Talk

HINBU Anyone playing the recorder, ever, has forfeited the right to life.

HINBU - the recorder was invented purely to give children a way to torture adults

Fact.

It has made me laugh, I have vivid and painful memories of mine wanting to practice it in the car on the way to school. They were soon told that this was not acceptable!

HINBU at all.

Having had my DS practice for 3 hours after his very first lesson i can totally sympathise with your DH. If i were him i'd ask the child to stop, if i was the mum of the child there's no way on earth i'd have let a recorder leave the house!

Eek! I can imagine his pain. I hope for his sake the child can play it. Nothing worse than a squeaky recorder.

Not sure murder is the way to go though. I would go with your suggestion of the bar I think! Surely someone will complain if it continues? Musical instruments are one step too far imo.

Why can't he go over to the parents and ask them to put the recorder away until they arrive at their station? surely they can see it's a bloody stupid item to take in hand luggage on a train with a young child?

Be terribly polite and non-agressive but, that's a very loud instrument for a confirmed space like this, would you mind putting it away until you arrive at your station please?

4 hours... Non stop.... With recorder <faints>.

What is wrong with the parents that they aren't going out of their minds with the noise??

Agghhhh! That is awful. I would ask them to stop.

If the DC is playing Three Blind Mice he has my permission to cry.

HINBU (and I say that as a Grade 8 recorder player. Get me, etc)

It is a train carriage, not a medieval banquet. I would get the guard to impound it on human rights grounds.

Get your dh to start scratching and complaining about headlice.

Tailtwister you haven't heard a squeaky tin whistle.

When DD was playing that in school I dreamt of the day she'd progress to a recorder...

He has no choice but to pull the emergency cord.

The passengers will understand.

Oh. My. God. He is totally not being unreasonable!!! Although I don't know why he hast politely asked the parents to put it away..?

He says child is pre school so can't imagine it's very tuneful. I think he may have to be direct, have to say I would never have taken any musical instrument or indeed noisy toy on a train journey as it would have driven me insane let alone other people.
I may tell him to say that MN thinks they are BVU.

HIM+NBU and in fact, I think it's bloody rude of the parent(s) to allow their child to blow the ruddy thing on a train around other passengers. How fucking intrusive!

Why does he not just say - Excuse me, that noise is giving me a headache, could you stop please?

Mind you I have been known to wake people on trains that are snoring too loud...

If he starts singing along - very loudly and out of tune - then maybe they'll assume he is mad and move?

Gordon Bennett how rude! Poor DH. He was probably really looking forward to 4 hours of peace and quiet, just staring out of the window (that's what I do on trains and I love it).

I have a massive collection of tin whistles (definitely squeakier than a recorder, esepcially the little ones!). I actually wait untilk the neighbours go out before I let the dc get their hands on them. No way on earth would I take them on a train. No way. What in god's name was the mother thinking?

Maybe he could sit next to them and loudly sing along? I'm quite sure they'd move then.

I am really suprised the parents think it's acceptable.

Tell him to ask them to put it away.

How busy is the train? You don't have to sit in the seat you have reserved if there are other (unreserved) ones free. Perhaps move to the quiet carriage - they are always virtually empty as no one wants to give up beeping phones etc.
Also, tell him to check seats that look reserved. Often the people who have reserved them have not got on the train.