Slide School: Getting the Most out of Your Trombone Players By Aaron Wilson TEMPO: Manitoba Music Conference October 21, 2016

The Five Tenets of Technique Slide Technique Flow Great Trombone Playing Buzz Tonguing Posture

Goal #1 – Posture Identification Learn to identify and correct bad posture immediately and consistently. Good Bad Bad

Goal #1 – Posture Identification

Goal #1 – Posture Logistical Considerations Make sure that the trombone section has an appropriate amount of space during rehearsals Consider seating your first year trombonists in the front row

Goal #1 – Posture Holding the Instrument The Trombone is heavy, especially for little kids Your students need to build up the right set of muscles to hold the instrument correctly When the right muscles are tired, the wrong muscles will “help out”

Goal #1 – Posture Holding the Instrument The left hand supports the entire weight of the instrument If the right hand supports any of the weight, the slide will become damaged overtime due to the extra friction and the player will apply extra pressure on the mouthpiece Suspend the weight of the instrument from the middle, ring, and pinky fingers Supporting with the left hand also allows for easier breathing

Goal #1 – Posture General Thoughts on Posture Posture problems will lead to other playing issues If posture is addressed early on and frequently, less issues will have to be fixed later Create a non-verbal signal that tells the band to check their posture

Goal #2 – Flow The Inhale The airway in the throat must remain open and relaxed from inhale to exhale It helps to focus the student’s attention on these muscles Two approaches: Gum and mouthpiece stem

Goal #2 – Flow Alternative approaches Some students have more success from focusing on where the inhale starts The Kleinhammer breathing exercise

Goal #2 – Flow Practice breathing in time Practice moving these muscles in time Breathe in on beat 4, breathe out on beat 1 Look out for: Gaps between the inhale and the exhale Students making loud inhalations Students who start the inhale too early Extraneous motion Blocking

Goal #2 – Flow Embouchure Approach Practice the sunflower seed position The embouchure are identical to the sunflower seed spitting muscles Have your students say the words “mmm poo”

Goal #2 – Flow Getting the air past the lips “HU” Articulations Air First Articulations Getting students to blow air in the right way works best with demonstrations from the teacher Most students will either not use enough air, will not focus the air, or will muscle the air stream into place with the embouchure.

Goal #2 – Flow Working on Air Pressure Demonstrate the level of intensity desired and have the student repeat back to you Some students will strain their neck, upper body, or embouchure in an effort to match your intensity Some will use a flat air stream, too wide to sustain a good tone

Goal #2 - Flow The Importance of the Airstream Whereas normal exhalation is equivalent to the full setting on a garden hose nozzle, the concentrated air stream we use to play brass instruments is more like the jet setting The air pressure is still there, it is just being focused through our embouchure (the sunflower seed position)

Goal #3 – Buzz Mouthpiece Buzzing You can learn a lot about a student’s sound by listening to them buzz Listen for the following Starting above the pitch Student is probably setting the embouchure before the air starts flowing Starting below the pitch Student is probably blowing and unfocused and/or weak air stream and then using the embouchure to correct the bad intonation Delayed start to the pitch Blocked airstream

Goal #3 – Buzz Mouthpiece Buzzing Listen for the following Thinning out of the tone as the student ascends The student is using their embouchure to change the pitch, rather than the airstream They are losing the HU The tone becomes unfocused as the student descends The student is allowing the embouchure to open too much, thus causing the air stream to weaken

Goal #4 – Tonguing Great Articulation Great articulation is dependant on consistent air at the beginning, middle, and end of each note. If the air falters at any time, the articulation (and the tone) will suffer

Goal #4 – Tonguing Air Starts The air must be flowing before the tongue moves Many students will hold the air with the tongue at the start of each note This diminishes tone because the player will not be able to sustain the air stream This also creates choppy and slow articulation

Goal #4 – Tonguing Working with the HU Chanting “TOGA” “TUBA” and “Tee-YA” Watch out for “Twu-Twu” or “Teoo-Teoo” articulation

Goal #4 – Tonguing Different Articulation Creating different types of articulation on brass instruments is directly related to the length and intensity of the air stream Legato = fully sustained air with crisp articulation Staccato = short burst of air with a lot of space Marcato = Intense burst of air with some space Every type of articulation requires abdominal support.

