Expert: Kenton Scott - 12/17/2008

Question
I have a Cleveland King 605 from 1940-41 that my mom bought me last summer and I've been learning to play it. I've noticed the slide moves much smoother and the tone is better than many of the trombones other kids in my band class-and even my director-have. Is this a particularly good model like the 2b, or is it just the way I'm playing it?

Answer
Well, there are two factors there;

Trombone slides although simple in concept have a lot of things that can be wrong with them.  The tubes might not be completely smooth on their contact surfaces, they might not be parallel and exactly aligned between the inner and outer sections, the tubes may not be round, they may be twisted, warped, bent or dented.  It is a wonderful thing to have a trombone that had a good slide to start with that also has none of the above problems.  If you have one, I'd recommend that you protect it as best you can.  

As to tone, that may be you. Tone is a combination of the capability of the instrument, the way the mouthpieces matches the horn AND you, and your method of using your body.

No, it is not like a 2b.