These recordings give you no real sense what it was like to have these trumpeters pasting the high F and G right onto the back of your head from eight feet away. Just Thrilling. When I went to these shows, I was always torn between sitting in the front row, or where Mark or Freeman would be standing later. But in the front row, you could see the little puffs of fog come out of Maynard's horn every now and then, which was equally fun.
I went to a concert held at UMASS AMHERST where every trumpet player came off stage and stood around the audience. It was surreal even for the high school kid I was. Amazing experience!
I sure do miss the Boss... Saw him play many times. Met him, got his autograph, sat a table away at dinner in Warsaw Indiana, went to his clinics. He was truly one of the last of the great big band leaders. RIP Maynard - the greatest trumpet player in the world - Mr. Maynard Ferguson
I was in a music workshop in High School with the Maynard Ferguson band in 1974. The night of the workshop, his band had a concert in the school gym and we got to play Hey Jude with the band. I played Alto Sax. I saw his band play on a couple other occasions. What a great memory and a great talent. Bruce Johnston played Baritone Sax on Gospel John back then, and his solos are STILL memorable. Thanks for posting this video.
I saw Maynard when he came to St. Louis in 1974. When they played this, Lynn Nicholson was about 10 feet behind me. My ears were ringing for about 10 minutes afterward!
He pulled the same trick on us in the audience during a show in the early 80s except nobody noticed the band slipping into the audience because the houselights were out, when they started playing, it, was, awesome. What a showman!
A bunch of us as high school jazz band students saw Maynard at Tokay High School in Lodi (Calif.) in 1976 (or was it '75?), and they went into the audience for "Hey Jude." Trumpeter Ron Tooley was right behind me just making that horn scream. Of course, we stole the act and did it at our own future concerts.
You got it!!! Maynard was the best in his youth and he knew, that he wasn't that good in his high age, but he is/was a symbol for the people and this is why he played when he was that old.
When I saw him 10 yrs ago or so, this was his last song and he asked for the crowd to stand up and walk out to this song.,I later came back in to get his autograph and picture ;)
Had the privilege of seeing the band live at Bowling Green University in Spring of 1972; Two of my friends and I sat right on the front row. We even taped the event on a cassette player. On this particular song we sat slack-jawed realizing even the 4th trumpet player was hitting high f's :) One of the better nights of my teenage years!
+Usetowannabemusician I'm thinking that at 0:43 Maynard decided to swiftly slide up to the Double C instead of the A natural below. That A which is how the piece was originally written. Why not play the A? Because a fourth ledger line above treble clef A natural tends to slot poorly. Even on a strong trumpet player. Or most players in general who can even play one. As "Hey Jude" comes at the end of a long concert? We can feel certain that endurance was a factor. Some cats can play seamlessly way above Double C however their sound tends to be smaller. For them the A natural is just another note. But their sound lacks "Bigness". They'll be pretty good in the studio and even fine live BUT will need a microphone to be heard over the band. One player like this was the Late Bud Brisbois.Great player but he really didn't have a solid double forte on anything. Could control the hell out of his high notes to well above TRIPLE C, No foolin! But he couldn't get a truly big sound. Sadly this may have led to his mental woes and his eventual suicide. Conversely Maynard always had a huge tone.Part of the reason for this was he was able to design a shallow mouthpiece but with a very large back bore and throat. The shallower piece allowed him lots of endurance, control and power but the opened up tubing didn't sacrifice sound. Conversely Arturo uses a very large mouthpiece. Something resembling a Bach 3C. He plays well in the extreme upper register but his tone doesn't sizzle like it should. I think that Sandoval is really a jazz improv player at heart. That despite his gifts he doesn't like playing high notes so much.
That's a biggie. I used to play the Bach 1&1/4C in my teens but this was before I became a lead player. Today I can get a bigger sound on a very small trumpet mouthpiece. Just so long as it's been well bored out in throat and back bore.
I followed this AMAZING MAN & His Groups for 20 yrs. Dennis DeBlasio, Tim Ries, Stan Mark, Fisher Etc. Have all the Tour Shirts. Maynard was the King !
Great to relive this era with the band and Stan Mark as lead trumpet and emcee. Live performances were "electric" with all the power coming off the stage with Maynard and company.
