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

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

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

4. Goal #1 – Posture Identification

5. 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

6. 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”

7. 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

8. 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

9. 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

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

11. 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

12. 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”

13. 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.

14. 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

15. 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)

16. 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

17. 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

18. 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

19. 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

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

21. 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.

22. 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

23. 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

24. 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

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

26. 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

27. 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

28. 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

29. 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

30. Goal #5 – Slide Technique Developing Intonation

31. 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

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

33. 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!

34. 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

35. 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

36. 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

37. Recruiting and Retaining Keeping them around
Flute Part
Trombone Part

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

39. 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

40. 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

41. Contact Information
Aaron Wilson, Assistant Professor of Low Brass Brandon University Phone: Websites: and people.brandonu.ca/wilsona