Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

embouchure

englishangel wrote:embouchure

I should never have looked that up.
I just play the trombone and I am pretty certain Bill Bailey never mentioned the technicalities of blowing when he taught me. Breath properly and listen to what it sounds like was his main instruction.
Why do people have to make life so complicated?

I quite liked Neills "embrasure" as I'm sure he was thinking of the French to kiss (embrasser!)

One of those silly things I remember. I was a BIG fan of Herb Alpert as a (very) youngster and I read an interview where he said he had gone on holiday without his mouthpiece and lost his embouchure. Of course I had no idea what he meant so I looked it up and it has remained in my brain.

I used to live next to Donald Swann who with Michael Flanders wrote the song "I've lost my horn"
which had the word 'embouchure' in it but the best line has to be "I've found my horn.....gorn"

You will gather --- I could "Blow" --and "Kiss" -- but not spell --- !!

I've still got the old trombone which I played in the CH band, and also was given a beautiful bass trombone by my uncle which is covered with almost baroque decoration

Naturally neither have been played in years

huntertitus wrote: "I've found my horn.....gorn"

How inconvenient! Perhaps he'd had a little too much to drink..........

Cue, the little blue tablets ??

The only blue pills I heard of was barbiturates taken by an old girlfriend
in the early days of punk rock, but I am not sure whether they helped her
find a horn, or ease a hangover. Never took 'em myself, was too busy doing other stuff

Richard Ruck wrote:I didn't think that the problem was associated with the surrounding countryside and villages, so much as with Horsham itself.

We always used to take the short cut into town via the Needles Estate. This is still home to one or two of Horsham's 'problem' families and we were always advised never to hang around there.

I recall a school assembly where the headmaster (Newsome) warned everyone to be alert to the potential problems, and then proceeded to recount with some pride how one bloke who was set upon in Horsham proceeded to floor all 3 of his attackers.

Never suffered anything more than the usual verbals myself, though.

First time back here for a while - what a surprise!!

I'm afraid that was me - must be about 1972, early 1973, and I didn't knock all three down. I was in uniform in Horsham and crossed the road. From the corner of my eye I saw a group of 4-5 skinheads. A couple of moments late one was in front of me and asked me the time. As I looked down at my watch he smashed me straight in the face. I'm afraid turning the other cheek was not in my nature and about thirty seconds later I was hauled off him by a couple of passers-by who had seen the whole thing and the poor bloodstained wretch ran off - his brave mates had already scarpered. The police arrived rapidly, I and the witnesses gave descriptions, and I was taken round in a police car for 20 minutes until they were spotted and picked up. I was told that the magistrates could hardly keep a straight face when they sentenced this chap as he had broken nose, black eye and arm in sling! bl**dy embarrassing assemby - Newsome never warned me. We didn't have any more trouble that year. Sorry about that.

Ash wrote:Not penguin bashing per se... But a gang of CH people led by Richard "Rigger" Bates went to Southwater to take on a gang of kids from there... They went armed with hockey sticks, etc..

The Southwater gang came armed with a shotgun....

This was in the mid-80's sometime and may just be a CH myth... There was definitely some problems with Southwater kids around this time though.

Don't remember the shotgun bit but remember the event, they were referred to as "the scooter lads from Southwater" and Sillett and Carrington saw them off when they arrived at Dr's Lake having already turned back several groups of hockey stick armed seniors heading down Dr's drive etc.

My Brother still lives in Broadbridge Heath and lived in Horsham through the 80's/90's going to Tanbridge (I and my younger 1/2 brother went to ch) he used to tell us that people would brag to having bashed a penguin to get kudos even though it seemed to rarely happen. In the 60's (and earlier) Tanbridge was actually Horsham High School for Girls (my mother) with the boys at Collyers Grammar near the fire station or Forest Boys (my Father) in Roffey so less obvious mingling of pupils in town. With Tandbridge having now moved to by Tesco in Broadbridge Heath I would have thought it would have slackened off again.

is Richard Rigger bates also known as "Nigby Bates" and was in MidB leaving in 1983?

A little news, on this subject ----
A lone "mugger" --- I stress "LONE" -- tried it on myself, two weeks ago,
had it been three, I would have had little chance.
I don't think I am to be charged with assault --- since he would have to explain --- in Court -- how he came to be "Decked" by an 81 year-old !!
We probably had different up-bringings !