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Intonation Intonation requires good tone Therefore, it is a fruitless endeavor to tune bad sounding trombones. Intonation also requires great slide technique If one is not working, the other will fail. Tone Slide Technique

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Cleaning the Slide Instrument maintenance is abysmal among secondary level trombonists We don’t let this slide with valved brass players, why should we let it slide with trombone players? Check the last page of the handout for a step-by-step guide to slide cleaning

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Cleaning the Slide How to get students to take care of their slides First, make sure that they have a good slide to begin with Leaving the responsibility up to the students is dangerous If you have the resources, consider having a T.A., student teacher, or volunteer take the trombonists out of class once every couple of week to clean slides They’ll only be gone for about 15 minutes

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Right Hand Position for Trombone Have the student make the “Live Long and Prosper” sign from Star Trek

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Right Hand Position for Trombone Next, have the student flip their hand around so that the palm is facing the body Place the slide tube that is furthest away from the mouthpiece between the middle and ring finger Allow the fingers and the thumb to relax on the brace The slide should be about even with the first knuckle down from the fingertips

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Moving the slide Refrain from using the work “grip,” or “hold.” All parts of the hand and arm must be able to move freely If any parts are locked up, slide motion will be robotic and ineffective The slide must be pushed in a straight line at all times. Moving the slide is about speed Make sure your students arrive at the right position at the right time

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Developing Intonation The trombone is one large tuning slide Therefore, tuning pitches with the slide, rather than the chops, will yield the best intonation and tone This requires excellent slide technique and careful listening Many music students have an innate sense of intonation but lack slide technique This is why trombone students will bend the pitch with the chops when the slide is in the wrong place

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Developing Intonation The key to addressing this lies with students learning how to trust their ears instead of their eyes or fingers Teaching Sequence Sing it Use the air stream Play it, paying close attention to the slide

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Developing Intonation

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Helpful tips Finding certain positions Trombonist usually don’t have too much trouble finding 1st, 2nd, and 3rd position, but you still need to check these 4th position Na-Na Na-Na Boo-Boo 5th position Mary Had a Little Lamb 6th position Hearty handshake 7th position As far out as they can reach The thumb will come off of the brace for this one

Goal #5 – Slide Technique Developing Technique Scales, Scales, Scales

Recruiting and Retaining Desired traits There is no size or shape of student who should not play the trombone The most important factors are: Desire A love of the sound Good Ear Intelligence Independence Trombone players tend to be goofy and that’s OK!

Recruiting and Retaining Promotion The demonstration for the low brass needs to be fun and exciting, just like for the rest of the instruments You may consider bringing in an older student or a professional player to perform for the students Play something fun like the “Imperial March” from Star Wars Try imitating a race car for trombone If you are a smaller person, hold these instruments above your head Play a fun YouTube video

Recruiting and Retaining Promotion Try to recruit female students There is no reason why your trombone section has to be all male Female trombone players tend to be more dedicated Minimize the size aspect, emphasize the sound Provide good models during elementary music Recruit as many low brass players as possible Try to avoid switching trombonists to other instruments

Recruiting and Retaining Keeping them around The trombone has among the highest dropout rate out of all band instruments Reasons: Loss of Interest Poor self-esteem Lack of interest from the teacher Physical difficulties of the instrument

Recruiting and Retaining Keeping them around Flute Part Trombone Part

Recruiting and Retaining Keeping them around Work with your low brass players on rhythm The repertoire often leaves low brass players behind

Recruiting and Retaining Keeping them around Players who feel good about themselves and receive attention from the band director will stick around Make it a point to get off the podium at least once a rehearsal and venture back to the low brass section Make sure the kids are playing good quality instruments No pBones

Recruiting and Retaining Keeping them around Establish a culture of great trombone playing at your school Ideal trombone players: are excited to play their instruments feel included have a chip on their shoulder

Contact Information Aaron Wilson, Assistant Professor of Low Brass Brandon University Phone: 204-727-9758 Email: wilsona@brandonu.ca Websites: www.aaronwilsontrombone.com and people.brandonu.ca/wilsona