BoneWeek 7

After a few false starts and dead ends, I managed to knock out another BoneWeek Fanfare. I started writing these in celebration of International Trombone Week. You can find the previous fanfares both on my website and the ITA website.

A few notes about this one.

• There are no "quotes" of well-known trombone pieces
• I tried to avoid falling back into any clichés (not easy sometimes)
• I wanted it to have some rhythmic energy and no obvious presentation of a melody (see above)

With any of these fanfares, I use an odd test: would I want to play it. When I'm at a convention (like the Eastern Trombone Workshop which I'm missing...sigh) and looking through music I might purchase, I often look at the score and say, "Yuck, I wouldn't to play that part." The most common cardinal sin of composers and arrangers:

• putting all the interest into the first part and thus generating boring parts for everyone else
• making the first part so tiring that it becomes difficult to program such a chop-buster

These goals aren't difficult, so why do so many arrangements fail these tests. Lazy arrangers?

Anyway, here's the fanfare from my website. If you put it on a program, please let me know. It's always nice to get a concert program for my files.

You may ask, "How many of these things are you going to write?"

I have no idea.

Here's the link: BoneWeek Fanfare #7

Free Duets!

My computer hard drive sometimes feels like a museum of old ideas. I don't get rid of much (and, yes, I use redundant back-ups), so there's a lot of old stuff sitting around in there.

I'm hard at work on my latest series of books and, as I looked through this digital museum, I came across these duets. I'm not sure why I wrote them...probably just to have some nice lyrical stuff to play in lessons.

I don't think they've ever been printed out or played.

So, have at 'em. I don't make claims to great music but they probably won't cause damage ...

Six Lyrical Duets

Now, if you're racked with guilt about downloading free music, I *do* have a PayPal account....

(hey, you never know, there might be some eccentric millionaire out there!)

Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

I'm not a big fan of breathing exercises. Breathing, I like. Exercises, not so much.

I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because time is always limited. Maybe because I'm not patient enough. The buzzing exercises I start with usually require some pretty deep breathing so maybe my cause isn't totally hopeless.

Last Fall, I tried this little exercise in a few lessons and, from time to time, I've used it in my practicing.

Take three really deep breaths and, each time, blow out like crazy.

I blow out mostly (but not completely) through my horn. I let some air escape around the sides of the mouthpiece.

I think of this quick exercise as a "lethargy buster." When I (or my students) get a little sluggish, this is a quick way to wake up and get going.

I remember trying it in three lessons in a row last Fall. Not at the beginning but somewhere in the middle when my "sluggish radar" began beeping. Each time, I was surprised and please with the improvement in their sound.

(I did warn them not emulate that wild, almost psycho manner of blowing out when they actually played.)

This is not my invention. From the Alessi Seminar, I remember Weston Sprott doing similar crazy breaths from time to time. In fact, checking a handout on his website, I see that he refers to it as the "vigorous breath."

Somehow, "big bad wolf" just seems more memorable...

The Most Significant Development in Music Education

I was thinking about this the other day.

There is a new development in the field of music education. The more I think about it, the more I realize how profound it is.

That development: YouTube

OK, it's now time for my "you young whippersnappers" moment...

When I was in college and had to learn a new piece or be inspired by a new player, what did I do?

• How many professional trombone recordings were available?
• Who was performing within driving distance?
• Could I afford the time and money needed to see them perform?

Imitation is enormously powerful. Young players need to see and hear top players in order to set the bar.

YouTube does that.

Yes, there can be laughably bad videos. That guy trying to explain triplets was a screamer.

But (I hope) everyone saw through that.

I type "mozart tuba mirum" into the search box and I get 519 results instantly.

I'm a trombone professor and yet, in one morning, any of my students can gather more information about performances of this excerpt than I could in all of my studies throughout the pre-YouTube era.

For instance, if one of my students said, "You know, Solti once had the trombone player stand for the Mozart Requiem solo." I would probably reply with, "No way. Where did you hear that nonsense?"

How about this search: "joseph alessi trombone"

291 results

"arthur pryor trombone"

103 results

"ravel bolero orchestra"

652 results

Of course, youtube also gives us...

"justin bieber"

1,380,000

Stop and reflect for a moment on just how profoundly this is changing the world of teaching and learning music

Before or After?

A colleague of mine mentioned an experimental approach he was planning to try this semester.

Basically, he would devote the lesson to coaching a student on new pieces before the student had time to practice them. You might call this doing "intro work."

I think the most common teaching/learning sequence goes like this..

1. teacher assigns it
2. student works on it
3. student plays it in a lesson and teacher works on it

This new model (if I understood correctly) would be..

