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Well, folks, it looks like that good ole fashioned cryogenically frozen trumpet just doesn't sound different after all!

According to a new study by two Tufts University engineering researchers, the popular myth among some trumpet players that deep-freezing their instruments makes them sound better just rings flat.

The NY Times has picked up the story, and interviews the authors of the papers. According to Chip Jones, "There was more difference from trumpet to trumpet and from player to player than in the results from treatment of the instruments." Nonetheless, there are still brass shops out there that claim that the deep-freeze works.

Wayne Tanabe, owner of the Brass Bow music repair shop in Arlington Heights, IL, says word-of-mouth is the only way to advertise this treatment, "Otherwise people think you're talking about voodoo." He has a tub-size cryogenics tank where he can fit a tuba and several trumpets. His freeze technique costs about $200 and takes 35 to 50 hours.

Do you brass players really freeze your instruments???

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