Bob Sullivan at CCM

Welcome to CCM Tuesday Morning! CSO principal trumpeter Bob Sullivan was the visiting masterclass man. He immediately awakened all with Reiche's brilliant Abblasen Fanfare. That 30 second flashy warm up ought to be the wake-up and get-going call on every trumpet player's alarm clock! Next, it was getting down to the business of sharing many excellent ideas on communicating and balanced preparation.

For the first hour Bob worked with three grad student competition winners. Joel Baroody played beautifully the second movement of the Pilss Sonata. Some of Bob's suggestions: stand in the well of the piano, put the horn down, and sing both to your accompanist and to the audience exactly how you want it to go. Develop your ideas. Interpret and communicate. In performance, the message must dominate, not the concern for mechanics. We must always be slaves to the music, not to the technique. Consider the bell an extension of the voice, that inner trumpet sound. That all improved the second go around.

Jeff Lewandowski then did a nice job on Enesco's Legend. His suggestions: stay in the present time. Keep concentrating. Communicating something musical will overshadow the odd clam. Maintain interest. Supporting longer phrases is the challenge, especially when there are rests in the middle of the phrase. Performers tend to focus on details while the composer envisions the whole composition. Know the piano part thoroughly, and then begin work on the solo part. Bob suggested Copland's book, What to Listen for in Music.

Next Chris Pike took on the whole Charlier 12th etude. Bob brought a refreshing approach to these studies - much more soloistic, free, and musical, and less like the approach to Clarke technical work. Chris's playing quickly took on color, shimmer, and a lot more interest. Finishing the whole thing at all costs is much less productive than strength-building a little at a time. The practice room is for gradually pushing our limits. We must be able to play exact details but also with great expression. I like the picture he mentioned of being able to play "outside the box" as well as inside.

For the second hour, Bob opened with a flawless and captivating performance of Koetting's Intrada. I enjoyed the lesson demonstrated on being able to play cold at such a high level. All notes are on call at any time. His theme was on how to practice. We needed a full day or two to hear all that he had to share. Basically, daily playing must be organized and balanced, he said.

The break down is conditioning, technique, and music. Conditioning: anchored corners, buzzing, bending, long tones, peddles, air movement, lips always vibrating. Short sessions are better than long. Our goal is building confidence by first building solid foundations. All elements should be covered daily. The Stamp method was explained, (staying up when down, and down when up, etc.), and not just playing it, but how and why.

Technique work includes tonguing, single, multiple, and tone work. The Music portion, as all of his practice, is free of "routine". Concepts are incorporated and ingrained. Singing and skeleton work is done. For example, the huge leaps in Honegger's Intrada are first reduced to nearby notes and then expanded without loss of focus. Musical line rules. Technical work always supports that goal. These are only a few of many things shared.

Our thanks to Mr. Sullivan for two great sessions! Hopefully there will be more to come.

Candles in the Wind

Ever watch a young child trying to blow out birthday candles? Flames flutter but few are extinguished. Why is that? Then you lean over to help get it done with just one well-placed puff as all are amazed. Maybe it's the Blowing-More-Than-Focusing Syndrome, or also the dreaded Bad-Aiming Disability. Your intentions are great, but aim and focus is poor. To get the job done it takes too many tries, more than enough air, and frustration. But there is a cure.

Sometimes our trumpet-playing is a lot like bad candle-blowing. We huff and puff ourselves into quick fatigue, and still miss most of the notes. We often over-blow and aim at clusters of pitches rather than nailing them individually. We need that skilled parent leaning over next to us saying, ready, set, go, as we guide some well-directed air to its target. On your mark, get set, blow.

The candles go out when the right amount of air hits the middle of each flame. Notes get nailed when the right amount of air hits the center of each pitch. Think of taking care of one candle at a time. No second blows allowed. With both candles and notes, your air must make good contact with its target. Now make a wish, and blow 'em all out!

Looking for an Adventure

The difference between great music and not quite so great music, is that great music is full of great music. It's not hard to find. Not so great music requires great music makers to ensure that it happens. George Szell said that if you are playing the music of composers other than Mozart, Haydn or Beethoven, you must work harder. We can certainly object to so short a list, but the point is understood. We are on a mission to discover the music in the music. This then becomes our life-long adventure.