1. teacher coaches student on it in a lesson
2. student works on it
3. in the next lesson, teacher coaches student on new pieces

Now, I know what you're thinking: where's the accountability? Well, I believe that comes in the form of playing tests a few times each semester in which the student must be able to play the pieces for a grade.

Bear in mind that these are college students I'm talking about. I realize that presenting a piece to a middle school band with regular rehearsals is a completely different animal.

It is an interesting idea. After all, it is harder to re-learn something after having learned it incorrectly. Why not get students off to a good start?

Of course, in some ideal world, we would have unlimited time for lessons and could devote quality time to both ends of the equation.

But usually, the clock is the enemy and another student will be waiting outside your door in one hour.

No big conclusions here because there is no one right way to always do it.

Still, I think it's something worth thinking about...

How much time do we, as teachers,
devote to the "before" side of teaching and how much to the "after" side?

Tips from Tim

Tim Anderson recently visited USC and gave a master class. I had the presence of mind to take notes. Here they are...

• Make sure they can write down what you just played.
• Don't allow ' turd tapers' (Norman Bolter's term) - allowing a note to fade unintentionally
• Make sure you demonstrate Basic common sense musical skills
• On the accented notes in the Ride: don't think of it as accenting a note. Think of accenting the bar line.
• The most important criteria: how you sound.
• Concerning the Mozart Tuba Mirum: legato trombone is not a style of music. Make phrases. "I want to hear what your phrase is. I want to be able to write it down."
• "Don't sort of do it. Do it."
• Make music on the first note. Then you'll play well.
• They want a simple good musician.
• People have no patience for bad intonation.
• I think music ed is a better degree. You have to be able to teach yourself.
• If somebody asks you how fast you're going, you should have a number (metronome marking).
• What is air support? Support is simply counteracting the natural decrescendo that occurs as your air runs out. As you sustain a note, you have to blow more as the note goes on (and the air runs out). How do you manage the blowing of the air?
• It's better if you can be schizophrenic when you play music. (variety of styles/personalities)
• "I said play on your mouthpiece not buzz on your mouthpiece" (don't stop making music when you are buzzing).
• "Give me some phrase there"
• Watch out for those decays. Your lips get tired, your air doesn't.
• We always make fun of singers. We all became trombonists because we didn't want to sing in public.
• There is only one fundamental: how you blow the air. Everything else is just a skill.
• It doesn't matter how many times you've played it. You either can do it or you can't. If you can't play it, you haven't played it enough.
• Make sure your resume doesn't make it look like an accident that you're applying for a job.

Of Schubert and Futsal (Talent Code Post #1)

This is the first of what I suspect will be many posts related to a great book, The Talent Code, by Daniel Coyle. I recommend it highly.

I've had a pretty good run lately. In the span of three weeks, I've played bass trombone with Charlotte Symphony, tenor with both Symphony Orchestra Augusta and South Carolina Philharmonic and now alto with Charleston Symphony.

The alto gig came on two day's notice, Schubert's 9th Symphony. Normally I would like to spend more time making sure all those slide positions are secure. This has forced me to really stay on my toes, never let my guard down and be able to make quick adjustments.

According to Coyle, I've been building a lot of myelin. Myelin is the insulation around nerves. As you build a skill, the layers of myelin around the nerve 'circuit' for that activity increase so that the circuit works better...like broadband.

Here's one of Coyle's points: optimal learning takes place when you are struggling a bit (falling and down and getting up, so to speak). Play something that is way over your head or too comfortable and you are no longer in your optimal learning zone.

Well, I've been struggling a bit, so I guess I've been experiencing optimal learning.

In his book, Coyle studies 'talent hotbeds:' places that seem to produce a disproportionate number of highly talented individuals whether it be in music, sports, or something else.

One such hotbed is the well-known Brazil/soccer hotbed.

One of their secrets: futsal.

This is an indoor variation of soccer using a smaller ball that doesn't fly as far when kicked.

What does this mean?

Instead of spending so much time running up and down the field, the players spend a lot more time in tight situations requiring fancy footwork.

Regular soccer on a larger field is relatively easy in comparison.

This makes me wonder: have baseball players ever taken batting practice using a smaller ball?

Let's return to alto trombone. Because of the smaller slide, an error of, say, a 1/4 inch, produces a bigger pitch error than on a tenor. Thus, besides learning those new positions, you must also be more accurate.

See the connection?

Perhaps (with our lavish budget) I should have the school buy altos for all the music majors and then force them to play with exacting intonation.

Wouldn't this be a little like Brazilian futsal?

Check out this video, these guys are magicians...

The Gliss Finder (Ear v. Arm)

OK, I may have blogged this one before but....

