Orbits (76 +4 [or more])

A rare piece was performed at NYC's Guggenheim Art Museum on June 21st.
Orbits by Canadian composer Henry Brant (1913 - 2007).

The work is scored for 80 trombones, soprano and organ.

Here's a link to the New York Times article about it.

There are several YouTube videos, of course. I've embedded two that you give you an idea of the event...

New(er) Building Blocks

Summer months...not much to blog about at the moment.

I have been working quite a bit on my third book and am almost done with a demo version. This one weighs in around 120 pages. I'm quite excited about it.

This morning, I took some time to write out some of the tweaks I've made to the "Building Block" warm-up routine this past year. They include some extensions (faster, higher, louder, softer)that I've been in the habit of adding on as I practice.

You can find the newest version here.

What's the Opposite of Legato

Alright, so we all know about legato (Rochut, Bordogni, etc.)

There doesn't seem to be a catch-all term for articulated playing.

Staccato (well, that seems to be just short)
Marcato (well, that implies weight)
Detache (maybe, but isn't that basically staccato?)

We could be technical and say mezzo-staccato.

What about generic adjectives:
Bouncy? Pointed?

Maybe this alludes to a bigger issue.

Buddy Baker had his articulation numbers to indicate gradations of attack.

I've seen hints of a trend against playing the B-flat 7 chord of the Mozart Requiem in a totally legato style.

Still, wouldn't it be nice if there was one handy word....

Any ideas out there?

Palmetto Posaunen at Spoleto

Last Friday I had a chance to play two performances with the Palmetto Posaunen on the first day of the Piccolo Spoleto festival in Charleston, SC.

We had some guy named Wycliffe Gordon solo with us on two tunes. Here's one of them.
Oh, by the way, the first soloist, Steve Wilson, got his master's at USC. (I can't claim to have imparted any jazz wisdom, however)

BoneSaw?

Hmmm....

IMSLP - a little trombone

OK, this is mildly interesting. I was doing research and ran across the Internet Music Score Library Project (IMSLP).
I noticed, in the categories, a section breaking down all the music by the instrument featured. Clicking on the "trombone" category I found two pieces...free for download..

Rimsky Korsakov, Concerto
Biduo d'ouro, a trombone/tuba duet by Zoltan Paulinyi

(Can't say that I know that second piece.)


The RK was uploaded by Lyle Neff. I haven't met him but I'm guessing he's either a librarian at the University of Delaware. or a hotheaded Canadian nationalist.

Thanks Lyle!

(and, just in case, Long Live Canada!)

The Ripple Effect

Here's something I like to mention to my secondary trombone classes...

Let's say such a class has 10 students. If each student has a career as a band director, let's guess that each year they will encounter roughly 40 new students. Over a career of, say 30 years, each student will directly impact the lives of 1,200 people.

Multiply that by the 10 students in the class and I would guess that what I teach a single secondary trombone class might impact the lives of 12,000 people.

(Not to mention the small percentage of those 12,000 people who, in turn, might do some teaching of their own.)

So, if I teach something dumb like: "Mouthpiece pressure isn't important. Don't worry about it."
Think of how that one bad idea ripples outward over time.

(no, I don't teach that)

Of course, I hope I can pass along something good.

Here's one example which I picked up at en ETW masterclass given by Randy Campora, bass trombonist of the Baltimore Symphony.

Think of the corners of your embouchure as the flagpole, anchored in cement.
Think of your lips as the flag, blowing in the breeze.

I don't know if this was original with Randy but that's where I got it. In other words, the ripple passed from him to me. I include this in my handouts to my secondary trombone classes and sometimes even include it as a quiz question. Rarely do any students miss it.

So, if I teach this class for 20 years, this one idea could conceivably impact 240,000 people.

And now the ripple has passed through me to you....

The Crutch Paradox

Classes have ended and it's the time of year when I turn my thoughts to what I want to get done over the summer and what changes I want to implement next year.

Of course, my list of things I want to accomplish over the summer is wildly unrealistic (as in.....if I could work without break for a year or two, I might get them done).
Oh well....at least I have lots of ideas!

But this posting is about that other list: what I want to do differently next year. To me, teaching is an art form. I am always looking to improve my craft. Sometimes I want to apologize to past students because I feel I have become such a better teacher now then I was for them.

Some questions, though, I struggle with and have yet to find a really good answer. Here's one:
The Crutch Paradox

Basically, this can be summarized like so:

The more I do for them,
the less they do for themselves.

I've seen teachers on both ends of the spectrum.
On one end we have the teacher who doesn't really make assignments but starts the lesson with something like, "What do you have for me today?"

This works well for advanced, highly motivated students who think well for themselves. I often use it with my best students.

On the other end, we have the teacher who precisely lays out everything a student is supposed to do. At my school, I have one such colleague. His students know, walking in the door, pretty much every solo they will work on throughout their college career and in what semester they will work on that solo. The logic has been explained to me in this way: other university classes have clear syllabi and uniform expectations, why not an applied instrument? This approach also offers the advantage of fairness...everyone is held to the same standard.

Still, it isn't the approach I use or plan to use.

I often tell my students that I am trying to get them to become their own teachers-to learn how to think for themselves. With some, this works well. Other flounder-they are so used to being told what to do, it just hasn't occurred to them how to plot their own course.

The basic pillars of my syllabus are: Show Up, Prepare, and Show Incentive.

If I tell you everything you are supposed to do, what happens when you're out on your own with nobody telling you what to do?

But there is always the question of the "other" students. The ones who, for whatever reason, don't get it done.

I tell them to contact their accompanist....they don't.
I tell them to make an appointment to visit the local middle school and teach some demonstration lessons in front of a video camera....they don't.
I tell them to order music, sign up for seminar, mark in breath marks, look up musical terms, record their best take of an excerpt, .........they don't.

Perhaps the solution is obvious: bring down that righteous hammer of "F" upon their heads...that'll teach 'em.
But before I do that, I have to ask myself: am I applying rules fairly to everyone? Have I notified them of this assignment in a timely manner. The last thing I want to do is start throwing out "F's" in a capricious manner.