We are usually pretty good at recognizing musical intentions when the trumpet is not present. Now put a horn to our face, and creativity stops. The focus shifts to the difficulty of mechanics. The very instrument we love quickly becomes our enemy. Instead of being the conduit of our best musical intentions, the trumpet turns around to bite us, and stifles the whole process. Why is that? And what can we do about it?

Suggestion: Look at the advice given by the composer at the top of the page. Start there. How about assigning your etude, concerto, sonata, or symphony passage a theme, a storyline, a mood, or even words? A horn player colleague used to sing his own unforgettable lyrics to Brahms and Bruchner symphony fragments. Those passages suddenly came alive!

There is music on them thar pages, but you are required to discover and draw it out. A good imagination is all it takes to free us from musical paralysis. Instead of thinking another concerto, we think "Bull fight arena, scene 1", or "German tanks unstoppably meandering through the dense brush", or "A hazy sunset viewed from your high-rise veranda in Spain", or "A high speed sports car racing though European mountain terrain accompanied by your best friend!" Nothing is just notes. Everything is programmatic.

Charlier etudes and Arban Characteristics offer much more than boring studies. How about some of these pictures? A bicycle with an obnoxious dent in the frame of the front wheel, acting like a relentless metronome; a Frenchman cycling through the streets of Paris cheerfully waving to pedestrians; the morning of a fawn suddenly interrupted with fanfare by the hunter; a pastoral movie scene; a great unaccompanied flugel solo ideal for a recital; fireworks shooting up and then cascading downwards in slow motion; a merry-go-round horse rolling way up and down; swirling bees in a frenzy; loud and angry accents on off-beats; participating in vocal auditions at the Met. The list is endless! There is enough music just in trumpet etudes to equip any trumpet student to compete anywhere. Adventures are awaiting.

The Sign of a Trumpaholic

What are the signs of a trumpaholic? Appearances may be deceiving. Don't be fooled by those tiny headphones always seen en route to the next class. Or by all the talk about the newest releases by European trumpet soloists. Or by the impressive collection of platinum-plated mouthpieces and bags o' mutes. Or by all the shiny high-priced trumpets in those multiple state-of-the-art strapped gig bags. Or by the complete library of all the latest trumpet fads on everything from The Art of a Full Inhale in .06 Seconds, to The Amazing Benefits of Blowing your Mouthpiece Backwards.

The best proof of whether someone is honestly a trumpaholic is found on the stage of the recital hall. How good is the playing? Or even better, how much improvement has been happening? Trumpaholics get better. Being a trumpet jock is cool. It's nice when you love your work. Youthful enthusiasm is a great weapon against boredom and burnout. Never lose it. But it's what comes out of the bell that has clout, earns paychecks, and speaks loudly (and softly) to listeners.

Brick-laying

What do brick-layers and trumpet players have in common? Some would say both are unskilled blue collar laborers lacking in artistic abilities. Sometimes maybe. It's not so much a question of ability however, but of integrity.

Accuracy is a reflection of character. A mason's work does not allow for sloppiness. Weak foundations will cause disasters, and that kind of worker is not likely to be rehired. Precision matters. We trumpet players seem to think that we can get away with laying the notes down any old way. We tend to slap together our notes of etudes, excerpts, and concertos, paying not enough attention to the quality of each note. Would that we had the commitment to the precision of master builders!

Imagine a huge pile of bricks just dumped in your front yard and ready for your grand building project. You've studied your blue prints, so you know pretty much where you're going. You have your manual and electric saw, chisel, hammer, mortar, trowel and all the equipment needed to get the job done. Then your hard work begins. You want your finished product to be functional and of aesthetic value. Others will appreciate not only all of your labor but your eye for detail. They will marvel, and you will be proud of your work.

So the good news is that our work is not so much talent-based as it is attention-based. Whether you're building a patio or a concert hall, playing a scale or a concerto, each individual part matters. Spend lots of quality time with those bricks, and treat them with care. Whether builder or artist, working with bricks or notes, your success is in the details.

Put Progress on the Fast Track

One of my boys' teachers at CIM suddenly stopped to ask him this question in the midst of his lesson. "So, what's the goal here?" Play all the notes in tune, he guessed? "No, to be gainfully employed!" He let that glimpse of reality sink in for a moment before continuing the lesson.