Sometimes, when working on intonation with my students, I find that they are unconsciously lipping notes up or down.
Recently, when a student struggled to lock in the high G-flat, I played the chord on the piano and asked him to gliss around before stopping on the note. Essentially, I wanted him to play with a very wide and slow slide vibrato before settling on the note.
Here's my thinking: when we gliss around, we are less likely to lip notes. Instead (hopefully) we focus on getting a full-centered sound. Then, when we try to lock in the correct pitch/position, we are truly tuning with the slide as opposed lipping the notes up and down.
The psychological power of muscle memory is quite amazing. Even in my own playing, I find my ear arguing with my arm.

EAR: Dude, you're sharp. Bring it down.
ARM: No way, man. Second position is never that low!

And thus perhaps the lip begins to take matters into his own hands (don't think about that concept too much, it's just an analogy) and bend the notes.

Maybe they bend into "tune" but they also bend out of resonance.

Hey, we're playing a big tuning slide here...might as well use it.

Maybe if the arm had an ear of its own...

Youtube: Riding with Ian

In case you haven't seen it:

Of the Muse and Gas Tank... (Note to conductors)

I got to play bass trombone in a very enjoyable concert this past weekend.

Suffice to say that it was a good orchestra, good hall, good conductor. However, this good (very musical) conductor made a mistake which I have seen many, many times.

At the end of one section, we landed on a nice, fortissimo octave in the low brass. This was our second performance of the piece.

As you arrive at such a big "forte fermata" moment, you have to make that judgement call...

My air isn't unlimited. How am I going to pace myself here?

Let's assume the following:

1. You want to start strong.
2. You want to finish strong (and avoid that anticlimactic fade out).
3. The note is long enough that you won't be able to to manage it in a single breath.

So you have choices:

1. Fade in the middle so you don't have to breathe.
2. Choose the least bad moment to grab a catch breath.

However, here's the giant unknown:

How long will the note last????

As a performer, my decisions hinge on that critical question.

However, highly musical conductors are sometimes moved by their muse to hold out that glorious chord a bit longer than in rehearsal. (or, in the case of this recent concert, longer than the previous night's concert). As a conductor, you may be basking in the glow of that magnificent chord but, if you hold it too long, you are putting your brass players in a difficult situation.

So, conductors, keep being inspired BUT please let us know how long you intend to hold out those big final fermatas.

Our lungs thank you.

I prefer gStrings

Hey, get your mind out of the gutter. I'm talking about the Android chromatic tuner app.

OK, so here's the story. This is a busy week I'm having:

Saturday - Verdi Requiem

Monday - Stravinsky Octet and Soldier's Tale

Tuesday - Kroeger Tres Psalmi Davidis for Trombone and Soprano (Tina Stallard rocked!)

Friday/Saturday - I'm playing bass trombone (yes, Russ, bass trombone) with Charlotte Symphony (the two Romeo and Juliette's ... Prokofiev and Tchaikovsky).

I'm also the happy new owner of a Droid X, which I love. So today I downloaded two tuner apps for my droid: Cleartune and gStrings.

Cleartune cost me $3.99 and gStrings was free (ad-supported). I tested both during the rehearsal break with my phone on the music stand and other people playing (but not right next to me).

Cleartune, which looked prettier had two significant drawbacks: the needle was too twitchy and it couldn't read low notes. Around low F (an octave and a 5th below middle C) the tuner couldn't read me.

gStrings, while not as slick-looking, had a steadier needle and, amazingly, was able to read my instrument down to a pedal F. And that was before I discovered that it has custom tessitura settings for instruments ranges (I've never seen that in a tuner before).

Both apps had customizable temperament settings (I suspect this isn't much of a programming challenge). With respect to just intonation, I was confused. I always think of just intonation as tempering notes with respect to a given tonic pitch. So..what pitch is it scaling to?

[OK, you can set it to tune to one specific pitch as opposed to auto chromatic tuning so maybe that's where the just tuning comes into play. Not clear, however.]

Oh yeah, gStrings doesn't appear to be available for iPhone. I'm sure you guys have a lot of great choices as well.

Just be careful about using the search term "gStrings."

The Bank Account of Good Will

This is not strictly a 'trombone' posting but more of a life posting. In my interactions with my students, I sometimes envision a sort of 'good will' bank balance. Each new student starts out with a modest positive balance.

When they do things like show up prepared for lessons or actively participate in master class, their balance goes up.

When they do things like miss lessons or show up late/unprepared for ensemble rehearsals, their balance goes down.

Suppose someone calls me looking for a recommendation. Something like, "I need a trombonist to play this gig..."

To whom do I give that work? Well, I certainly want one of my better players to do it. But suppose that better player also has a low balance in their 'good will' bank account? Can I trust them to show up on time, be well-prepared, be professional in their behavior?