Yes, I could create an elaborate structure filled with rules and deadlines and appropriate consequences.
But this begs the larger question:
Am I teaching them to do it merely to avoid punishment? Is this right way to get them to show incentive? If I'm not careful it all slips into those questions of "Well, why should I do it if it isn't precisely stated in the syllabus?"

That's like the old joke of the professor who passionately orates on something she cares about only to have a student ask, "Will that be on the quiz?"

Because, if you ask that question, you're missing the whole point!
Future music educators, are you going to be that kind of band director that merely does the minimum to get by? If so, I hope my poor kid doesn't end up in your program!

Future performers....
well, if self-motivation in this insane job market isn't screamingly obvious, then GET OUT NOW!!!

So, I continue to work towards a good compromise of structure and freedom. I'll probably never perfect it but I love the challenge!

For anybody reading this (especially other teachers), I'd love to hear your thoughts.

...and this from the iBone developer

After my last post, I got this email from the iBone developer:
============
The idea was to make something playable by the pro, useful to the student, and still palatable and fun for the complete novice. Thanks to the mobility and accessibility of the phone/ipod, I see it as a useful tool to do things like learn scales and songs, work out alternative positions, practice ear training by playing along with iTunes, etc... all in places and at times when you simply can't use the real thing.
For the complete novice, there's an integrated Songbook which shows you how to play in real-time in a game-like fashion. If we do our job, this could be an opportunity to bring more people to the instrument, and at least raise awareness and appreciation among the video-game playing masses.

Here's a link to the official site: http://ibone.spoonjack.com
And the press relase: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/iBone-Brings-Bone-and-Band-to-prnews-14879239.html

========================

So, one question remains: is that third position E-flat in tune?

An iBone app? Really??

Further proof that some people have way too much time on their hands.

(But I'll confess I'm a little jealous)

(notice the overtone series in the background)
(also, notice that tilting the phone seems to affect volume).

I Can't Play That Lick (that I just played)

Oh, how many times has this happened!

A student comes in, announcing that he/she simply can't play a lick.
I ask, "What lick"
Then (and here's the cool part) they sometimes pick up their horn and play it. *And* they often nail it.

What's going on here?

Well, here's one thought: at the moment they are demonstrating for me, a couple of factors may be true:

1. They have nothing to lose since they just announced they can't play it. Thus, they plunge in with a "no worries, nothing to lose" approach.

2.Their mindset is more focused on the lick itself and how it sounds (since their goal is to simply demonstrate it for me to make their point). In other words, they aren't focused on themselves or the act of trying to play it. Instead their total focus is on the music itself.

So, in demonstrating that lick they can't play, they are often doing the two exact things they should do:

Let go and play
Focus completely on the music, not yourself.

The brain is a funny thing.

Steve Witser: Sad News

I just heard that Steve Witser passed away.

Here's the article.

The Fearsome Five

The Beatles were the Fab Four

In basketball we have the Final Four (and Sweet Sixteen)

In school we learned the Three R's

On the evil side of the equation, we could think about the Seven Deadly Sins

or maybe the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

Here's a new one to consider:
THE FEARSOME FIVE









Why these notes?

(if it isn't obvious, which it should be)

They represent that perfect storm of of "out of tune" and "shows up a lot in your music"

I wonder, what percentage of our tuning troubles would go away if those five notes were always in tune.

Berlin in the Arm

Good ol' 5th position.
Sooo many pitch problems to be found.

Here's what I find interesting: even when someone KNOWS that they aren't reaching out far enough, their arm just seems strangely reluctant to reach
all.....the......way.....out....into.....the
.....swamps....of.....fifth.....position

Consider this analogy: when Germany reunified, I seem to recall some trouble bringing those East German factories (and factory workers) up to speed with with Western standards.

Brain = new standards (Western manufacturing)
Muscles = old attitudes (Soviet style manufacturing)

The brain keeps saying, "Get out to 5th position, you're sharp" The factory workers keep replying , "Nope, 5th position isn't out there. It's only out to here!"

Somehow, the memos from management don't always get through.

History: Let's Hear it for Hennequin van Pictre

Have you ever had a "should" book. You know, you buy a book you "should" read but then you don't get around to it.
Well, one of my "should" books is "The Trombone" by Trevor Herbert. I'm finally starting to work my way slowly through it.
I thought I might occasionally post a blog entry about some detail from the book. I don't wish to plagiarize, though.
You should buy this book. Here's a link from Amazon. Here's a link from Hickey's.
Here's a "proper" citation:
Herbert, Trevor. The Trombone. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006.

Today's tidbit is from page 58.

Who, you ask is Hennequin van Pictre?
Well, according to Herbert, Burgundian court records from the 1410's list him as being employed to play the trompette des menestrals (a slide trumpet or very early trombone).


(no, this picture is not from the book)

In other words: he's one of the first trombone players to
HAVE A GIG!

Go Hennequin!!

Talking Mouthpieces..Buy One Get One Free!!

Another story from a recent lesson:

A student is struggling to play with good technique and also doesn't really perform a convincing phrase. At first we try various tricks to help with tone and clean slide technique (with varying results).

Then I switch gears and address that whole phrasing thing. We try singing it but the tricky intervals get in the way. So I try a trick which I've thought of before but haven't really used:

Talking Mouthpieces

Basically, I ask him to buzz it but not worry about even coming close to the right pitches. What's important is to get a speech-like inflection (like the voice) using the rhythm alone. From that, we went on to play the passage on one note with a nice musical inflection.

By the way, while browsing I once ran across some very nice teaching pages from Carl Lenthe in which, among other things, he uses the phrase "Johnny One Note" and demonstrates inflection for the Barat Allegro using this technique. Give a listen to the sound files. On one of them, he sings rhythms with a nice inflection. What I was doing with this student was essentially the same thing but using this "talking mouthpiece" idea.

Then we moved on to one of my favorite tricks: he played the "one-note" version while I played the phrase. Then we swapped with him playing the phrase and me playing the "one-note" version.

