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brass people, does facial hair get in the way?


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Dizzy Gillespie is one of my favorite jazz characters for a number of reasons. One is because he would make up the most ridiculous stories and pass them off as the goddamn truth and convince everyone that it was right. Then at the next interview he'd tell a completely different (and equally wacky) story and deny ever having told the previous one :D

 

Reason I bring this up is because in one interview he was asked why he had a soul patch and he insisted that it helped him play better.

 

Anyways, whether or not that's true, there are anumber of things I've discovered from being a professional trumpet player for 15 years and an avid beard/goatee man. I have really thick facial hair, btw.

 

1. The soul patch actually does pad your bottom lip a bit.

2. Always keep your mustache trimmed or it's gonna hurt.

3. Never, NEVER trim the soul patch the day of a gig. This makes the cut ends really sharp and painful and you're gonna regret it halfway through the gig.

4. It's ok to shave your mustache clean on the day of a gig, but be warned that you might have to adjust a little to avoid irritating the newly exposed skin.

5. If you shave your mustache off, the mouthpiece is gonna slide around a lot more :D

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I have a soul patch and bottom beard, but no mustache. The last time I grew the mustache out I couldn't get a good seal with my tuba so it went away. I can play my trombone with a mustache because the mp is small enough to slip underneath the hair were it contacts the lips, but since half of my playing is on tuba it stays gone.

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