Considering that life as a student will end in a matter of months, it should be sobering that reality is fast approaching. In fact, it is already here. It is not likely that you will suddenly turn into a monster trumpet player over night. Evidence of that talent should have already surfaced, and it must be fed and trained on a daily basis in order for survival. That becomes our job description: monster-training. In fact, you should be a monster-in-progress.

No matter what your major, you should be committed to finishing your schooling with honors. That first paycheck depends upon it. A certain amount of partying and/or laziness seems to be what happens in school. But keep in mind that those are not job requirements. Have a life, but also keep a realistic perspective on the competition that lies ahead. Let's put some serious progress on the fast track.

Searching for Explosives

The alarm clock goes off at six A.M. but you are already half awake because today is audition day! Must get to the airport 5 hours early. There's no time to warm up or practice because you've got a very important date and you can't be late! Unfortunately your sky high confidence is fast evaporating as all this traveling is not the way to prepare to play your best. All that careful rehearsing and mock auditioning now seems of no avail, but you are hoping that something will happen to make it pay off when it counts.

Endless lines of travelers are doing a good job of soaking up all that extra time you allowed. It will be a close call getting to the gate. Nobody is in a hurry but you, while everything else is in slow motion.

At last it is your turn to advance past security. But wait, you are summoned to step out of line to receive a special puffing from that explosives detector, or whatever it is. Oh well, heroes can take it, as you sing John Williams' solo to yourself.

"Please stand still, sir." And then a gigantic puff of high powered air shoots at you as your shirt blouses out, your pants fill up with the gusts of air, and your hair shoots straight up. "Wait, we need to do it one more time, sir." Another enormous puff happens as though you have now been officially zapped and energized with special powers and abilities. They wave you through as no explosives were found. Or where there?

Many hours later you arrive at the hall with case, bulging gig bags, a half dozen mutes, pouches of mouthpieces, and your heaviest suitcase. Your arm aches, your head aches, and your lip is stiff because you haven't warmed up. Then you run into all the people you hoped would never be there. Why did you even come? Everyone else plays better than you. And besides, they were all runners-up in the Cleveland audition. What a waste. Why bother! Go back to Kansas!

Nevertheless, you unpack, have a brief but very surprisingly good warm up, and soon find that you are next. You pray that you won't hear that word again. Walking on stage and springing open your quad case, you proceed to play the audition of your life! Every excerpt is like brushed gold, just like the recordings. Your tone is awesome, attacks secure, and your softs and louds are all there. It's nail-it city with nary a crack, air note, or blip!

Then you hear a stirring from behind the curtain. "Yes! Bravo!" followed by vigorous applause from the whole audition committee! "Harry, we are finished for the day. Please bring this contestant down to meet the maestro. Sir, that was some wonderful playing. That's just what we are looking for. When can you be available? How much money will . . . . "

As you try to conceal your excitement and open your empty date book, you suddenly hear your jangling alarm clock jolting you back to reality. What? Oh no! It's six A.M. and time to get up and get to the airport. Today is your audition day. Hope you get searched for explosives!

Mettle Detectors

You know those metal detectors at airport security? That checkpoint where potentially dangerous items must be detected and then disallowed before you can proceed? Occasionally you may even be one of the fortunate few to stand there in that silly door frame while you are suddenly air-blasted by that machine that checks you for explosives! It matters not that you feel violated and humiliated as all can see that hole in your sock to boot! You must be absolutely up to snuff with no bad stuff. Security staff's mission is to search out and eliminate any items hazardous to your safety and to those around you.

Having survived that ordeal and after still further review of your credentials, you are then allowed to reclaim your shoes, belt, laptop, phone, spare change, and mouthpiece. You are finally pronounced good enough to go. You may now approach the moving sidewalk. (Watch your step as you approach the moving sidewalk.) By now you are fatigued and irritated, and you're still not even on the plane. Is this not very similar to a day at the auditions?

Getting yourself to the audition is almost as bad as playing it. In auditions only the best survive the grueling process, and you can be fairly sure they have no suitcases full of bad notes. The scanning process is thorough. Mettle is detected, but here it is desirable. You have passed scrutiny and have been found sound.

