Australasia in the Playground V

[Elemental]

The first bit of advice is that not everyone is capable of learning a brass instrument. There's a reason I don't play trombone.

Secondly, saxophone is easier than clarinet.
And more fun.

[Lady Moreta]

Originally Posted by Elemental

Secondly, saxophone is easier than clarinet.
And more fun.

I second that. Especially if you have big hands. I played clarinet for a few years at high school and I always struggled to get my fingers in the right positions to completely cover the holes (a must if you want the notes to sound right) - thanks to have fairly large hands for a girl. Then I picked up the tenor sax as well and it was pure heaven.

Also, if you want to learn a brass instrument, you might want to start off with something that at least has some keys

(though I remember - my sister could do a bugle call on her clarinet )

[Elemental]

Originally Posted by Lady Moreta

I second that. Especially if you have big hands. I played clarinet for a few years at high school and I always struggled to get my fingers in the right positions to completely cover the holes (a must if you want the notes to sound right) - thanks to have fairly large hands for a girl. Then I picked up the tenor sax as well and it was pure heaven.

My main problem is that I can barely get a sound out of a clarinet. Something about makes the instrument so hard and tiring to coax into action.
And when it comes to flute, I can never angle the mouthpiece properly, though that would come with practice.

I am in complete agreement with your assessment of the Tenor Saxophone, that's the one I play. It is awesome. I just need to play louder.
Almost ten years on it, and I can hardly be heard.

Actually... Starting from around Easter in grade five...
I was ten then, I'm nineteen now... Make that almost nine years.

[Mynxae]

Ele's sister tried to teach me Clarinet once.. Every time I made a sound with it, I just started giggling for five minutes. After about half an hour to an hour of this happening over and over, she gave up. xDD

[Lady Moreta]

Originally Posted by Elemental

And when it comes to flute, I can never angle the mouthpiece properly, though that would come with practice.

Yeah, I remember trying to get a sound out of my friend's flute once - I had exactly the same problem. I've never been very good at getting noise from blowing over bottle openings either.

Originally Posted by Elemental

I am in complete agreement with your assessment of the Tenor Saxophone, that's the one I play. It is awesome. I just need to play louder.

I miss my sax... I hired it from the school and I loved that thing - had to give it back when I left obviously. Not that I ever practiced... drove my teacher nuts.

Originally Posted by Mynxae

Ele's sister tried to teach me Clarinet once.. Every time I made a sound with it, I just started giggling for five minutes. After about half an hour to an hour of this happening over and over, she gave up. xDD

Heh, my sister taught me the basics of the clarinet as well - I took up the instrument mainly because she learned it and she'd just recently gotten a wooden one, which meant her plastic one was just lying around. So I decided to learn too... so she of course, started teaching me and when I got into my first actual lesson with my actual teacher he was so ticked off. He was her teacher as well and she'd been learning for years so he knew us both fairly well. He was so mad because she taught me incorrect tonguing and because I'd ended up being better than all the other beginner's but not as good as the second-year students. I got private lessons out of the deal

[Elemental]

You can sometimes find good instruments on Ebay. That's where we got my sister's Alto, and it's actually a very good one.
Just remember to check the brand before you get it.

[Lady Moreta]

Eh... it's been years since I played, I don't remember the fingering any more anyway. I did look for one when I first left school, but couldn't find any and eventually gave up.

Sad but true - the only instrument I can pick up and play like nothing's changed is my recorder.

[Mynxae]

One instrument I've always wanted to learn is the Violin.. Never tried a string instrument before, and they're always my favourite part of classical pieces (if strings are in them).

But the main 'instrument', you could say, that I play, is my voice. :3 I'm a tenor, and can sing most songs. I just gotta learn how to project my voice a bit better. Have had no lessons or anything, but my music teacher in school said I 'have a tuneful voice'. /shrugs I got a C+ or B- for my practical's so.. Would've gotten higher, but I wouldn't practice the song I was singing enough.. I'd end up forgetting a few lyrics here and there. xD

[Moonshadow]

If I had the chance to learn to play an instrument, I'd play piano. I have a really nice guitar that i've attempted to learn how to play and I just don't have the finger dexterity to do so, which is a pity because it's a really nice looking guitar :/

[Elemental]

@Lady Moreta: You might be able to rent one. It'd probably come back to you reasonably quick.
I personally would have almost no idea what I'm doing with the recorder anymore.

I used to be able to play the guitar, still can a bit, but I'm really, really rusty.
And now that we've branched out from wind instruments, I need to find a way to say that I can play the piano without sounding overly boastful. But I don't practice enough.
*waves to sad neglected piano*

[Lady Moreta]

Originally Posted by Mynxae

One instrument I've always wanted to learn is the Violin.. Never tried a string instrument before, and they're always my favourite part of classical pieces (if strings are in them).

I learned the violin for about 6 months before deciding I just couldn't get the hang of it and gave it up. I've tried out quite a few instruments over the years...

Recorder
Keyboard
Oboe
Violin
Clarinet
Tenor Saxophone

Of those, the recorder is the only one I can still pick up and play without any problems - but I played it for 7 years and actually did a Grade 4 music exam with it... which I passed with Merit, much to everyone's astonishment (I swapped two of the pieces I was playing and didn't really start practicing til the week before the exam and never practiced the scales).

