Posted by Rick Denney on January 23, 2001 at 12:45:54:
In Reply to: Re: WTP: Yamaha YFB-621 3/4 F posted by Jon Meyer on January 23, 2001 at 12:08:13:
With all due respect, saying an 822 is "far superior" to a 621 is like saying a Rudy Meinl 5/4 is far superior to a Rudy Meinl 3/4. For a given application, one will be better than the other, and it is not always the larger one. Kelly O'Bryant played his souped-up 621, then switched to an 822, and then back to the 621 because he found he preferred it for the sorts of things he was doing. If you want an orchestral F, there are lots of horns more suited to the task than a 621. But Steve is nearing the end of a long thought process, and has considered all these factors.
I bought mine off the exhibit floor, directly (sort of) from Yamaha. I had to find a friendly Yamaha dealer (as it turned out--Brook Mays) at the convention who would "sell" me the horn. All he did was process the credit card, send the money to Yamaha, and pocket a few hundred bucks. I took the horn home with me at the end of the conference.
The best conference of the year for this is the Texas Music Educator's Association conference in San Antonio in about two or three weeks, because (at least this used to be true) it was the last conference of the year for the current crop of demo horns. Get Charlie to check with Yamaha to see if they are going to have one there. If they are, you can play it at the conference before you decide, and Charlie can do the deal. It would be worth driving to the nearest airport served by Southwest Airlines, and buying a cheap ticket. But you'll have to find someone who will loan you their credentials to get on the exhibit floor. I may be able to help you with that, too.
Rick "you'll get a better price, too, in return for a few scratches" Denney