Practice Tips

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Tom Gibson's Practice Tips and Daily Routine for Trombone

TSG Music, 1996

In the following pages, you will find a portion of my daily routine and warm-up. If done every day, I believe these exercises will help you maintain "performance-ready chops". All aspects of performance are touched upon, albeit briefly. Areas which are more difficult for you should be isolated and expanded upon. For instance, if you're having problems with flexibility, you should add more exercises to this routine. Obviously, your areas of deficiency will vary from day to day. So, it might be helpful to have a whole arsenal of supplemental exercises at your disposal. Two fantastic resources to have handy are: 1. Basic Routines for Trombone by Robert L. Marsteller 2. The Remington Warm-up Studies by Donald Hunsberger I have relied greatly on these two sources in compiling my personalized, condensed, yet comprehensive daily routine. Basically, I have extracted from many sources what I feel works best for ME. Your needs will vary, so have these books to refer to. At your lessons, I will be happy to help you " customize" a daily routine. With each new exercise in this booklet, I have stated some specific goals or points to consider while practicing. The most benefit will be gained by the student who refers to these often! Our greatest sin is practicing aimlessly. ( Actually, I suppose the greatest sin would be not practicing at all ;-). It does no good for us to simply " go through the motions" when practicing. Ten minutes of quality practice is better than a lifetime of "noodling". ( We all know the folks who can make the funny sound effects, but then couldn't play legato to save their LIFE!). Quality practice is our goal... the goofy stuff can come later. Notice I said QUALITY practice, not BORING practice. When we're focused on what we're doing and striving hard to reach a clearly defined goal, there's NOTHING boring about it. The student who's bored is the one that practices with no clear aim. Their minds are not involved in what they're doing. Incidentally, this is true in all aspects of life... an inability or unwillingness to focus and concentrate leads to boredom and unimpressive results. For those who DO put forth the effort and learn to channel their energy, the rewards are great... just ask Jordan... or Wynton Marsalis... Apply this philosophy in all that you do, not just the trombone... you will see results, I promise. As per the trombone, however, there are a few things which can help us in our daily practice. What follows is a list of my Practice Tips, in no particular order of significance. They are each of equal importance in my mind. I've numbered them simply for organizational
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purposes. It has taken many years and thousands of dollars in lesson fees/tuition to arrive at this seemingly benign list. Do yourself a favor and apply these tips EVERY TIME YOU TAKE THE HORN OUT OF THE CASE!! Not only will this actively engage your mind in what you're doing, but they make it possible to aurally and visibly monitor our progress. In other words, we can SEE and HEAR that our hard work is paying big dividends! Another very valuable feature of these Tips is the fact that they will alert you to the onset of BAD HABITS. We are all creatures of habit, like it or not. If left unchecked, these bad habits become routine behavior, thus becoming increasingly more difficult to detect and correct. By using these practice tips, you'll catch 'em early and be prepared to fix 'em. We ALL suffer the nasty effects of bad habits, no matter how long we've been in this game. I repeatedly find myself consulting one particular resource for periodic "prevent- ive maintenance". It is a book commonly referred to as " the brass player's bible", and for very good reason. I cannot recommend this book highly enough for the serious student: The Art of Brass Playing by Philip Farkas And now... without further ado...... PRACTICE TIPS!

1. Relax In today's world, it is incredibly difficult to have what I call a "quiet mind". A quiet mind is one free of distractions and is able to focus on a single issue. With the onslaught of information and/or sensory images bombarding us on a daily basis, no wonder we find it hard to achieve a quiet mind. Nevertheless, it is crucial that we do so. Find a quiet room in which to practice. Then, before taking your horn out of its case, take just a minute or two to CALM DOWN. A few really deep, really slow breaths does wonders for both the body and the mind. When you've achieved a "quiet mind", proceed with Part 1 of the warm-up... descending triads. Listen carefully to your big, beautiful tone and don't be in a hurry. 2. Have a Plan Whenever and wherever you're playing, have a goal in mind. Tell yourself: "Today I'm striving for a dark, warm sound." Or, "In this phrase, I'm aiming for a smooth legato." Or, "This month I'm gonna focus on increasing my range..." As you can see, I've set both long-term AND short-term goals. You might have goals for the day, month or year. Or, you might have goals for ONE NOTE! 3. A Pencil is Your Greatest Ally In your practice area... at rehearsal...at lessons... have a pencil at hand! Yes, I know we all have astounding memories, but a pencil never forgets. A mistake such as a wrong note or
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incorrect dynamic is forgivable ONCE! Mark it and it won't happen again. Besides these obvious mistakes, a pencil can remind you of alternate positions, accidentals, or certain inflections in a given phrase. In short, the pencil IS your memory! Many great players have developed their own "shorthand" of symbols and markings they use to help them in performance.

