[Tromba Marina]

I was reading Grove's Dictionary of music and musicians

when I came upon a picture of a very interesting

stringed instrument called Tromba Marina, or

Marine Trumpet. It's not a trumpet, but the article

says it sounds something like one. It looks something

like a long oar or boat paddle with one string

stretched along the length of it. It appears to have

a scroll like a member of the violin or viol family.

Also, it is played primarily in natural harmonics

which are typically written on the body thus giving

anyone a reasonable facility of the instrument.

I am curious: how rare are these things and how

easy would it be for me to get one or a couple for

some friends and myself?

Chu

[Key signature troubles. Please help.]

I will make all three of these valuable steps a part of my daily practicing. Thanks so much!

-Chu

[Key signature troubles. Please help.]

I am working on a Sevcik shifting exercise.

It is written in C major, but it says that I have

to repeat it in 11 different keys. It doesn't mean to

transpose, it means that F (for instance) in G major

wouldn't become a note of an entirely different name,

it would just become F#. I'm fine in G major and the

obviously easier ones, but when it gets into all those

sharps and flats, I get totally lost and don't even

know how to approach it! I thought practicing scales

in these keys would help me, but it doesn't. I can

play a scale as perfectly as any teacher could ask

because with a scale I know how it's supposed to sound.

I know the sound of major, minor, melodic etc, as long

as I start the scale on the note of the name of the

scale. When it comes to this exercise starting on

either A, Ab, or A# no matter what strange sounding

key it's in, I just get a headache. Please help,

I don't even know how to approach this.

Thanks, if anyone can help me I'll be so grateful!

-Chu