What about when students come to me asking for letters of recommendation?

Unlike a real bank account, I don't keep a specific written record. However, I (and I suspect most applied teachers) have a pretty sense of whose balance is up and whose balance is down.

Switch to Glide

I think most of us agree on these two things..

1. At slow tempos, the slide clearly needs to stop on every note. Alessi once said, "I want to see the rhythm in your slide."
2. At very fast tempos, your slide can't really stop on every note. The classic example of this, I suppose, is the excerpt from William Tell.

I have heard of teachers advising students to practice the William Tell excerpt in an unusual way: even when you play it slowly, don't stop and start with the slide. Instead 'catch' the note as the slide goes by without stopping.

Even though I glide at fast tempos, I find this 'slow glide' practice technique to be awkward. (maybe I'm doing it wrong).

Lately, in my warm-up, I've been playing a lot more chromatic scales. I always start playing slowly over a limited range. Something like this:

Then I extend range and increase speed. I like to end up going full-speed with double tonguing.

Of course, at some point, I switch to the glide approach.

Anybody with a high speed camera? It would be interesting to film top players as they play fast then slow the film down to see what they are really doing with their slides.

Hmm, doctoral dissertation idea?

It will need a lofty title...

"The High-Speed Video Analysis of a Select Group of Professional Trombonists to Ascertain the Transition from the 'Stopped Slide' model of technique to the 'Steady Slide' model at Increasing Tempi"

zzzzzzz

When to Stop?

Teaching is more art than science.

One of the things I love about my job is that I am constantly challenged to revise my craft. When I see former students, I sometimes feel the urge to apologize because I've learned so much about teaching since they were my students.

One of the fundamental questions I deal with is...

When to stop a student and when

to let them play through?

This semester, I feel as if I've made a bit of a breakthrough in the pacing of lessons. After beginning with the usual variety of 'fundamentals' things, I hand it over to the student (who has already laid out a basic plan for the semester) and ask, "OK, what do you want to play?"

Whatever they choose, I pop their SD card into my recorder and they essentially perform the piece without me stopping them.

When they're done, we both sit down at my desk with the music and listen back to the recording. Now I can stop as often as I need/want to and point out details. I often back up the recording to point out something. I also like to pause our listening and have them jump back up to play through a passage differently.

It is interesting to see their reaction when, after we've really worked on a phrase, we double back to the recording and listen again to how they played it that first time. Often, they have moved from being unaware of something to being keenly (and uncomfortably) aware of it.

Generally, this also means that I've slowed down the pace of the lesson, choosing to patiently address something that needs attention rather than feeling quite so compelled to move on to the next item.

This isn't the only thing I do or the only way I teach but, in general, I've been doing it a lot more and am liking the results.

The Air Obstacle Course

Living in Columbia, SC means living near Ft. Jackson. Every fall, they host an event (sponsored by the marine corps) called the mud run.

This last fall roughly 14,000 people ran, swam, crawled and basically oozed their way through an obstacle course. (I even considered doing it but then I realized that I am sane).

Somehow I thought about this when listening to a student's overly noisy breath.

Noise = friction.

It's almost as if the air has to run an obstacle course to go in and come out. What we really need (low tongue, relaxed throat) is a new superhighway...

Gasp

Consider this example...

How long do you have to take a breath?? Over two measures, right? Why do so many people try to breathe in the space of the eighth note?

Yes, it's good to be able to breathe quickly when you have to but lets not make things more gaspy than needed.

On a related note, I think everyone agrees about the value of a quiet breath. However, what about a cue breath in chamber music? I sometimes use a technique I call 'finishing with a kick.'

I start with that slower, relaxed breath. At the end of the breath, my 'kick' is a louder inhalation in time with the music in order to cue the others.

(yes this is a pseudo Ewazen quote)

Surfing on the breeze

It seems I never have time for elaborate blog posts so here's a short one.

So many people pinch off the air as they buzz. There is a standard trick I like to use.

1. Blow silent air through the mouthpiece (against a pinwheel or something similar). If you're using a pinwheel, don't make it spin at full tilt. A nice steady breeze should do the trick.
2. Start blowing that same silent air and then gently bring the lips together. Hopefully they'll buzz.
3. Make sure the pinwheel doesn't stop spinning when the note starts. Many, many students start the buzz and instinctively pinch off the air when starting the note. I'm surprised how often, when they finally get it right and buzz with a nice full sound, they say to me, "Wow, that feels completely different."

Band directors, go get yourself a pinwheel and use it with those starting students!

The first habit is the one that sticks. If their first experience is a buzz with freely moving air, they are likely to avoid major trouble down the road.

Wagner at the Ballpark

OK, bass trombones. Here's a little something I cooked up on the fly the other day. It's nothing fancy but may be useful.

