AboutMike Pawul Expertise I am familiar with most trumpets, cornets, and flugelhorns. I can answer most questions about playing and musicality. Best of all, if I can't answer it directly I play regularly in five bands and have several "old timers" that are familiar with most things that I am not. I collect, repair, and refinish old horns and have sold over 350 with more than 230 on ebay
Experience I have played since 1965 and studied with many directors and trumpeters. I have been collecting since 2002 and have over 150 horns in my personal collection. I have done repair and refinsh since 2003 and have done over 500 horns.
Organizations Kosair Shrine Brass Band and Dance Band, The Notables, The Mello Tones, Bourbon City Brass Band,
River Cities Concert Band,
University of Louisville Community Band,
Member of Trumpet Players International Network (TPIN),
Bugles Across America (BAA),
Education/Credentials I played at Brunswick High School. I played through college and have a BS in Business Administration from Trinity College.
Awards and Honors Without being vain, numerous awards and have played in several honor bands.
Question Hi Mike,
I 'm getting back into playing after quite a long layoff. I have a wonderful
trumpet (at least to me) - an Olds Super #341479 that I bought on the
recommendation of my high school music director around 1962. I also have
an old beat up cornet that I loved, but my nephews destroyed it when I left it
at my parents house decades ago. My question: I want to buy a used cornet
that would be of similar quality to my Olds Super. What would you
recommend? Thanks! I enjoy your site - it's like moving through time warp to
present day thinking on my favorite instruments. I look forward to your reply.
Jack
Answer Jack, Welcome back to the land of high brass! I love the Olds Super line and have played several of them. I think you could never go wrong with any of the Olds products through 1975 or so. I actually think as a comeback player an Ambassador would serve you well for the first few years of playing. You can find them reasonable and they play well. The Special also plays very well and can be found under $200 in a lot of cases. There are a lot of older King 603 (pre UMI) and Holton 602 (not the C602R and made pre 1985) horns out there that also play well.
Thanks for reading the site. I always love hearing about people that love our instrument!