Thought for this snowy non-day: prepare to be completely evaluated and sifted. The committee wants to find a clean, strong candidate with no hidden or undesirable baggage. Our task as students is to anticipate this testing and to begin to eliminate all items that won't fly.

Incidentally, you've got more time to think about it. Your flight has just been delayed!

Notes to Go

"The reason people go to concerts is to hear great trumpet-playing." That simple statement by William Vacchiano in a lesson years ago seemed to me either the dumbest or the most egotistical comment I'd ever heard. But as I thought about it, I realized that I got way more than my money's worth from him that day.

That quote has served to invigorate and motivate many a self-doubting trumpet student facing performance pressures. Our purpose is simple. We are on a mission to give the audience something memorable. Or how about unforgettable? They paid. We can't disappoint. They are expecting all the notes and then some. It's the "and then some" that can be the key that frees us from our nerves and fear of making mistakes. We're there to give, not to be critiqued. When we serve up the notes with accuracy and an appropriate dose of style and flair, the job is well done.

A test of how successful we are is how memorable the performance is. What will the crowd take home? With that goal of audience satisfaction in mind, we are armed with all we need to deliver great notes to go!

The Air Force

Today's trumpet studio class was a very nice demonstration of the force of air, as two grads prepare to go off into the wild blue yonder to audition for two openings in the U.S. Air Force Band. They survived three rounds in preparation for the real thing in another week and a half. Pretty much unscathed by nerves and a discerning audience, they played with spirit and confidence. They also graciously received some tough constructive comments. Receiving criticism is never easy, but such is the military. Criticism is the making of a man, and honor is preceded by humility. So far, very good.

We had a lesson on the importance of crystal-clear attacks, velvety smooth lyric lines, and the need for accuracy and control. Both students have prepared well and have gotten stronger. Any professional brass position requires accuracy, mature musicianship, and stamina. All of that we heard today. Nice work! But tomorrow they must be able to do it all over again - let it all hang out, but gather it in for another day.

Trumpet vacancies! Job description: ACCURACY, STYLE, and ENDURANCE.

Smiling, Puffing, and Chewing

Trumpet-playing and smiling are not good bedfellows. They just don't get along. They get too tired of each other. Definitely, your playing can be light-hearted and jovial, and bring a smile to the audience, but not to your embouchure. Your corners can't be getting all happy. For the lips, playing is serious business. Firm corners, relaxed center. Don't be thinking about the Joker. Picture the Hulk!

As long as we're on the mushy embouchure, cheek-puffing is also a no-no. The air can't be shooting in several different directions inside your mouth. You'll lose endurance, flexibility, and control of intonation. Air must be aimed directly into the mouthpiece. Cheeks are just as important as the rest of the body, in fact more so as they are the last to focus the streaming air to its destination!

And then there is the chewer, nibbling and adjusting the embouchure with every rise and fall of the line. He looks like a squirrel with his nut. Save the chewing for meal times. How about freezing that embouchure into place. Set it, and keep it there. Remember: iron-clad firmness at the corners, but relaxed and flexible in the middle! Also, others must marvel at how calm and relaxed you appear as you play. But on the inside - fire and amazing efficiency!

Setting Your Pace

Here's a non-brilliant concept for improving endurance. Take that upcoming recital, or one of those strenuous brass concerts in which survival is the issue. Good practice involves just as much the right mental preparation as physical. The right kind of approach and mindset will produce the best results. It's not a matter of energy, but how it is used.

Look at that crazy guy speeding down the highway in the snow and ice! Just up ahead we'll likely find him stuck in the ditch. Having lost control, he is quickly sidelined. Look at that marathon runner way out in front of everybody immediately after the starting gun! We'll soon watch him huffing and puffing himself into premature exhaustion as everyone passes him by. Now listen to that audition contestant blasting his solo and all of his excerpts in the warm up room non stop! We'll soon see him trudging sadly back to where he came from. Each of these did not finish because of energy failure - not the lack of it, but the misuse of it.

Playing is an athletic event that requires pacing. Had the driver, the runner and the audition contestant been able to conserve their energy, they would have finished as planned. A tense mindset burns up too much energy, while a wise relaxed approach uses less of it and is more productive. The impetuous, the driven, and the frenzied usually defeat themselves well before the end of the day.

