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"BLAST" STAR ADAM RAPA INSPIRES A NEW MONETTE TRUMPET MODEL AND TWO NEW MOUTHPIECES!
 Adam Rapa is well known as the star of the Tony and Emmy Award winning
Broadway show, "Blast!" He has performed over one thousand shows with
the company thus far, both on a U.S. National tour and in Japan. Adam has
been a Monette mouthpiece client for years, but last year when he was asked to be a featured soloist for the 2007 National Trumpet Competition in Washington D.C., he decided it was time to order his first Monette instrument - hopefully to be delivered in time for that performance.
In working with Adam, we found he sounded fantastic on our MF PRANA for his lead playing, but he also sounded great on the larger and heavier PRANA 3 Bb for his small group jazz and classical work. Hearing Adam play the two horns back to back, Dave decided to make him a new horn... one with the richness and density of the heavier PRANA 3, but with the extra "sparkle" and "zip" on the edges of the sound that Maynard’s horn is known for.
Adam picked up his new horn on a Tuesday afternoon, and flew out the next day for the National Trumpet Competition performance! By all accounts he wowed the audience with his virtuosity and command of the music. One of the pieces he played was his own 7/8 arrangement of the "Flight of the Bumble Bee" (Please see video clip sample below).
Adam's lead mouthpiece is actually a new "SLAP" model Dave designed for Adam about a year ago. When Dave Monette played Adam's new PRANA "SLAP" STC-2 weight lead mouthpiece on Adam's new horn just prior to delivery, he found it had the easiest double C of any large bell Monette horn and mouthpiece configuration he had ever played! Dave also came up with a new small group jazz and classical PRANA "SLAP" STC-3 weight mouthpiece for Adam, which has a huge sound in the middle and low register but still retains some fire above the staff. You can hear Adam play both these new mouthpieces plus a FLUMPET cup trumpet mouthpiece in the third video clip below.
We hope you enjoy the video clips posted here of Adam on the new equipment. Thanks for the inspiration for the new models, Adam!
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Adam Rapa playing some of his 7/8 arrangement of "Flight of the Bumble Bee" just half an hour after he took delivery of his new PRANA P3S Bb, March 2007. |
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Adam playing his new instrument at our shop April 2007. |
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Adam demonstrating the versatility of his new horn by using his new STC-2 PRANA "SLAP" lead mouthpiece, his new STC-3 PRANA "SLAP" jazz mouthpiece, and his PRANA STC-3 FLUMPET-cupped trumpet mouthpiece. |
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