The end result? His phrasing definitely had more feel to it and he reported to me that his mind wasn't so focused on a laundry list of technical things he was supposed to be doing.

And here's the cool part: during all this time he was so focused on the phrasing, his technique was greatly improved!!! By focusing on a convincing musical phrase, it was almost as if the technique was thrown in for free.

(I love it when this happens)

Writing Comments - is there a transparent solution?

I just got back from a Virginia/D.C. trip that included judging the two final rounds of the ETW solo competition.

For me, one of the biggest challenges in judging these things is the not-so-simple process of listening attentively while trying to write intelligently. It goes something like this: you listen, you hear something (good or bad) that deserves a written comment. You try to write with decent handwriting, knowing that your comments might impact the person whom you are evaluating. I always want to write something of value to the eventual reader. But, as you write this, the music keeps rolling along and deserves your attention. The challenge is exacerbated when you are dealing with a score you don't know well as was the case with the Schnyder Sonata and the Amis Preludes.

Here's an idea I've thought of but haven't acted on. What if you laid one of those transparency sheets over a copy of the music and wrote comments directly onto the transparency? Then you could quickly refer to specific sections by simply circling them. When the candidate/student receives your comments, in theory they could lay the transparency right over their music and see your comments.

This reminds me of an interesting technique I first saw used by Eugene Corporan when working with conducting students. He had rigged up something that allowed him to hold a microphone and softly make comments that, I believe, were being overlaid directly onto the audio portion of the student's video tape. Clever but a bit cumbersome for a trombone competition.

One last comment on the ETW judging. This is my third time doing it. It seems that every time we end up with a choice between the more "clean, polished" rendition and the more "expressive" rendition. I will say that, usually (with one significant exception this year), the more expressive version wins the day even though it is often clear that the "clean, polished" player is technically stronger.

I have heard stories of parallels in big-time orchestra auditions.

"Tonguing" with the Fingers

Here's a new thing I've tried in a few lessons.

Buzz a note and, as you sustain a nice mezzo-piano buzz, gently cover the end of the mouthpiece with your finger so the air can't escape.

Do it correctly and the note will stop.

Here's the interesting part, pull your finger away and the note should start right away, sounding like a clean attack.

In fact, I've done this repeatedly creating the effect of repeated attacks. While I'm not wild about how the notes end, I've like the way the buzz begins with a nice clean "pop."

Hopefully, that's the role of our friend/enemy, the tongue: release the air all at once so the lips can pop right into vibration.

The great thing about "tonguing" with your fingers is that it reminds you to deliver a nice supply of air/fuel from the lungs without any throat nonsense. It should be simple:

air flows - lips buzz

Come to think of it. Should we really be calling this "tonguing?" It seems that maybe the tongue had a really good publicist and managed to steal the spotlight.










(yeah, I considered superimposing some image of a tongue onto this picture but then thought better of it)

BoneWeek 6 - done

I've written another BoneWeek fanfare. Like the others, it is available for free download on my website.

BoneWeek Fanfare 6

I'm also happy to report that this piece will be premiered at the Eastern Trombone Workshop by Dr. Bradley Palmer and the Columbus State Trombone Choir.

For anyone going to ETW, I'll be doing a group warm-up on Saturday morning.

Yeah, it's at 8am.

High Speed Film of Embouchures (don't eat while watching)

I've heard about these movies for years but had never seen them. Interesting...and a little disgusting.

Basically, the films show high speed images of the lips vibrating as seen through a clear mouthpiece. Some big name players including Bill Watrous, Stuart Dempster, Larry Wiehe and George Roberts.

Thanks for David Wilken for getting this up onto YouTube.

Part 1: downstream embouchures



Part 2: upstream embouchures



Part 3: multiphonics

Trombones de Costa Rica - Feb. 18th

Just to let you know...
Trombones de Costa will be visiting the University of South Carolina for a concert on Wed. Feb. 18th at 7:30pm in our recital hall.
The concert is free and open to the public.

Here's a link to their website.

Gliss Finding

Hello Everyone
Sorry I haven't blogged in a while. I just got busy with other things.

So, here's an idea that I've been using with some of my students. I've started calling it "gliss finding"

The Problem: trying to lip the notes into tune instead of finding the pitch with the slide. I believe this can cause a loss of centering and resonance.

The Solution: by glissing around the note while listening carefully for a resonant full tone, then stopping in the position, you can find the right pitch while your center of resonance stays "in the pocket."

You're not likely to see tubas doing this

OK, first of all, simply assembling this thing must have taken a very long time.

(too much time)

(Silent) Monks Hallelujah

Sorry, I've been out of town for a while.
Here's a good one from YouTube.

Remember these monks have taken a vow of silence.

Big Ol' Smackdown in New York

Dave Finlayson has posted recently on his new blog about Gilbert Kaplan, who recently conducted Mahler's 2nd with NYPO.

I'm not familiar with Kaplan's conducting but I've had to endure too many podium frauds over the years.

Here's the link.

Here's my own cynical rule about conductors

Of every 1000 conductors, 900 are completely useless.
The ensemble would sound better if they walked away.

Of the remaining 100, 90 are mediocre at best.
At least they don't do serious damage and will be bailed out by most ensembles.

Of the remaining 10, 9 are good at their jobs.
They actually make the group sound better.

That last one is excellent.
A pleasure and an inspiration.

So, in your next rehearsal, ask yourself, "What about this one? In the 900, the 90, the 9, or the one."

Realize, you may go your whole life and never have the chance to work with "the one."

My Christmas wish: that you get to work with "the one" in a good orchestra.

Rubber Band Rubato

Back to the subject of rubato (about which I put up a post in July called "Wheel Rubato.")

I've thought of another way to look at it.

Take this example of the cadenza from Morceau Symphonique..





Being a cadenza, it should have some freedom. But still, 16th's should sound like 16th's, 8th's should like 8th's and so on.

In other words, the beat can change but the subdivisions of the beat should still make sense.

An analogy occurred to me. Suppose you took a large rubber band and made evenly spaced vertical marks on it. Or maybe your marks could graphically represent the spacing of quarter notes, half notes and so on.