Suggestion: Drive to get there, not to be the first. Run to finish strong, not to impress everyone from the get-go. And play your best, but so as to be able to repeat the performance tomorrow. As you prepare, pretend that the event is actually twice as long, and pace yourself accordingly.

Staying in the Toy Store

As I was talking with a symphony veteran today, I perked up to something that he said. When I asked what keeps him going after so many years in the business, I could have heard, "I need the money, the medical benefits, the pension", etc. Instead he responded quickly, "I still love it. I'm still a kid in a toy store!"

That's the winning mindset. That's what has kept his quality playing pouring out year after year, and that shrinks obstacles. Perfecting his game hasn't come with a dampening of enthusiasm. We all claim that we love music, but soon find how easily our love for playing can grow old and cold. It's sort of like "for better or worse, in sickness and in health", and sadly, "for richer or poorer". Time and pressures test commitment.

You can tell when you're listening to a kid in the toy store. For that kid, it is art, not a job, a game, not a routine, fun, not work. The kid is still there in all of us. It's fun for everybody when that happens.

"Luggage" for '09

You can already hear freight train 2009 barreling towards us on its fast track. Fortunately it makes one final rest stop at Holiday Station, just long enough for us to collect a few thoughts before it heads off into the New Year.

As the old year rounds third and heads for history, it might be good to think about lightening our load a bit for the journey ahead. Extra cumbersome baggage is costly these days and adds unwanted strain on the carrier. So let's take into the new year only those things that we can carry and which will still be prospering when Engine 2010 approaches. For sure there is nothing new offered here, just a couple of reminders as we prepare for our routines.

The first item to take along - a disposition that leaves others encouraged. Improve rather than disapprove. My wife reminds us when cleaning the house for company, "Always leave a room better than when you entered it." ("Fine, then I'll just leave," I say. That's not the idea.) Contribute something edifying. Remove things unhelpful. Anyone can trash and tear down. Even a few well-spoken words are powerful - no flattery, just encouragement. It is always needed.

Another idea is to begin work on projects now rather than later. This obviously avoids extra stress. Starting your work early gives you and your project simmer time. Long haul preparation is more productive than last minute cramming. Slow plugging beats fast hammering.

Those who know how to prepare well are usually self-starters. They are not dependent upon others. They take initiative and finish projects. They also have learned how to inspire themselves, to stay motivated, and to dig their way out of discouragements. People like this should be your best friends.

Also consider that your gifts and abilities are given, not a given. We really don't own anything that we did not receive. Even the ability to acquire wealth has been granted from our Maker. This perspective produces gratefulness and helps us to approach our responsibilities without the selfish focus that brings the pressures of pride and insecurity.

Luggage for '09? ENCOURAGEMENT, PREPARATION, MOTIVATION, and GRATEFULNESS

Have a great New Year!

The Cop, the Doc, and the Maestro

What is the lesson that a highway patrolman, a dentist, and a conductor can teach us? There he is, parked around the bend on the interstate with his window wide open and that obnoxious gun thing aimed straight at you. He's our friendly speed monitor. The second guy we see is peering down from behind his sanitary mask with his obnoxious sharp poking instrument aimed straight at your mouth. It's our friendly tooth monitor. Next, there he is, staring back at you from his podium with that obnoxious stick in his hand pointed directly at you. It's our friendly note monitor!

These three can be either friend or foe. The choice is yours. But there is something important to be learned from each of them. For sure we get their message, but usually it's too late and costly. Had we only known and been prepared, our encounter would have been much more pleasant, or no en counter at all. But because of our negligence, we must face a ticket, a cavity, or a musical flogging . . . or a billing, a drilling, and a grilling!

Your speed suddenly matters when it's found unacceptable. Dental hygiene matters when the painful cavities surface and must be dealt with, and the lack of right notes matters once they are publicly exposed. Neither a quick jamming of the brake pedal, nor a flurry of brushing, nor a frantic last minute practice session can make up for our woeful lack of preparation. These monitors teach us not to get too late smart.