Originally Posted by Elemental

@Lady Moreta: You might be able to rent one. It'd probably come back to you reasonably quick.
I personally would have almost no idea what I'm doing with the recorder anymore.

Couldn't afford to right now... and no longer sure I want to. I played the recorder longer than any other instrument, that's the only reason I can still play it.

I was always a little sorry to give up the oboe though - learned that one for a year, but something about the airflow/pressure/whatever needed to hit the really high notes gave me a splitting headache and I had to give it up.

[Moonshadow]

So... my mother hit a kangaroo last night.

The kangaroo came off fine, no blood on the car or anything. Car on the other hand, suffered 1500 bucks worth of damage.

[Mynxae]

Oh noes, the poor car! D:

[Elemental]

Originally Posted by Moonshadow

So... my mother hit a kangaroo last night.

The kangaroo came off fine, no blood on the car or anything. Car on the other hand, suffered 1500 bucks worth of damage.

The kangaroo was completely fine? It managed to hop away with no troubles?
That was one lucky National Symbol.

If it makes you feel any better, it probably broke bones and ended up with internal injuries, and will probably die in agony.
Now I read that... It sounds exceedingly cruel...

[Moonshadow]

Nah, she was only going 35 kph on a dirt road and she barely clipped it from what she told me.

And yeah. It was all "lol k" and hopped off.

[Elemental]

Originally Posted by Moonshadow

Nah, she was only going 35 kph on a dirt road and she barely clipped it from what she told me.

And yeah. It was all "lol k" and hopped off.

What's wrong with her car? Is it made of glass?!?!

[Dispozition]

Kangaroos are...Well, most cars that a don't have a roo bar are basically trashed when they hit them. The Kangaroos are normally fine. They're hardy little buggars and usually come best off in non 4x4 hits.

[Lady Moreta]

Originally Posted by Dispozition

Kangaroos are...Well, most cars that a don't have a roo bar are basically trashed when they hit them. The Kangaroos are normally fine. They're hardy little buggars and usually come best off in non 4x4 hits.

Kangaroos are like the older Dodge cars - you really don't wanna hit one.

It still amazes me, the things I know about this country - and I'm not even Australian.

[Katana_Geldar]

I remember looking out for wallabies in Tas, particularly in summer when there was little grass except for nice manicured lawns. A friend was driving me home one misty summer night, and I had to remind him to drive slow because of them.

And they're very hardy little buggers.

My dog used to kill them, grabbing them by the neck and shaking the datlights out of them (had no idea until then they could vocalise). I had to drag them by the tail and throw them over the back fence into the bush, so I saved one by shaking the dog and shouting at him to drop it. He did, and the thing hopped away no doubt telling its mates what happens in our yard. We dd t see one again.

You see more road kill than you normally would in Tassie. Wombats are like boulders, echidnas almost as bad. But it was perfectly ok for my cat to kill baby rabbits, she never got punished for that.

[Roc Ness]

Originally Posted by Dispozition

Kangaroos are...Well, most cars that a don't have a roo bar are basically trashed when they hit them. The Kangaroos are normally fine. They're hardy little buggars and usually come best off in non 4x4 hits.

Wow, this is news to me. I suppose kangaroo roadkill generally only happens when a 4x4 is involved, then?

[_Zoot_]

God. Damn. It.
So, all the work I did on Friday? I forgot to save it to the network, so 95% chance that it has all gone 'poof!'

I feel a little bit silly right now. As if I didn't have enough to do tomorrow.

I hope everyone else has a better day then I am going to tomorrow.

[Elemental]

At least the election campaigns and such are over in Australia.
My first election. I feel so responsible!
And my tomorrow will probably be good. No idea what I'll be doing, probably reading the election results in the paper and then not mentioning them on the Forum.

[_Zoot_]

AND THERE WAS MUCH REJOICING!

My work was still there! That makes things so much better!

[Elemental]

Awesome.
Only word that properly describes that.


I hate it when I lose things.

[Anuan]

Yaaaaaaay!

Mmm. Just had my first proper breakfast in a couple of weeks. Yes, at 1:30 pm. It was pancakes with golden syrup and icecream and it was magnificent.

[_Zoot_]

Originally Posted by Anuan

Yaaaaaaay!

Mmm. Just had my first proper breakfast in a couple of weeks. Yes, at 1:30 pm. It was pancakes with golden syrup and icecream and it was magnificent.

There is nothing better than a late breakfast. It is the best meal, no matter what time you eat it!

[Elemental]

I am so jealous. In a good way.
Because now I feel like making pancakes. I just need to trick people into helping me...

[Lady Moreta]

Originally Posted by Elemental

Because now I feel like making pancakes. I just need to trick people into helping me...

Me too... except we don't have any ice cream and pancakes just aren't pancakes without it.

Now all of a sudden I feel like scrambled eggs...

[Rawhide]

Originally Posted by Lady Moreta

Me too... except we don't have any ice cream and pancakes just aren't pancakes without it.

Pancakes and honey?
Pancakes and maple syrup?
Pancakes and jam?
Pancakes and cream?
Pancakes and cream with a dollop of jam?

[Elemental]

All are good.
I personally wouldn't put ice-cream on pancakes because I don't have ice-cream anywhere near often enough, and I like to savour its delicious creaminess without distractions.