My last year in high school we played Hey Jude as our last piece. We had a phenomenal trumpet section and they went out in the aisles. My buddy trumpet player wrote a little diddy. It obviously was nothing on this level but it wasn't shabby either. What great memories. Saw Maynard 3 times in the 80's. Fantastic shows.
Was in Ottawa in '73 at the NAC where Maynard and his band blew me away Literally. Played this tune, with the brass section all over the aisles....I was in heaven.
hey most of you guys got to see these great musical gods,MF.BR etc in your country quite often we in UK got to see them on an ocassional basis they were fantastic,dont knock them,I saw Maynard 3 times in my life,the concerts were alive,magical,the total experiance.USA dont knock them,you nor us will see their breed again.Be gratefull,you had them.
I saw maynard in 1974 in Lakeland, Ohio........the clinic was phenominal - Maynard was by far an unbelievable educator --- and was standing 3' away from Stan Mark in the audiance during Hey Jude
what was great about maynard was he mentored so many trumpet players and taught them how to achieve the high range double c and above. he also worked with holton to develop unique as well as advanced horns. the superbone and the st303 firebird combo slide / valve trumpet
irishbenocpa - He was at the Elmhurst Jazz Festival in the 80's and also North Side High School as well - I don't recall him at The Embassy. Dizzy Gillespie played the Embassy about that time period.
We can't talk. Only listen. MF was the best damn trumpet player we knew. Can't comment on any, in the past...or in the present, or in the future. RIP BOSS.
Saw this tour. Looks like Dave Mancini drums, Matt Bissonette(?) bass, Chris Braymen and Steve Wiest bones, Nelson Hill, Dan Jordan and Dennis DiBlasio saxes, Stan Mark, Alan Wise and Hoby Freeman tpts. Sorry can't see the piano player, but there was a guy named Ron Pedley around that time.
Simplemente genial MF. Ese fraseo de la trompeta en esos niveles está vedado para la mayoría y eso que esta no es la versión completa.; otra de sus grandes es Mcarthur park
@s3si1u First off - the Jet Tone was more designed for big band and jazz work than legit. Still, I've played a relatively shallow cup even during my years playing with the Boston Pops, so it can be done. Those guys - the trumpet section - stood in front of our table (all the Berklee College trumpet studs) at the Holiday Inn in Peabody and blasted that Hey Jude rift into our faces. We collectively fell over backwards. Dennis Noday, Bob Summers, Stan Mark, Joe Mosello. It was great!
MF was really on that day! I remember meeting him for the first time back stage at Santa Monica civic auditorium in 1977! I have pictures! He was very cordial when he just got out of his car. " he said "come on in' Maynard was holding his gold Jet-tone i think the MF2. Me and my 3 freinds hung out when he was warming up. I'll never forget that night when i could'nt sleep. As with many, he is the reason I started trumpet in 1974!
@lilyellowduckiePhD From the Trumpetmaster website, and Wayne Brenner: "The Jettone MF 'cup' has a unique convex V shape on both versions, and there is no discernable bite on either. The biggest difference is in the throat size. The original had a rather large throat size of 19, as Maynard got into rather free blowing equipment, from the 1970s onward. Maynard Ferguson played on this model Jettone through most of the 70s."
@TheTrumpetLord i agree, but in the studio version he uses his trumpet for the whole song, i beleive, but nonetheless, one of my favorite Maynard tunes!
GoldenCatz Hi. When I was in HS we saw Ferguson at a nearby HS but we also the saw the USAF Airman of Note and they have a trombone player David Steinmeyer that could play notes much higher than trumpet players. One of the USAF trumpet players told me they looked at him and thought "his lips are the same size as mine" in awe. Steinmeyer was beyond words. See if you can find him playing Send In The Clowns.
you're right, it will take a lot of practice. I don't remember if it was furgeson or anderson, but when he was 14, all the trumpet players were envious of his ability. he was playing an octave up from everybody and didn't even know it. to some people it just comes naturally.
I heard MF live at the Texas state stage band contest in 66 or 67, in Brownwood Tx. As to the technical goes, Doc among others are more versatile, but in the late 60's in bumpkinville Tx, MF changed a bunch of young lives.