But wait! Could it be that these three characters, the cop, the doc, and the maestro, are only ghosts of the past, and not necessarily what must be in the future? No, they need not be specters that dog us in the new year, hounding us for our wealth, our health, and musical success. Yes, we can awake from these very real nightmares to find instead that we have yet another chance to prepare to meet them, and this time with confidence and readiness and joy! MERRY CHRISTMAS, everybody! MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Fire-Starting Methods

Christmas Eve will find you . . . kneeling down to fan the flames of that yuletide fire, but you quickly realize that you are working way too hard because not much flame-flickering is happening! Furthermore you are getting faint fast and your holiday company is growing impatient and not at all impressed with your fireside manner. The smoke seems to be winning the blowing contest as it poofs right back into your face which grows paler by the puff. What a wimp!

Holiday lesson: Sorry to say that this scenario is highlighting your severe embouchure and breathing problems! Your approach also reveals a serious character flaw which is totally unacceptable for a brass player. It appears that you are trying to start that fire like a woodwind player!! (Actually they have fake fires, or else they have someone start it for them.)

Let us observe three ways how not to get a fire started this Christmas. First is the oboe player's Tight Squeeze Method, subtitled A Fire in a Pinch! No Chicago fire will ever get started with such an embouchure. Windy City? Not. While they're aiming at the floor, more air actually escapes from their ears than ever reaches the smoldering wood. It takes oboes a very long time to get a little fire going, and this is definitely not the way to impress your holiday company. The fire cracklings seem to be laughing at this over-stressed effort.

Next mistaken approach: the Classic Flute Puff Method, which attempts to ignite flames without stirring any dust or soot whatsoever. You can faintly hear only slight puffings and twitterings from the would be blower as he never inhales more than a reed cup full of air. The pitiful air stream does have a nice quivery vibrato however. This method is somewhat popular because there is so little resistance.

Then there is the irritating Bottle Hoot Method. This is especially popular with bass clarinet players. Alto flute types also invariably latch onto this technique. The flute family often uses this method to suit their fast tonguing needs by using "hootalee-hootalee-hootalee's". This may help them with Bolero, but is not the greatest for fire-starting. The positive side is that The Bottle Method does provide a real hoot for observers.

Christmas break assignment: carefully observe your fire-starting technique and don't be using any of those woodwind methods. Brass players need to be studying The Three Little Pigs Method. You must huff, and you must puff, but you must blow the house down! In fact, the more dust, soot, and smoke, the better! When your flames are blazin', then you're cookin'!

Time For a New Toy

We have the results of your annual trumpet e-check. Are you ready? It calls for three valve jobs with alignment included, complete chemical flush to remove all red-rot and corrosion, compression checked, dents fixed, corks replaced, new pearls, new springs, bell straightened, plating redone, pitting to be buffed from mouthpiece as well as all areas of contact of the horn with sweaty skin, lost nut screws replaced, mouthpiece gap adjusted, loose braces soldered, lost third valve bottom cap replaced, leaky spit valve fixed, and all food to be drilled from mouthpiece back bore. And oh, your mute also needs a few corks!

We expect first-rate music to flow from equipment that is often in poor repair, and wonder why we struggle. A horn in excellent condition says something about the player. It also can make life a whole lot easier.

Forget the huge repair bill. This is the season for a shiny new toy!

Buerkle's Brass Festival a Hit

The drive to Kettering was worth it. Brian Buerkle did it again. It was the perfect venue for an Organ and Brass Festival at the Kettering Adventist Church just outside of Dayton. A total of fourteen brass players from near and as far as Colorado shared in the glory of brass and organ favorites. Some very nice playing by everyone contributed to a great concert experience. Trumpeters John Rommel, Justin Bartels, Jon Kretschmer, and Wesley Woolard joined Brian in covering C, piccolo, and flugel parts cleanly. An appreciative audience filled the large church.

Adding class to the program were nice touches of color and perfect poundings from the percussion guys. CCM's mezzo-soprano Brittany Wheeler beautifully sung the gorgeous solo part to the Urlicht by Mahler. Ravishing is the only word for that movement, and the brass shared the many solemn moments beautifully.