It is the famous Rheingold excerpt played using an organ setting in general midi. The tempo is quarter note - 60.

Yeah, I know it uses equal temperament but you may find that french horn section isn't planning on just intonation. If you can lock in with this, it's a good start at any rate..

Here's the mp3 file.

If you want to tweak it, here's the midi file.

Hippos and Cheetahs

I originally posted this in 2010 but it seems to be coming up again a lot in lessons.  See at the bottom for additional thoughts..

When I'm working up challenging licks (such as those found in the Gottschalk Sonata which I'm premiering tomorrow) I can use a variety of strategies.

There's the old "notch by notch approach." You know, slow it down and then work it up bit by bit.

There's the variation "up three, down two." Start slow, move up three (old-fashioned) notches on the metronome and then down two."

The one I keep going back to might be called "hippos and cheetahs." Basically, I like to oscillate between hippo speed and cheetah speed.

In other words, play it nice and slow. Then, play it at the fast goal tempo.

Usually the best ratio is two cheetahs to one hippo.

Try it. Let me know if it works for you.

=====
Additional thoughts..
As you try this practice technique, keep an eye on your tension levels.  I'm going to go with the theory that our friend the hippo is a pretty mellow dude.  So, as you play that very slow, mellow approach, maintain a "hippo" frame of mind.  Then, when you kick into "cheetah mode" be very mindful that the tension levels don't spike.
One other thought: it is best to apply this practice technique to small batches of notes instead of whole pieces or phrases.  Just a couple of measures in most cases.

Best Bio Ever?

Thanks for Harold van Schaik for forwarding this to me. It is the online bio for William Barnewitz, Principal Horn of the Milwaukee Symphony.

http://www.mso.org/main.taf?p=9,8,2,2

Another brick in the wall

OK, I'm not referring to the Pink Floyd song. I believe that phrase was around before they came along.

As we practice our instruments and hone our craft, it is sometimes useful to think of all that work as building something good. So each scale, each lip slur, each etude, each excerpt run is another brick in the wall of good playing.

But another image occurred to me. Perhaps there is another wall we are building...

"I didn't feel like doing fundamentals this morning."

"I forgot to bring in an extra copy of the score for you to look at"

"I don't have my recorder today."

"I went away with friends for the weekend and didn't practice."

"I didn't check my lesson notes and forgot that was assigned."

"I haven't fixed that dent in my slide."

Taken individually, each one of these things isn't a game-changer. But, oh, how they add up!

Each little "I didn't" or "I forgot" is like another brick in the wall of bad playing.

This is the wall that stands between you and what you thought you wanted to achieve.

Each of your actions is a brick.

Which wall are you building?

Bob McChesney - Unreal

OK, so here's something that almost seems un-humanly fast and clean.

I think it's interesting that the video tacks on some audio of him improvising at the end almost as if to say, "Yeah, he can play that fast."

I noticed this in the comment section below the video:

This recording seemed a bit too fast and too perfect even for the doodle master, so I emailed him, and he graciously responded: "Obviously it's been tweaked, but not for speed. I tracked all the parts in real time (no slowing down or speeding up), punching in and out like crazy, of course, to get it really accurate with no errors. ..The result sounded really good without any tweaking, but I couldn't resist so I proceeded to line up notes timewise (when needed) to see how far I could take it."

What's the Big Idea? - Fall 2010

Here's something new I've been trying in lessons this semester. All the students have a "big idea" journal (actually, they have two: one on paper and one online). While most of the entries come out of lessons, sometimes they do add in some of their revelations from practicing.

Now that we are at the halfway point of our semester, I thought it might be interesting to put together a random listing of "Big Ideas"

• Think about dynamic interest; Play long notes with musical interest.
• For technical licks: 1. Find the trouble spot (don’t always start from the beginning 2. For practice tempo, think hippos and cheetahs
• Stop saying “I can’t” Yes, some things are hard - do you want to live without challenges?;
• When you do long tones - start every note centered with confidence;
• Stand tall, bring instrument to you. Don’t tuck under the stand.
• To improve, you must remember;
• Fundamentals are the key to everything
• If it doesn’t sound good, break it down to something more simple. Get to the point where it sounds good (get creative with it) and then take baby steps back again;
• Using drones helps with intonation, who would have thought?
• Insert the wrong note on purpose to improve slide accuracy ;
• Don’t give on your long notes - that’s your chance to sing;
• In loud, dotted rhythms look out for the little guy; mentally connect it to the following note so they are one thing.
  
  
  Enough for now. I hope some of this has been good food for thought.
  
  
  Feel free to contribute any recent "big ideas" in your comments.
  
  
  
  

UHS for trombone history

OK, it's confession time.