Then, stretch the rubber band and look at your marks.

The rhythmic pattern is consistent over a time frame that is stretched.

...sort of like the perception of time as you fall into a black hole.

The Etude Finder

I heard a good quote from Ted Turner, "Early to Bed, Early to Rise, Work Hard and Advertise."

For the most part, I'm pretty good at the first three (especially now that my kid has to be at school at 7:30!). I'm not so great at the advertising part.

Here's something I put up on my website and didn't really announce. Why? I wanted to proof it and make sure there were no mistakes.

Well, I didn't proof it so IF you find mistakes, email me with something like, "HA! You messed up!"

What is it? Well, try it out and you'll see. There are lots of ways it could be improved. The original database (part of my doctoral dissertation) had other categories..things like "Building the Low Range" "Wide leaps in the High Range" "Double Tonguing" etc.

DOCTORAL DISSERTATION ALERT
OK, here's another topic to consider...matching etudes with solo lit and orchestral excerpts. Something like this "If you're working on La Gazza Ladra (or the David Concertino), you might practice the following 4 etudes to help..."

So, here it is...
THE ETUDE FINDER

Special thanks to my computer whiz son, William, for writing the javascript code that makes this work. I sorta kinda understand it, but it's almost over my head.

South Carolina All State Exercises..Bordogni #37

This one's mostly for any high school trombone players here in South Carolina. I've written a few pages of exercises to help you prepare the required etude for the All-State Band audition.

Here's a link to the pdf file.

For others curious about this, the audition piece is most of the second page of #37 in Melodious Etudes, Bk 1 written by Marco Bordogni and transcribed by Johannes Rochut.

By the way, I have always thought it was a travesty that Rochut gets top billing on the cover. Don't call them Rochut etudes. Except possibly for #1, he didn't write them.

Giulio Marco Bordogni

In these times....

Worrisome news about the Charleston Symphony. When I came here almost 10 years ago, I had the good fortune to sub with Charleston on occasion and was really impressed with their brass section. Now I hear that they're not sure they can make payroll after Dec. 19th.

Here's the article.

Some young trombonists who apply to the USC School of Music tell me they want to major in performance.

What do I tell them?

"Yes, I know it is your true passion and despite any odds you feel you have to go for it. But....there are so few jobs!" (and the number is shrinking).

Not to be all gloom and doom but, anyone pursuing a music performance career needs to have a realistic perspective on what is going on out there.

Ask yourself these questions:

• How many talented young performance majors graduate each year? Don't just count the "big name" schools. Sometimes great players come from smaller programs.
  
• How many openings are there for jobs that pay over, say $20k, each year?

If you have no idea, then you haven't thought things through enough.

How do most professional musicians earn their income?
Freelancing, small per-service gigs, lots of private students in the public schools, and maybe a part-time job. Don't get me wrong, this can be a good life. When I lived near Washington D.C., I saw people doing this and leading happy, productive lives. One small fringe benefit: if you have 27 different employers, you can't get laid off.

Yes, I know music gets in your blood and becomes a part of you. But if you are an aspiring high school trombonist who wants to be a performance major, know what you are getting into. Do your homework on the job market.

Maybe you can find creative solutions....write grants, create a small innovative ensemble, do something in the schools.

Hey, if you can capture people's imaginations, they will flock to you. Who could have predicted the success of something like Blast?

You may want to gag at the mention of the Trans Siberian Orchestra, but whenever they come to town, big crowds form. (actually I know almost nothing about them but they were here recently)

The intersection of art and commerce is never comfortable.

Yes, Ta-Ta-Ka

There seems to be a plague of people who triple tongue this way..
TA-KA-TA, TA-KA-TA, TA-KA-TA

I ask them why. The usual response: I don't know. I've just always done it that way. Nobody ever told me how.

You should use..
TA-TA-KA, TA-TA-KA
(or DA-DA-GA)

Why?

Why do we multiple tongue at all?
Because you can't reset the tip of the tongue fast enough over and over.

Here's my contention (argue if you want): the second of the two "TA's" is the weaker one because the tongue has to do that rapid reset.

Test this: say TA-ta. Now say ta-TA . (capital letters represent emphasis).
For me, TA-ta is easier.

So...the whole point of using that inferior "KA" syllable is to give the tip of the tongue time to reset.

In a string of triplets, you usually want to place your accent on the first note of each triplet..
TA-ta-ka, TA-ta-ka, TA-ta-ka

Putting ka at the end makes it easier to emphasize the beginning of the triplet.

If you use..
TA-ka-ta, TA-ka-ta, TA-ka-ta,
your downbeats will be at a disadvantage.

(By the way, in the new Arban's book, both Bowman and Alessi prefer ta-ta-ka)

If you are used to the other way, use this exercise to help you...

Droning On....Droning Out

Tom Gibson just posted that video podcast of us messing around with the drone CD. Plus he loaded up the whole CD onto his website for download (warning: BIG files)

Here's a link.

(kinda wish he didn't ask me to sing...yow)

The 47 Pound Pencil

Look at that pencil lying there. Easy to pick up right?

Now: as you attempt to pick it up with one hand, use your other hand to hold down the lifting hand. Harder to pick up now.

Seems stupid but ...
how often do we unwittingly do exactly the same thing when playing?


PS Tom Gibson filmed another podcast with me and Eric Bubacz, a fantastic tubist from Atlanta. Basically we were just hacking around improvising stuff over tuning drones. Don't know when it will be posted. Oh yeah, I had the good fortune to hang out for the 45 minutes or so of that Wycliffe recording session he filmed. Very cool (as in...him, not me)

Tone vs. Sound

OK, I'm going out on a limb here.

We often use the terms "tone" and "sound" interchangeably.

For me, someone's sound seems to have more components than than just the timbre of the sound waves emanating from their bell.

What do you think of this diagram?













Why the question mark by vibrato? I think vibrato plays a role in phrasing as well. Some players incorporate it as a fundamental component of the sound, others employ it more to move a phrase along. Vibrato seems to live in both worlds.

I invite all comments/criticisms.

