Bonna Harmon Mute

First of all, thanks to Ken for the rush delivery! There are more and more pieces being written for horn with Harmon mute. I had a Harmon-heavy concert tour and was trying to make it work with a bass trombone Harmon, which is what a lot of people have done. The problem is that the bass trombone mute makes the horn about a quarter tone sharp and I didn’t have time to adjust my slides between mute changes. The back pressure was also extremely tiring! The MB mute is a huge improvement. It plays slightly sharp on my horn but totally manageable. The resistance is much more comfortable. Plays pretty even throughout the range. Also, the mute is smaller and more lightweight than the trombone mute which is nice for travel. The dynamics are a little tricky; it’s hard to play loud until you’re absolutely searing. I put five little furniture pads around the edge of mine to keep it from clanking on my bell when changing. A huge upgrade—I recommend it for anyone needing a Harmon!

Great mute! Medium fits perfectly on an Alex 103. Get the Large for Rauch/Conn 8D flares.

Not something the average horn player needs on a frequent basis, but a unique product that's very useful if, say, you play in a brass quintet that does jazz/pop arrangements. It allows you to blend when the trumpets and trombone are using Harmon mutes and can be effective on the occasional solo. (If you play the Paquito D'Rivera 4 pieces for Brass Quintet try this on the "El Cura" solo--way better than a straight mute.)