I'm a trombone professor so I'm supposed to be interested in the history of the trombone. Fascinated by it. Obsessed with it.

Except I'm not.

Don't get me wrong, I know of a lot of basics and keep learning as I go.

I'm really impressed by the online history posted by Will Kimball.

But, as I read it, or read Trevor Herbert's book, I can only process so much detail before numbness sets in.

A few years ago (and way past its shelf date) my kids and I get a copy of the original Myst game and played it together one summer.

We had a blast and, yes, sometimes we got stuck.

That's when we discovered the UHS website (Universal Hint System). What we liked about this site was the manner in which it gave progressively more obvious hints to help us through the game. So, if you're stuck, you start with the first one or two hints.

Something like this:

If you're you're still stuck, you can click on more hints until you are basically reading a walk-through.

Something like this:

All this makes me think about the sense of detail overload I get from reading trombone histories.

Maybe the information could be presented in a "UHS manner". It would start with something fairly basic and then give you the option to increase the level of detail.

It could look something like this:

The Trombone first appears around 1400

CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAIL

Later on, if you sought more detail, it might proceed like this:

The Trombone first appears around 1400

Some scholars think they appear in

northern Italy and southern France (Eliason)

According to other scholars, it is more likely,

based on performer nationalities and manufacturing locations,

that the trombone originates in Germany

(Herbert, Susato 117; Polk, Archival Documents)

CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAIL

(Much of what you see in the example above

I pasted from Will Kimball's excellent history.)

I guess this basically boils down to an outline history. Still, I think there might be something appealing in the concept of presenting a tidbit of info and tempting the reader to move into deeper detail if they want.

Hmmmm, maybe an online application for this? I would say "an app for that" but I hear Apple is claiming that they own that phrase.

Still, I could see some enterprising DMA student running with this idea.....

any takers?

Yin and Yang for Slide Technique

Slide technique should be so simple.....right?

Just move the slide to the right place at the right moment...right?

Well knowing it and actually doing it can be two different things. Here are two exercises that may be helpful. Neither one is original.

In legato, we want to stay on each note as long as possible. So, that means move the slide at the last instant (while staying relaxed...I like the verb "flick" as in "flick the slide at the last second")

Another trick I've seen pertains more to speeding up the slide in tongued passages. It involves moving the slide right after the note sounds:

It never occurred to me that these two exercises are so yin and yang. In the first, you move the slide at the last possible second. In the second, you want the slide in the next position at the earliest possible second.

Don't lose the sound as you add the sizzle

A quick thought...

We all want to deliver a compelling performance.

We all want a good sound.

Sometimes that pursuit of musical excitement can get in the way of the good sound.

Sometimes that pursuit of good sound can get in the way of musical excitement.

Don't lose the sound as you add the sizzle.

(and don't lose the sizzle as you improve the sound)

This seems to be something I constantly struggle with. I have had too many performances where, in going for musical excitement I lose control of my sound. It's all about maintaining that beautiful balance.

Beware the 'Careful Valve'

Here's something I see all the time in lessons. I work with a student away from the music. We get the air flowing well - tone production is nice and resonant. For this, I'm usually using glisses or flow patterns...something easy to play without music.

Then we turn to some printed music.

Once the student sees that notation on the page, it seems as if much of that wonderful free-blowing quality in their sound just stops.

They tighten up, almost as if they have a 'careful valve' built into their blowing habits. It goes something like this...

Uh oh, there are notes on the page. I sure don't want to play them wrong. Time to be really careful.

And so they close that valve, the sound tightens up and notes sometimes don't speak.

How ironic that the desire to make it 'right' ends up messing it up.

Keep that valve open...

Yes, Trombone Player's Lung

Well, you probably didn't hear it here first but apparently that lovely green goo that comes out of your horn when you play might actually be bad for you!

Here's the NPR story.

beach heads

slowing it down is like establishing a beach head

ITF Reflections #5: It isn't always snake oil

Whenever I go to a trombone convention showroom, I carry with me a good dose of skepticism. I've seen some pretty ridiculous things.

However, I had a pretty mind-blowing experience at the Edwards booth when I spent some with Christian Griego and their new model, the "Alessi" model T396-A.

Now you might think that, given my last name, I play an Edwards. Wrong, I play a Shires and absolutely love it.

Here's the thing, though....

This new Edwards trombone is what they call an acoustically-tunable fixed instrument. Basically, if I understand correctly, this trombone doesn't have a removable lead pipe (I could be wrong about this, though). What it definitely does have, though, are these three threaded holes near the tuning slide (I think they call it an "harmonic bridge"). The horn comes with a variety of small bolt-like pieces made of different metals which can be screwed into these holes.

