Other instrument stories...

pirata · #1 08-04-2000, 07:14 PM

I'd like to hear if anyone has had any mishaps at a gig/recital/concert playing an instrument other than the bass.

A few years ago, I was at the winter band concert. I had recently started the trombone and was still a little clumsey with the slide and the slide lock. During a session where the Jazz Band was playing, I lost my concentration and let go of the slide, having it slip off the instrument, down the stairs and into the audience. It was awful.

eli · #2 08-19-2000, 07:38 PM

I was playing the final concert of the year for the 4th jazz band in college on my string bass.

The bass starts to slip out of tune, can't imagine why... I adjust my hand position to bring it back in... it keeps dropping... suddenly the strings go LIMP. It took me what seemed like a week to realize that the bridge had FALLEN OUT!

Fortunately, I was playing through an amp and had my electric there. Amazingly enough, I only lost about three or four bars before I had the electric strapped on, plugged in, and playing again.

Got a special round of applause at the end of that tune. Coulda done without earning it that way, though...

Ian N. B. · #3 06-21-2007, 09:52 AM

Talk about bringing a dead topic back to life... but anyway...

I play the cello in my school orchestra (yes, I'm 14 years old... probably one of the younger people here... oh well), and we were playing a piece at a concert that I had somewhat of a solo for the majority of the song.

Well, I had just adjusted my endpen before we started playing, and I didn't screw it in tightly enough.

About 10 measures into the piece, I heard this scraping sound and all the sudden my cello started slowly sliding downward towards the ground. I had to hold it up with my left (fingering) hand, which was ok until I needed to shift up to a higher position... when I did so, the cello completely slid out of my hands and...well...I ended up playing while squatting on the floor, much to my stand partner's...and the audience's amusement.

Note to self: double check my endpen from now on.

Of course, this wasn't as bad as the time I had my cello stepped on and smashed before a concert, but that was years ago...

uethanian · #4 06-21-2007, 12:35 PM

at my director's old school, they had a special day where the naval band sat in with the top group to play a tune. in the middle of a song, theres this big crash, and everyone knows that its a lost trombone slide. the music stops, and everyone looks over. and which trombone player doesnt have a slide? the navy guy.

BellBottomBlues · #5 06-25-2007, 11:28 PM

brought a few harmonicas to a blues show my band was doing so a handful of songs we just wrote (Im the only one who can play harmonica, but lucky me I get to do that and play bass at the same time)

so I take out my harmonica (marine band, A) and there's like a horrible gurgling noise inside of it. So I took it off that shoulder rest thing, and replace with an E I think (can't remember) same thing, took out the C and f-ing christ, every single harmonica was busted. Dunno how it happened, and I dunno if water ruins harmonicas. (Maybe they got wet?)

I sorta whistle-hummed a harmonica impression during those songs.

Another song, it had a banjo ending, and I was doing that, and I deciding to finish the song by slapping all the strings still with my hand. Well... my hand went through it.

Ian N. B. · #6 06-26-2007, 06:59 AM

Yeah, from experience, water ruins harmonicas. It rusts out the reeds...

BellBottomBlues · #7 06-27-2007, 12:58 PM

I figured as much, as they were basically new. It was raining that night, but the hammies didnt seem wet.

mophead · #8 06-27-2007, 09:06 PM

You know the harp part on You Don't Know How It Feels intro by Tom Petty? I play it and the bass at the same time. One time I picked up the harp from the wrong end and started the harp piece while playing bass.
We got a good chuckle and so did the audience. Maybe someday we can afford a real harp player.

Phantopeth · #9 06-28-2007, 02:12 PM

During the first song of the first rock-band type gig I ever had, I put a whole through my kick drum's batter head with my pedal. Luckily I had a double pedal, and somehow found the interdependance necessary to play the kick with my left instead of my right (I was a junior in high school and a relatively young drummer). The drum head was probably 10 years old at that point, so I wasn't that surprised

PatTheAnchor · #10 06-29-2007, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ian N. B.

Talk about bringing a dead topic back to life... but anyway...

I play the cello in my school orchestra (yes, I'm 14 years old... probably one of the younger people here... oh well), and we were playing a piece at a concert that I had somewhat of a solo for the majority of the song.

Well, I had just adjusted my endpen before we started playing, and I didn't screw it in tightly enough.

About 10 measures into the piece, I heard this scraping sound and all the sudden my cello started slowly sliding downward towards the ground. I had to hold it up with my left (fingering) hand, which was ok until I needed to shift up to a higher position... when I did so, the cello completely slid out of my hands and...well...I ended up playing while squatting on the floor, much to my stand partner's...and the audience's amusement.

Note to self: double check my endpen from now on.

Of course, this wasn't as bad as the time I had my cello stepped on and smashed before a concert, but that was years ago...

i had that happen to me before too, got to have those things in tight, just not in a concert.

Also had my cello lose it's footing (no rockstop) on stage, it scares you because you almost drop it.