Bravo to maestro Buerkle for envisioning an ambitious project and seeing it through successfully! We heard not only very fine trumpet playing by him and his colleagues, but also witnessed skills in organizing, leadership, arranging, and conducting, as well as mature musicianship. There was a lot of talent on display, but that was not the focus. His humble but quite confident presence was perfect for drawing our attention to great music. Thank you for that!

Organist Jerry Taylor spoke well with humor about the French organ composers represented. His playing on the Franck Final was brilliant. His instincts for dramatic flair were perfect as he was thoroughly enjoying the music which eventually climaxed in the most grandiose ending imaginable! Total immersion by musician is always special for audience. Well done! (Brian, you have to arrange that one for antiphonal brass forces next time!)

The horns nicely finessed the many runs and flourishes with impressive sizzle and tone. The trombones were appropriately sensuous in the Shostakovich Jazz Suite and gave the trumpets a comfortable cushion for their lead moments all through the concert. They also had many fine trombone moments of their own. I thought the highlight was Wagner's Gathering of the Armies from Lohegrin with all juices flowing in sync. Off stage beltings were just as they should be - strong and confident with Brian conducting accordingly. He managed the likelihood for distance/delay problems well.

That Gabrielli Canzon has got to be about the all-time best showcase for the back of the orchestra ever. It gives reason to put us up front permanently! The competing choirs did a great job of friendly combat. The original score must have said something in the fine print about each group trying to outdo one another. Choir A keeps laying it down, only to be defiantly answered by the reply of Choir B, with each insisting on dominance. This is as it should be, and it continues until they all cross the finish line together to the cheers of those in the stands. You gotta love Gabrielli!

And then came the Finale from Saint-Saens' Organ Symphony. Who needs strings and reeds to hide in! The piece works just fine without them. Brian's arrangement was a toughy, but they got it done. This program showed what inspiring brass music is all about. Where would orchestras be without it? Nice show, Brian!

Season's Matchings

COLUMN A

Bad Solfege _2_
Has an 18-note word _10_
Mahler 9th _7_
Scale down _5_
Bengal _1_
ESPN Theme _3_
1812 _4_
Environmentally-conscious cuffs _8_
Scale down _6_
Mahler 4th _9_

COLUMN B

1. Snow Man
2. Deck the Halls
3. Bridge to Sleigh Ride
4. Same Old Lang Syne
5. Joy to the World
6. Away in a Manger
7. White Christmas
8. What Child is This?
9. Jingle Bells
10. Angels We Have Heard

Trumpet Works in Toronto

Andrew McCandless, principal trumpet of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, is the Professor of Trumpet at the Royal Conservatory's Glenn Gould School of Music in downtown Toronto. Not unlike Philadelphia's Curtis Institute of Music, the G.G.S. accepts only the best talent, and takes very good care of its four trumpet majors. Proof: recent grad Adam Zinatelli is just about to land the Principal Trumpet position in the Calgary Philharmonic. School's mission accomplished!

The school is part-way through a massive building project which will include a new concert hall. There is already an impressive fusion of the old school masonry with sharp new century design. Just next door, however, an alien high rise appears to have crashed and adhered itself right onto the front of the nineteenth century fortress! The Conservatory's new music building should easily offer a more subtle, yet bold presence, reflecting traditions while implanting the new.

Professor McCandless has a lot to work with, and his students have a lot to draw upon. He brings to his studio his on-the-job experience with the orchestras of Savannah, Kansas City, Buffalo, Dallas, San Francisco, and now Toronto. His training credentials include Boston University and the Eastman School. Andrew is an excellent soloist who also has an unashamed love for teaching. The word is that he is also a sought-after speaker!

Yesterday was one of the days the school generously offers an outsider to participate. It was a day full of solos and excerpts. I was privileged to throw my deux cents into the mix. We heard nice displays of Arutunian, Hummel, Hindemith, and Honegger, (no Haydn. Without the H's, we'd lose half of our solo repertoire!) Solo class was then followed by a good look at a dozen of those pesky standard excerpts that never seem to go away. Some efficient nailing happened.

I was reminded that successful training is never painless. If it is, it isn't happening, or else we have a genius on our hands. In addition to all the normal requirements, Andrew's lesson agenda includes regular doses of transposition and sight-reading! Duets are also part of each lesson as they stimulate vital ensemble instincts. How easily these three are neglected!