At the outset, I felt pretty confident that I was about to have another 'snake oil' experience. However, as Christian began to add or change these metal pieces I was amazed by the difference in the instrument.

He would make the smallest adjustment and it was as if he had handed me a different instrument. One time, the change was the same piece/same hole but he screwed it in from the opposite side. Even this caused a big difference in the way the instrument responded.

Am I ready to leave Shires?

No, but I'll admit that, if my horn were destroyed or stolen, I'd have to look closely at these new Edwards trombones before I automatically go back to Shires.

This time, it isn't snake oil. I think he's really onto something here.

ITF reflections #4: Advantage Eastman

OK, so I had this blog post waiting around for me to finish. At the ITF in Austin I wanted to try playing some mid-priced trombones.

Back to back I played an Eastman and a Getzen. I've seen some good Getzen's before so I'm not trying to knock them but in this one comparison, I've got to say..

Clear advantage: Eastman.

What about quality? Well, I've heard people blast both brands at times. Others say they've had no trouble. YMMV

By the way, as far as I know, Andreas Eastman doesn't exist. Fictitious name.

If this is true, seems a little tacky.

Still I suppose it would sell more products than a name like, say, Ignaz Gooberfeltzer.

Kindling Wood vs Crutches

Wood is useful stuff.

Consider two possible uses for wood: kindling wood or crutches.

Kindling starts a fire. Crutches help support you.

Teachers are useful people.

Consider two possible uses for teachers: kindling wood or crutches.

As teachers, should we lay back and let students figure it out for themselves or nuture them along?

Suppose I have a student who sometimes oversleeps for lessons. His/Her lesson is at 9:30 am and I suspect they won't make it. It is 9:00 am. What should I do? Should I call them to make sure they are awake??

If I think of myself as kindling wood, then I'm trying to get a fire to burn in this student. Thus I want to help them along. A "kindling wood" teacher makes the call (possibly waking them up).

If I realize that the more I do for a student, the more I become a crutch and they never develop the self-discipline to make it on the own. To not become a "crutch," a teacher doesn't make the call (possibly letting them oversleep).

So these two uses for wood are a symbol for the fundamental question faced by all teachers: is it "sink or swim" or is it "helping hands."

Of course, there is no one answer but it something worth considering.

ITF Reflections #3 Bonerama and the Stapedius reflex

One of the groups I was looking forward to hearing at ITF was Bonerama. Well, I guess I'm an old fuddy-duddy because after one or two tunes I had to leave. Why?

TOO LOUD

Maybe loudness is simply the "terroir" of this musical style. It raises some interesting questions, though. I'm guessing that, on some level, these guys want to be edgy. Watching them, I got the impression that they were really committed to what they were doing. I wanted to enjoy what they were doing, musically but I had to bail because I was physically uncomfortable.

I'm not against loud music. Without the benefit of amplification, I've had moments where I've enjoyed generating quite a few decibels. BUT, these loud moments were just that: moments The loudness was in contrast to other moments.

It seems that, by making everything loud, you've removed dynamics from the musical equation.

The loudness becomes part of the ambiance, just like the clothing you choose to wear for the performance.

Here's another thought: I honestly believe that the music didn't sound as loud to them as it did to me. I'm not talking about the relative levels of the feedback monitors to the house speakers. I'm talking about our old friend, the stapedius reflex.

So here is a lovely, fascinating paragraph from Wikipedia:

When presented with a high-intensity sound stimulus, the stapedius and tensor tympani muscles of the ossicles contract. The stapedius pulls the stapes (stirrup) of the middle ear away from the oval window of the cochlea and the tensor tympani muscle pulls the malleus (hammer) away from ear drum. The reflex decreases the transmission of vibrational energy to the cochlea, where it is converted into electrical impulses to be processed by the brain. The acoustic reflex normally occurs only at relatively high intensities; activation for quieter sounds can indicate ear dysfunction and absence of acoustic reflex can indicate neural hearing loss.

Now here's something that has been hanging around in my memory: I seem to remember that when that stapedius muscle is tensed (to protect the ear), less blood gets to certain vital ear regions. Also, I seem to remember that is takes about 24 hours for the muscle to completely relax again. So, if I'm remembering correctly...

Frequent loud noise = stapedius is flexed most of the time = less blood flow = long term hearing loss.

Or, for the guys in Bonerama...

Lots of loud performances = stops sounding as loud = turn up the volume.

So we return to a twist on that basic irony: as we perform we can never truly hear ourselves as the audience hears us. The twist: I'm guessing they don't/can't know how loud the music was for me/many of us.

They seemed like a really cool group. I'm just sad I didn't feel I could stick around to hear them. Or to put it another way: I heard so much of them that I couldn't stick around to hear them.