"Note Shape" refers to the degree of attack at the front of a note as well as the kind taper at the end of a note.

C.S.I. Slide-O-Mix

OK, I think I'm onto something here....

It started when one of my students, (let's call him Alex [or Joey]) commented that, "Everybody's Slide-O-Mix seems to work better than mine."

Then I thought about my Slide-O-Mix Rapid Comfort and how it used to to be have thick texture but was now watery.

Then another student (let's call him Colt) pointed out his theory that maybe HEAT had an effect on the stuff. In other words, once it had been exposed to heat (like being left in a hot car) it became watery and didn't work as well.

No sooner do I mention "Colt's" theory to one of my private students than he says that exact thing happened to him: Slide-O-Mix left in a hot car for a few days had become watery.

AHA!


Research grant needed.....$1,500,000 ought to cover it.

A Little Valve Thing...

Has anybody out there ever played Ewazen's Colchester Fantasy?
In the slow movement, you find this forte septuplet that calls for some serious faking.

I tried using my old "valve wiggle" trick....just keep blowing while you press/release the valve as quickly as possible. You can create some cool effects.

Then I thought it through a little more carefully and realized that by "articulating" with the valve, you could accurately play this lick.

Here it is (I'm working from memory here but you get the idea):







Play it fast without tonguing.

This reminds me of a Baltimore Opera gig I did years ago where we ran across this fast E major scale that was effectively unplayable on slide trombone.

It went something like this...






Through kidding around, we discovered that, if you just stayed in 2nd position and employed a healthy valve wiggle, you could simulate the run really well. In fact, when we tried it together, we both burst out laughing because it sounded like we had actually played it correctly.

My Little public service

Johannes Brahms: Sixteen Lieder
Transcribed and edited for solo trombone and piano by
Eric Carlson

If you don't own this collection: get it!

Eric Carlson, 2nd trombonist of the Philadelphia Orchestra, has done us all a great service by creating this compilation.

Not only do you get the solo and piano parts, you also get a wonderful CD of the piano accompaniments. However these accompaniments aren't of the of "Frankenstein Piano" quality of a certain other collection of piano accompaniments that is commercially available. They actually have a very nice musical quality to them.

I was loading this accompaniment CD onto my iTunes and was surprised to see that Gracenote didn't seem to have it on their database. So, I patiently typed in all the info...

you're welcome

.. now go get this.

Here's a Hickey's link

Trumpet funnies

Here's a good one from our trumpet brethren.

Monkey See, Monkey Do

I have started standing facing my students instead of standing beside them. Often, I tell them to watch me while I play.

Why?


It turns out that there are mirror neurons in your brain (both sides) which fire not only when you engage in a task but also when you watch someone else engage in the same task. In other words, if you watch Joe Alessi play a B-flat major scale, in your mind, those mirror neurons are playing along.

Here's an interesting 14-minute segment of Nova Science Now that talks about this...

Here's a good article from Science Daily, if you're interested...

The Freedom Cone

This idea isn't really original. I think I first saw it presented by Ron Barron.

The basic question? How much freedom do you have as a player?

Depends on what you're doing. If you're making an audition tape, especially one for an orchestra, I think you have the least freedom. You just don't know how you're going to be evaluated so you have to stick to the ink.

Similar with a first-round audition. So many people, so many cuts that need to be made. I have to think that most committees are looking for a reason to say no.

In later rounds you are more focused on giving the committee a reason to say 'yes' so perhaps you can begin to show your individuality.

Of course, depending on the conductor, you might have more freedom in a live performance.

Here's a little graphic...

By the way, respected friend of mine disagrees with me and, frankly, she has heard a lot more professional auditions that I have.

Her contention: In that first round the committee is desperately looking for a reason to say 'yes' but candidate after candidate fails to give it to them.

Anybody out there have a lot of experience with professional auditions?
What do you think?

Alessi Seminar 2009

They have just announced the 2009 Alessi Seminar.

Some changes this year:

Three categories, not two..

Old system: 16 participants and a bunch of auditors
New system: 8 participants, 16 apprentices and a bunch of auditors

Top three participants are finalists in a solo competition at the seminar.

As I've said in my blog entries from the 2007 Alessi seminar, you owe it to yourself to attend.

Pilot Lights, Devils and Piano parts

Here are a few old ideas that have been waiting patiently for me to get around to them:

The Pilot Light

Practice soft playing. I mean, really soft playing. Challenge yourself to play at that uncomfortable dynamic where some notes might not speak.

For some reason, this reminds of me of a pilot light on a gas burner. Either the image works for you or it doesn't.

An Idle Brain is the Devil's Playground

Ah, those long notes. Ya best be subdividin' matey. (actually National Talk Like a Pirate Day was last week).
In case this analogy isn't obvious: people tend to turn off their brains during long notes. Fill your head with something useful.

Like subdivisions, perhaps.

Piano reductions of.....Piano Parts?

For all of you poor souls who wanted to perform the Hindemith Sonata but only had one pianist in the school even willing to consider playing it (and he/she is booked). Or the Casterede Sonatine, or the Sulek Sonata "Vox Gabrieli," or....

What if publishers came out with simplified piano parts for some of these pieces?

Crazy idea? Stupid? Impure?

(practical?)

"YouTubin" for Tone

OK, I had a "first" today: YouTube as a teaching tool.

I quickly linked to YouTube to help make a point about a relaxed, beautiful low range.

What songs did I search?
Ol' Man River and
I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas.

Enjoy (and think about resonance!)

Paul Robeson




Bing Crosby

Matt Niess on Guitar Hero

Thanks again to Andrew Reich for this one. Someone programmed a Matt Niess solo into Guitar Hero.
enjoy.

No "waiting rooms", please

Here's a problem I see a lot.

Players sit on the longer notes of of phrase and don't do anything with them musically. It's almost as it they are treating the note as a musical "waiting room" in which they must sit until they can get moving again.

Hey, those notes are a chance for you to show off that beautiful sound! Do something with them!!

My favorite waiting room movie scene? Beetlejuice...

