When I was in primary school, we were given a demonstration of all the different instruments. I wasn’t that interested until the trombone came out and they did a big gliss [glissando], showcasing the slide, and I thought that was the coolest thing ever. So, I thought, “Yes, that!”

However, there was something that I wasn’t quite enjoying and I wanted to quit, but my parents said, “Give it a red hot go for one full year and if you really don’t like it, you don’t have to do it after that.”

Stanley McDonald. Photo © Josh Geelen

At the end of my first year, I thought, “I guess I’ll do it for one more year.” I was really good at low notes. They call them ‘pedals’ on brass instruments. That usually means that you are going to be better at playing a bigger, lower brass instrument, so my band director asked me, “How would you like to play the tuba?” It was love at first sight.

I doubled on tuba and trombone for about a year during primary school, but once I hit high school,...