung Act III) occurred on Saturday, July 20, 2024. Boston Symphony Orchestra / Andris Nelsons. Jim Markey's photo was taken at the rehearsal on Friday, July 19, 2024.
https://production.bso.org/events/wagne ... 20-20%3A00

I find this pretty hilarious actually!

MStarke wrote: Mon Mar 16, 2026 3:53 pm I find this pretty hilarious actually!

I suspect that the humor of the situation increases with one's distance from the person Drombone is dealing with.

I was going to say, that's definitely Andris Nelsons, and that's definitely Tanglewood...

JohnL wrote: Mon Mar 16, 2026 3:56 pm

MStarke wrote: Mon Mar 16, 2026 3:53 pm I find this pretty hilarious actually!

I suspect that the humor of the situation increases with one's distance from the person Drombone is dealing with.

You are not wrong. They are a fantasist, and a liar. In Military circles, they are bloaters (if they served) or Walts (Walter Mitty...). They are also potentially dangerous if cornered, will play the victim and play the "I'm being bullied" card as loudly and as far as they can, throwing as much around as possible hoping it sticks.

We will need to play them out. It won't take much. Off the top of my head, Holst's second suite and Goff Richards's Jaguar are the most difficult pieces in our library, I might suggest we get those out. The player in question tries to hide on Euph, so any suggestions for pieces for concert band with exposed and difficult Euph parts would be appreciated.

Drombone wrote: Mon Mar 16, 2026 8:39 pm The player in question tries to hide on Euph, so any suggestions for pieces for concert band with exposed and difficult Euph parts would be appreciated.

There's a couple tricky bits for euphonium in the Second Suite, so you might start with that.

If you want to really precipitate a meltdown, download Karl King's The Melody Shop from Band Music PDF here. A word of warning: it's a full-on screamer, so everyone gets a serious workout. The woodwinds may well key your car after rehearsal.

JohnL wrote: Mon Mar 16, 2026 3:56 pm

MStarke wrote: Mon Mar 16, 2026 3:53 pm I find this pretty hilarious actually!

I suspect that the humor of the situation increases with one's distance from the person Drombone is dealing with.

True... I mean it could be a misunderstood joke, but yes, it rather makes the impression of a really annoying person to handle. I just find it somewhat absurd to somehow pose as Jim Markey in order to for whatever reason pretend to be something fancy?

Not just in demand in the USA, France, too...

(It's a stock photo taken at least 14 years prior to them posting it)

And they have a page dedicated to their art, which is almost entirely straight or mildly edited copies of other artists' work