Trombone Nightmare

This mp3 file is from a former student, Andrew Reich. He was mixing things in an audio program and, somehow the files got messed up.

Can somebody say, "Audition Warm-Up Room"

Sweet dreams (mu-ha-ha-ha-ha)

NPR story on trombone choirs

Thanks to Joseph Awad at BoneTherapy.org for catching this.

It's a July 5th NPR story about the history of the trombone choir. A blast from a past for me because I grew up just outside Bethlehem.

The "Post-It" Trick

I may have blogged this before but, if so, it's worth repeating...

Do you have a short, tricky passage in a piece you're preparing?
Perhaps something with weird intervals or awkward notation?

Try this:
1. Memorize it
2. Cut a little piece of a post-it note and cover that part of your music
3. Play the piece and, when you get to that tough passage, play the memorized lick.

Seems to work.

"Wheel" Rubato

OK, I'm back from a trip and can dig through some of the old blog ideas I saved up over the year.
Here's my old "two images" game.

OK, so what do these two images have in common?


rubato

(Or really any kind of rhythmic freedom, for that matter. Yes, I know I'm not really using the technically correct definition of rubato)

Sometimes, my students have trouble incorporating rhythmic freedom in a way that works. Often they speed up or slow down in an unpredictable way.

I like to think of rhythmic freedom as a change in the main pulse *but* a change that is predictable.....sort of like that spinning wheel in Wheel of Fortune. The speed of that clicking sound is always changing but n a predictable way. In fact, I believe even that the rate change itself is also changing in a predicable way.
(doesn't this have something to do with calculus?)

As someone listens to you, you want them to be able to follow you, rhythmically. You don't want to throw them off.

Thus we can conclude that rodeo horses aren't very good at rubato.

Fixed Do vs. Movable Do

OK, this is a tough one.

One of my big breakthroughs, of late, has been singing more in my practicing. Thus I plunge into that old debate...

Sing in "fixed do" (C is always DO no matter the key)
Sing in "movable do" (The tonic note is always do no matter the key)

Some considerations:
I don't really have perfect pitch
A lot of music I'm working on is chromatic with shifting tonal centers or ambiguous tonality

So this means fixed do. Right?

Here's the thing: the syllables only help if they help you hear the note in your mind.

Since I have less experience singing solfege, I still have many moments when I can hear the correct pitch but hesitate trying to think of the correct syllable to use.

Obviously, at this point solfege ain't helping.

For the time being, I'm trying singing in fixed do but using a slightly altered system:

do-re-"may"-fa-sol-la-"tay"-do

I replace mi and ti with "may" and "tay" because, if I ingrain this system in my brain, I don't like instinctively thinking of the "eee" syllable when I'm hearing these notes in my head.

Or perhaps, I should just sing everything on "la" or "ba"


OK, enough rambling. Here are some other websites that provide intelligent discussion..

A blog entry by Scott Spiegelberg of DePauw University (some good comments below the blog entry, too)

An interesting article by Jody Nagel

I found a very long thread of comments on the topic at violinist.com


Your thoughts??

Inner Cats

The Inner Game of Tennis by Timothy Gallway

Have you read this book? You should.

(For my money I would avoid Barry Green's Inner Game of Music. The original is better, in my opinion.)

Here's a nice paragraph...

"The image comes to my mind of the balanced movement of a cat stalking a bird. Effortlessly alert, he crouches, gathering his relaxed muscles for the spring. No thinking about when to jump or how he will push off with his hind legs to attain the proper distance, his mind is still and perfectly concentrated on his prey. No thought flashes into his consciousness of the possibility or consequences of missing his mark. He sees only the bird. Suddenly the bird takes off; at the same instant, the cat leaps. with perfect anticipation he intercepts his dinner two feet off the ground. Perfectly, thoughtlessly executed action, and afterward, no self-congratulations, just the reward inherent in his action: the bird in the mouth."

Gallway, Timothy. The Inner Game of Tennis, p. 32.

Should you wish to buy this book, here's an Amazon link.

Coast Guard Audition Comments

Over on TromboneForum.org, Ben Griffin posted some excellent comments concerning their recent audition.

I cut and pasted his comments here. If you want to link to the original, here's a link to that forum..

=======================
First off all, thank you to the applicants for taking the time to come out an audition for the band. We had 60 applicants show (out of 77 possibles); we appreciated everyone's interest in the Coast Guard band.

Having been on the panel for both the Principal and Bass trombone auditions recently, I have noticed some disturbing trends through both auditions. I would like to note them, not to chastise those that auditioned, but rather to encourage people to work on aspects of their playing that will benefit them on any future audition, be it for a military band or an orchestra, as well as serve them well in their musical lives.

The most disturbing trend was that there was a distinct lack of fundamentals on display.

Out of tune playing, poor/inconsistent articulation (of legato, staccato, and everything in between), lack of consistency in sound qualities, and poor rhythmic integrity were endemic of the whole of applicants.

I am not sure how to expand upon this more as these are what we consider basic aspects of trombone playing; of music making on any instrument, really. Some serious woodshedding on these fundamental principles needs to be done. CORRECT practicing.

Period.

Beyond that, there was a severe lack of understanding of the chosen excerpts as well. Basic markings were ignored, inappropriate dynamics, tempos, and articulations, and again, out of tune playing. There seemed to be a lack of understanding as to what the panel expected to hear (i.e. what skills needed to be displayed) during these excerpts and a lack of understanding of how the excerpt fit into the composition it was taken from.

Some very basic faults that were displayed by all:

Tuba Mirum:

Nobody played the Bb major triad in the beginning acceptably in tune, or with even notes throughout (the second line D was often unsupported and the low Bb was usually of a completely different timbrel quality). In the phrase immediately following, the tonicization of Eb, no one lowered the dominant 7th (Fifth line Ab), or the 3rd of the Eb triad (fourth space G). The list of pitch errors were not limited to these phrases, nor were these the most minute of pitch errors.

Beyond that, there was poor rhythmic integrity, i.e. poor counting of rests and inconsistent tempo within sections. This counts.