Should have brought ear plugs....

ITF Reflections #2: Bousfield, volume and timbre

Here's another interesting tidbit from Ian Bousfield's master class at the International Trombone Festival...

He described a 'typical' comment from an American player:

"I like this trombone. I can go from soft to loud without the timbre changing too much"

He contrasted this with a typical European player:

"I like this trombone. I can go from soft to loud and get a nice change in timbre"

So, in his view (if I understand correctly), Europeans want a greater variety of timbre in their playing.

Here's a corollary idea - as a trombone gets louder, the sound gets brighter. It would seem that, from Bousfield's perspective, Americans view this as a problem and Europeans view this as an advantage.

I could imagine an American complaining, "This trombone gets too bright when I play loud."

I could imagine a European complaining, "I have to play too loud to get the brightness I want."

A while back, I got called on short notice to fill on playing principal with the Charlotte Symphony. The main piece on the program was Symphonie Fantastique. The guest conductor (who was Swiss I think), kept egging me on to play louder and shorter. He also asked me to attack the notes with more and more accent. We were sitting right behind the trumpets and the first trumpet was none too pleased with my assault on the back of his head. Whenever I backed off, however, the conductor got on me to play out more. He even said, "First trombone, I want you to play those notes as loud and accented as possible." (not something you often hear in an orchestra rehearsal).

Finally, I opened up more and played in a style I would normally reserve for the loudest shout sections in a jazz band. This evoked a big smile and a 'thumbs-up' from the conductor while my trumpet colleague's ears turned red with anger. Tough spot to be in.

Looking back on it, I wonder if the conductor was wanting a more brilliant sound and I was just having to play that loud to give him the timbre he wanted.

Interesting.

ITF Reflections #1: Ian Bousfield and "Terroir"

I recently returned from the International Trombone Festival in Austin, Texas.

During the masterclass sessions, I didn't take notes but still have some reflections worth sharing.

#1 Ian Bousfield and "Terroir"

Ian Bousfield, an Englishmen who is currently the principle trombonist of the Vienna Philharmonic gave two great masterclasses on consecutive days. During this time, he introduced the idea of terroir - a French term related to wine-making. Specifically, it means that one region (with its specific soil conditions, weather, sunlight, etc) will lend a sense of uniqueness to the wines produced there. More loosely, it can mean "a sense of place."

Ian's point, if I understood it correctly, is this: if you grow up in a region and are immersed in its culture, you have a more innate understanding of music from that region. Case in point: people who grow up in Vienna, immersed in the local musical culture, will have a deeper appreciation for Mahler. Unlike most Americans, they are in a better position to hear Mahler's music in the context of its roots and thus are better able to interpret it. In answering a question, he even went so far as to say that he preferred to avoid those concerts in which Vienna played music not from their own terroir - say, French music for example.

What impressed me was his description of the prevalence of 'art music' in common culture. Whereas, in the United States, orchestras are fighting to hold on to dwindling audiences, in Vienna [as he observed] it is not uncommon for children to receive tickets to an upcoming opera production. He pointed out that the Vienna State Opera performs almost daily to sold-out houses. Don't believe me? Check out their schedule.

He told a great story about a farmer passing by his house on a tractor. [remember I'm paraphrasing here] The farmer stopped and asked, "You're with the Philharmonic aren't you? The 'Giovanni' was sh*t!"

Point taken: how often in our country would a person on the street even know what opera was being performed much less have seen it and have an opinion?

I have a relative in Paris whom we visit on occasion. I do remember how many little central town intersections had electronic kiosks with a schedule of local cultural events.

All this makes me think about Jeremy Wilson. If I remember correctly, at an ETW a few years back Jeremy won both the jazz and classical solo competitions (I was one of the judges on the classical competition). What does that mean? Well, a lot of talent, obviously. But also .... GOOD EARS.

In preparation for the Vienna audition, I believe Jeremy really focused on internalizing the style of that ensemble. I'm guessing those great ears that he developed, partly through jazz playing, helped him to be flexible in adapting to a different musical style. You might even say "adopting" that style.

So let me go with a crazy idea here: musically, if the audience can't hear it, it doesn't exist. Whatever advantage 'terroir' provides, it is only relevant in audible musical choices.

No, Jeremy Wilson (or Bousfield for that matter) didn't have the Viennese "terroir" working for him but he had great ears and musical flexibility. In the end, what came out of the bell, even though it was more 'studied' than 'native' apparently was good enough to win the audition.

So, as you practice those excerpts, ask yourself...

What style am I using?

Do I articulate notes differently for Berlioz and Bruckner?

..or..

Am I just being a dumb trombone jock pounding everything out with basically the same sound and style.

I am hopeful that, the higher the level of audition, the more this matters.