4. Mirror, mirror on the stand... Very often we become so focused on the task at hand, we just forget about fundamentals. And since we can't SEE our embouchure, we often ignore it. Or we'll forget all about posture and "sag" in our chair. These are some of the most common BAD HABITS I spoke of earlier. A mirror can tell us if our embouchure's too loose, too tight, too "bouncy" when tonguing, or if we're SLOUCHING. When working on extremes of range (high or low), tonguing, extremes of dynamics (soft or loud), etc., the mirror can tell us if we're doing it correctly. Are the corners of the mouth too tight? Is our chin bunching up like a "peach pit"? Does our lower jaw bounce up and down when tonguing? Is our chest held high or is it sinking? How does this effect our tone? Do I use too much tension (and not enough AIR) when I play high notes? Does my embouchure change drastically from high notes to low notes and vice versa? Is my back straight, my head held high ; or am I crimping the airstream? The mirror can answer these and countless other questions. A small one is handy for setting on your stand.... a full-length mirror (if available) can tell us ALOT about posture and head position. 5. Record Yourself This one is ALMOST self-explanatory. Many times you're not able to hear just EXACTLY what's going on with your sound. You might think you're sounding GREAT, only to have the recorder tell you differently. Or you might not like a particular phrase until you hear how beautifully it sounded to the audience (in this case, a tape recorder)! Friends and family are not the most impartial critics, although they're undoubtedly the most supportive. YOU are the best judge of your music! You know instinctively just how you wish to sound; and you can be brutally honest without hurting your own feelings! Too many students spend their entire lives BEHIND THEIR BELLS*#! How can you judge your sound if you're never directly in its path? Besides, the resonance in your head when playing distorts even the most luscious tones. Regretably, we will never know how good we sound unless we rely on the recorder. Oh, sure, we can tell from behind the bell whether we split a note or played in tune with the trumpets... but much subtler nuances of tone quality and phrasing are more difficult to detect and thus correct. Rely on your tape recorder... it's like having another set of ears that you can place IN
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FRONT of your bell!

6. ALWAYS a Good Sound High, low, fast or slow.... we're always aiming for a good, pure sound. Too often we sound strained in the high register or "mushy" in the low. Whatever aspect of the music you're working on, let the ultimate standard be a good sound. My daily routine is designed to allow me to focus on sound quality from the very first note I play each and every day. Remember to blow a relaxed, supported, warm column of air through the horn ALWAYS. A good sound is not MADE with the embouchure, it is BLOWN. When you notice yourself trying to FORCE air through the trombone, take time out and practice taking a few big breaths... nice and slow. Support the airstream from the waistline, not in the chest. Have the mental image of "lifting the air", not "pushing" it.