Then there was a lack of understanding of how the trombone fits with the overall ensemble. It is not a total solo part, it is often a duet, and there have to be changes in the character to match the ensemble as well. Most applicants played this excerpt as if it were a Rochut; it is not.

Die Walkerie:

Very few applicant had any clarity to the fronts of the notes. It seemed that volume, i.e. a loud dynamic was more highly prized than clarity of articulation. That is not the case, and most peoples' sound quality at that dynamic was compromised by the uncentered, unfocused, imprecise attack at the beginning of the note. The result was a loud, splatty sound that has no place in any ensemble.

The accents and rhythm were inconsistent and all over the road. The accents of the dotted eighth, sixteenth, eighth triplet are on the downbeat, not the sixteenth (as most played it). Also, the rest of the unaccented notes should not be more prominent than the accents. The rhythmic integrity of the dotted eighth, sixteenth, eighth triplets were inconsistent and often innaccurate. Charlie Vernon discusses this aspect of this excerpt very well in his book.

The dynamic of fortissimo was often taken at an uncontrolled volume. The later forte was often ignored. Overall dynamic means nothing if it is not in control.

The pitch was often horrible. No excuse.

The tempo taken by some applicants was breakneck. While there are different interpretations of this piece, there were many taken at speeds that we had not ever heard and would not be appropriate for the piece.

Symphonie Fantastique:

First and foremost, everyone was worried about the Eb, and that came through in the playing. Yes, we wanted to hear the applicant nail it, but not at the expense of everything around it. Too often the tempo and dynamic was rushed leading up to the Eb and both would severely slacken off afterward.

Also, the excerpt begins at mf and crescendos through the three quarter notes. Nobody did this.

Then there were the ubiquitous pitch issues.

Storm and Sunshine:

This excerpt was very telling from a style point of view, being the only non-orchestral excerpt on the prelims. As such, many people betrayed their lack of understanding of march style concepts (perhaps a thread on this subject would be good, I will attempt to start one soon).

To start, rhythmic integrity was lacking (this is a 6/8 march by J.C. Heed). The eighth notes were rushed and the quarter eighth combinations were often dragged. Most did not play the excerpt at the marked dotted quarter note equalling 160bpm. Second, the quality of attack wasn't there for most auditionees: Clarity and point are paramount; many applicant's articulation was too broad and barely heard. In addition, the note lengths were too broad for a march. Accents were often over emphasised in the wrong place as well as crescendos (often times, the cresc. and accents are paired with the snare and bass drum as subtle movements of the musical phrase, and yet other time accented notes and crescendos are meant to be brought to the fore. Familiarity with the piece will help you to discover which is which).

In short, it was mostly approached from an orchestral standpoint.

Now I realize that most folks are not practicing marches in their studies of excerpts, we understand this. But, we are a band, and marches are an integral part of what we do. There is at least one march on every concert we play (and there will be several in the upcoming July concert), and we play many at several different ceremonies throughout the year. We expected that the applicants would do a little more exploration of this style prior to auditioning.

As an aside, there were still pitch issues within this mostly triadic and scalular excerpt as well.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So that's a pretty hefty list of things to work on, most referring back to fundamentals of playing, and something that we, or any, audition panel will be expecting to hear. Most audition panels will take it for granted that the applicants will be able to display the basics and that they can listen to/concentrate on more musical and subtle aspects of one's playing.

I realize also that we, as an ensemble, are not usually considered first tier; we are no New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, etc., etc. We are often not included in the second tier.

However, we are a professional musical outfit, and we are a premier service band. The quality of the Coast Guard band is quite high, continues to improve year after year, and is a highly versatile ensemble. There is a certain level of musician that we are looking for, and we take for granted that they will be able to display a certain level of playing.

This is not meant as a rant, nor to beat up on all of the applicants that we had. It is meant as an honest look at what was presented to us and what those applicants need to display to any audition panel before they can expect to win a position in any ensemble at our level. This also isn't to say that there were not any positive aspects diosplayed. There were some fine sounds and some fine moments throughout the course of the audition.

The two finalists displayed some fine qualities but we had soem concerns. I spoke to both of them regarding those concerns and they are automatically advanced to the semifinals of the next audition. We wish them the best of luck and hope to see them in the fall.

I sincerely wish all the best of luck to everyone, and hope to hear some great playing in the fall when the next audition occurs.

I am open to any questions anyone might have, please PM or we can discuss openly in the forum. I hope that only good can come of this post.

All the Best,
-Ben
=========================

Man, it's the same thing again and again and again.

Auditions and Learning

Yesterday I had the good fortune to win a local audition. Each time I take an audition (which isn't so often these days), I learn things. I thought I'd share some new ideas I tried this time around...

• Taping: I taped myself a lot. I set up my practice room at home so the Zoom recorder was always sitting right there and was connected to some halfway decent speakers. Thus, while practicing, I could just reach over and tape a run. I've never taped myself so often while practicing. You really do hear a lot.
  
  
• Sitting: For years I've practiced and auditioned while standing. In that Atlanta audition they required that the excerpts be performed seated. Then I heard that Colin Williams was playing his Boston excerpts seated. I think the reasoning went something like, "It takes the feet out of the equation" (or something like that). Also, when I'm sitting, I find it much easier to tap my foot while I play. Yes, I know professionals aren't supposed to tap their feet. Well, my rhythm is more accurate when I do it. End of story. (in other words, do what you have to do to get the result).
  One other thing, I do use one of those posture pillows behind my back. It seems to help.
  
  
• Inderal: For years, I've scorned that idea of taking the stuff. I always looked down on the idea. Still, after that Atlanta audition I had to admit that many of my playing problems were directly linked to that "fight or flight" response. I finally got a prescription and, after trying it out in a recent concert to make sure my body didn't react too strangely, I used it in this audition.
  
  It was actually quite interesting. I arrived at the site about 45 minutes to an hour before the audition. I took it when I arrived and then began to warm-up. At the beginning of the warm-up I was experiencing those stress-related playing problems I've come to know so well: missing notes on the high side, mind racing and unable to focus, some trouble with a steady tone on louder long notes (especially William Tell), unclean attacks. As I warmed up, I actually felt my physical responses gradually changing until, at "go time," I felt more or less normal; like a regular day of playing.
  
  For what it's worth, the solo portion of my round was OK (a couple flubs near the end on the David first movement) and the excerpt portion was as solid as I've ever played.
  
  If you're young, I wouldn't recommend "jumping to the pill" just yet. I've had a lot of good high-stress performances where I just tried to relax. Still, I have to admit that, in my case, it did seem to help me stay looser and more focused. Some people have terrible trouble with dry mouth; I was drinking a fair amount of water and had no trouble.
  
  
• Arban's: For years, I avoided the Arban's Method. Finally I broke down and bought the expensive Alessi/Bowman audition and have incorporated it into my practicing. Well, maybe I was too quick to judge. Using the major scales, little tonguing tunes, and the chromatic scales, I have definitely improved my focus and accuracy. I also really like Mr. Alessi's comments (no surprise there, I guess).
  Why did I decide to pick up Arban's? Given that this was a smaller audition and that the majority of the committee wouldn't know the excerpts as well as I did, a certain amount of "note counting" was inevitable. In other words, missed notes would probably be a bigger deal.. Therefore, one of my goals was to play a really clean round. For years, I would look down at "note counters" who obsessed over how many notes they missed. Once again, maybe I've been too quick to judge.
  
  
• Perspective: As I practiced, I tried to hear myself through the ears of someone listening to me. In other words, instead of putting my mental focus on the act of creating the sounds, I attempted to focus on the final product that someone, especially a non-trombonist, would hear. Once again, given that most of the people on the committee wouldn't be trombone players, I wanted to hear myself through the ears of a string or a woodwind or (heaven forbid) a conductor. I wouldn't say I changed to play things in a "false" way. But I did keep in mind Alessi's "Popeye syndrome" comments from last summer and decided that maybe I didn't need to play so darn loud. I can't tell you how many auditions I've royally screwed up simple because I tried to play too loud.
  
  If I could travel back in time to my college self, I would grab him by the shoulders, shake him and say, "Stop trying to play so loud, you idiot."
  Didn't Friedman once say, "I've tried to make a career on just sounding pretty."? Worked pretty well for him.
  
  For this audition, I was thinking something like, "Keep it clean. Play with a pretty, musical sound."

Re-reading this post, I'm struck by how many times I used the phrase "for years." Even at my age, I'm still re-learning things I should have known all along...

• tape yourself a lot
• maybe sitting isn't so bad
• tapping your foot isn't a curse
• Inderal isn't automatically a bad thing
• Arban's can have a lot of value
• Hear yourself as your audience will hear you
• Don't play so loud!

I heard a good quote recently about teaching and learning:

"One who learns from one who is learning drinks from a moving stream."

Better this than stagnant water.

5 Kinds of Hard

As summer vacation starts, I'm beginning to tackle some "back burner" kinds of things. One of these has been to revamp the sight-reading I use with juries and ensemble auditions.

The first step: I've been composing half-page sight-reading pieces. My goal is to have 10 such pieces (I've written 6 thus far) and then rotate them.

As I compose these things, I want something that works musically and presents a variety of challenges. This brings me back to my of my doctoral dissertation days.

The title?

(Warning: do not read this title if you are operating heavy machinery)

Pedagogical Materials for the College-Level Trombone Student: The Application of Objective Grading Criteria to a Selected List of Materials as Determined by a National Survey of College-Level Trombone Teachers.

OK, I hope you had a nice nap.

Here's one of the questions I was dealing with in this dissertation:
What makes something challenging?

Pieces receive a difficulty grades but, what makes them tough? We understand intuitively that there are different kinds of challenge. For my dissertation, I identified 5 types of challenge:

1. Melodic/Harmonic
Challenge coming from: awkward intervals, tough key signatures, chromaticism/atonality

2. Rhythmic/Metric
Challenge coming from: strange meters, tricky rhythms

3. Notational
Challenge coming from: clefs, dense accidentals

4. Agility
Challenge coming from: arpeggios, leaps

5. Fluency
Challenge coming from fast runs

So basically, one of the things I did in my dissertation was to go through a standard list of etudes and give each one 5 difficulty grades.

OK, back to the subject of sight-reading....

Sight reading is a tricky thing to practice because you need lots of stuff to sight read.
How to go about it methodically?
Yes, I've looked at the Lafosse series but, as time passes, the need to read manuscript slowly diminishes. Also the speed of clef changes is a little ridiculous as you advance.

If someone wanted to set up a systematic approach to sight-reading, they could organize it around the 5 areas of challenge. Treat them singly and also in combination. For example: one section that has lots of leaps but isn't too tough in other ways.
Later, you might have another section that is rhythmically tough and harmonically weird.

Or, how about rhythmically tough, harmonically weird, with lots of clef changes and strange meters...oh wait, that's the Blazhevich Clef Studies.

Who knows, maybe this summer I'll get motivated and churn out lots of sight reading....

(don't hold your breath)

Oh yes, one other thing: I plan to sign up for the online service Sight Read This. Hey, it's only $4.95/year. Maybe I'll blog about my opinions once I use it a bit.

Peter Moore...the bar just keeps going up

And now, from the "thank heavens I have a job" department a youtube clip (thanks to Kevin Jones for the heads-up).

Peter Moore, aged 12, recently won the BBC Young Musician competition. His winning piece: Mvt. 3 of the Tomasi Concerto.

Here's the official blurb:

Peter Moore was last night named BBC Young Musician of the Year 2008 at a nail-biting and visually stunning final at Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff - the youngest ever winner of the competition.

Organised by BBC Wales, this was the first all-male final and trombonist Peter, aged just 12, took the coveted title against stiff competition from talented young musicians from around the UK.

Belfast-born Peter now lives in Stalybridge and is a pupil at Chetham's School of Music, Manchester. All his family members are brass players and his parents were both French horn players in the Ulster Orchestra. His brother David is studying at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester and also entered the competition.

I repeat: age 12 !!!