7. Musical Lines No matter what lies in front of us on the stand, we should always treat it as MUSIC. This goes for warm-ups, scales, etudes, concertos, band music... absolutely everything that passes through our lips. Don't allow your brain to go on "auto-pilot" when warming up; try to make expressive and meaningful musical lines from the most mundane material. This can be very challenging indeed when working on scales! But remember, 99.9% of the music you'll play is based on scales. Some tricks that I use are dynamic variation, articulation variation, rhythmic variation, and mental imagery. By mental imagery, I mean imagining myself in different environments when playing my minor scales. I might pretend that I'm auditioning for the New York Philharmonic and my whole audition hinges on the rhythmic accuracy of this ONE scale! Or, I'll pretend that I'm teaching a masterclass and I'm demonstrating legato tonguing to a room full of my peers! ( You will be amazed at how focused you can become on an otherwise "boring" scale.) When working on "real music", then, we are already predisposed to making musical lines. (We're creatures of habit, remember?). Try to determine the composer's state of mind and thus his/her INTENT in writing the music before you. Put yourself in their shoes and hear through their ears. Are there subtle nuances in the music that you're missing? Is the forte written more like an electric guitar forte or is it more subdued? Can this phrase be played in a rubato style or should I play it in strict time? Am I the most important voice at this point or should I play under the clarinet? Do these staccato markings imply a short, "pecky" style or should there be more "meat" on these notes? Should I be matching the trumpets' articulation or is mine an independent musical idea?
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These considerations are what make MUSIC out of a hodgepodge of black dots. These types of questions are literally boundless in scope and very subjective. Your interpretation may be completely valid, while someone else may see it or hear it in a much different light. This is the inherent beauty of music... subjective interpretation and performance..... a.k.a. SELF-EXPRESSION! Always remain open to new possibilities and always have a reason for playing the way you do. ( In other words, engage your mind!!!). Very few endeavors will allow you the latitude for self-expression and creativity that is afforded you in music... why not take FULL advantage of this? (THEN tell me you're bored!). 8. Maintain Your Instrument Abraham Lincoln once said: "If I had three hours to cut down a tree, I'd spend the first 2-1/2 hours sharpening my axe!". What did he mean? I think Abe was stressing the importance of proper preparation and having the right tool for the job. We all can expect better gas mileage from a well-tuned car. A craftsman is only as good as his tools... any carpenter or machinist will tell you this. In our case, we're only as good as our horn allows us to be. This doesn't mean that you should go out and spend thousands of dollars on a state-of-the-art trombone. No way! What I do mean is that a banged-up slide equals a banged-up face! The only muscles getting a real workout when we practice should be those of our embouchure, NOT the biceps and triceps of our right arm! How do you expect to play a smooth line when your slide sticks in second position? Or worse, how can you play a fast passage when the slide WON"T move any faster than a mouse in molasses? How about a valve rendered ineffective because it hasn't been oiled in months? Our slides are very delicate and prone to bending and "dinging". Some dents are very easy to see, while others require a trained repairman's expertise to locate. Here's what I suggest: If you have a less than desirable slide and/or valve, try a very thorough cleaning.This means using a ram-rod or snake on the slide and completely disassemblingthe valve. Run warm-not hot- water through the slide to clear out the "junk". I don't recommend using soapy water, as it tends to leave a residue, thus exacerbating the problem. Wipe the inner slide until it's very clean. You may want to lightly apply some silver polish, but be sure to rinse it VERY WELL! (The stuff hardens like a ROCK if left to dry.). If it still isn't silky smooth after a good cleaning, I suggest taking your slide to a repairman for an alignment and/or dent removal. Then, from this day forward, handle your slide like it's a family heirloom! With just a little caution, a slide can stay in good shape for quite a while. ( I haven't had mine in the shop for more than two years, and it works like it's new.). Valves, thankfully, are usually very responsive to a good cleaning. Unless they're bent, they're easily fixed. If you are looking for a "quick fix", run WARM water through the valve while working it vigorously. A few minutes of this will normally rinse out any dirt or grime that's causing the valve to stick. A sure-fire cleaning involves taking the valve apart ( I can show you how this is best done), cleaning the "innards", lubricating it well, then reassembling. This should probably be done
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every 2 months or so. The slide should be thoroughly cleaned every 2 weeks, and lubricated ( I suggest Trombontine cream) every 2 to 3 days. Apply slide cream sparingly to avoid a "gummy" slide... it really only needs to be applied to the stockings at the bottom of the slide. Dents in the bell section of the horn, unless really large, very rarely effect performance. For cosmetic purposes, you may wish to have them removed, but otherwise, they're no big deal. One more tip: keep your tuning slides well greased. Music stores sell tuning slide grease, but for a few cents ask your local pharmacist for a small bit of Anhydrous Lanolin. Use only a tiny amount and it will last for weeks. A small bottle costs next to nothing and should last a lifetime. It's also not a bad idea to have handy a small kit of spare parts: springs for valvesand "waterkeys", corks for waterkey, etc. Just leave a few in your case... you never know... 9. Listen to LOTS of Music Listen to opera, jazz, alternative, symphonic, rap, brass quintets, industrial, chamber ensembles, trombonists, tenors, sopranos, violinists, classic rock, Beethoven, Broadway shows, bluegrass, avant-garde, Mahler, grunge...... Attend as many performances as you can. There is never a shortage of music in your town, and a surprising number of these performances are FREE!! Hear as much variety as you can and relate it to YOUR musical experience. What common attributes are there, what's completely different? How are they achieving self-expression? Are there any redeeming values to this music? Can I learn anything from these "artists"? Don't be quick to judge and do everything you can to keep an open mind. You can find inspiration in the most unlikely places if you are receptive enough! Variety, after all, is the spice of life. Add a little spice to yours!

10. Seek Help No, I don't mean a psychiatrist!! Sometimes, a new set of ears to hear and judge our music opens up new avenues of thought and new possibilities. Yes, private lessons can be expensive... but they can be worth every penny,too. There is no substitute for experience, and this is what you gain from a qualified teacher. A person who's "been there, done that", can help you through some tough problems. They are also more adept at spotting potential problems. In short, they can keep you on the right track and save you hours, days , and months of aggravation. But perhaps their greatest role is that of inspiration. A good teacher will excite your imagination and stimulate your mind. Although I now make a living as a professional
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trombonist, I still will seek the advice of those for whom I have great respect and admiration. One should NEVER stop seeking guidance and inspiration... even Pavarotti has a coach in whom he confides and relies for criticism. We never stop growing as people and musicians... and we should never feel that we have!

TSG Music, 1996

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