For music school hunters and/or trumpet recording geeks, Toronto offers a fantastic experience. As many orchestra budgets have brought recording projects to a standstill, the Toronto Symphony is already thriving with a bunch of CD's that, along with the music school, serious trumpet students ought to check out.

So, what'll it be, boys?

"Hi, boys! Back again? Let me take your order. Today we've got some tantalizing appetizers, tempting side dishes, and plenty of devilish desserts. Now which will it be?"

Does eating have any relationship to trumpet practicing? It may be a stretch, but maybe not if you consider the importance of discipline for improving in both areas. We make decisions every day that affect us for better or worse. Whether you're opening up the Arban book or the menu at Applebee's, you are faced with choices. We tend to order up what we want, not what we need. Do those decisions matter, and is there a relationship between good nutrition and good performance? You decide.

With life's bar 'n' grill serving up its daily specials, it is difficult to maintain a balanced diet of anything. There are lots of attractions and distractions. Keeping in mind our goals for top physical and musical health, some things have got to go. We must make decisions that will leave us in better shape at the end of the day. Suggestions:

Control over those shakes just might help us with control over our shakes. We could start substituting scales for ales. Shed the gin, and head for the gym. Do flies, not fries. Less spaghettios and more arpeggios. Tonics are for playing only. Less pizza and more pizazz. (Sorry).

Moderation, discipline, and self control are issues that affect all areas of life. Being out of balance in one area could jeopardize our success in another. Control in one area should help us with control in all the others. If our trumpet really matters, so must our discipline.

Hold On!

Few have the patience for this kind of practice. It's too boring and unmusical. Besides, it takes too much time and can be embarrassing as it makes others think you must not be very advanced. The truth is that this practice is excellent therapy for what ails most of us. How so? It helps intonation, tone, breath control, endurance, and even articulation all at once. To ignore this practice is to show up for your very first rehearsal unprepared. We're talking long tones, holds, fermatas.

One very long note can be a whole lot harder than a string of fireworks. Somewhere in every piece you will hear at least one. Often Trumpet I is called upon to demonstrate to the world how it's done. For example, take Zarathustra, both Leonore calls, Mahler 2nd and 10th, Rienzi, every Brahms Symphony or Strauss tone poem. Second players are not exempt. Beethoven and Brahms made Trumpet II the king of low, long and soft. Put on your fermata or long-sustained-phrase glasses and you will discover them everywhere. This gives us new motivation for daily fermata practice. You know you're going to need it!

This week add a good dose of long ones to your practice agenda. Just think organ, sostenuto sempre, Bruckner's molto adagio movements, bagpipes, air raid sirens, swimming under water, bullfrogs, puffer fish! Whatever works for you, think it so you will do it. Come up with your own strategy. You could have a long-note lottery. Pick a note, any note - loud, soft, high, low. Time yourself. Try them with dims. Try them with crescendos. Have someone mercilessly conduct your one note until you're totally out of air. We get paid by the note. Pretend we get paid by the length of the note. Grab a good breath and hold on!

Picture This

Every day during practice sessions in the basement, I would pause to gaze at my gallery of trumpet heroes on the wall. Each day they were there, staring at me through their picture frames, watching, listening, and some smiling as I slowly proceeded to blast my brains out. If I stopped playing long enough to listen, I could hear them. They had all at one time influenced me both by their words, of course by their notes, but also by their lives. But with the passing of time, their only help was in what I could recall.

Actually that is not true. When I looked closely at their embouchure as they were playing, I could still get a free lesson. Watching can be almost as beneficial as listening. My own embouchure had been a bit dysfunctional especially in early years, and many problems had to be overcome by sheer willpower. It was my way, the only way, and the hard way. Being coaxed and advised was not as helpful as observing other players - something about a picture and a thousand words. A wiser student would have heeded instruction as well as seeing it in practice, but that is a topic for another time.

Looking at those guys on the wall, I could see that each embouchure had a natural placement of the mouthpiece on the lips. It just looked right. Corners were firm, center free to vibrate, and the rest of the face appeared to focus on the blowing process. Air was directed straight into the cup, with no detours. Both lips shared the work load with an absolute minimum of strain. At least, it looked that way. Upper body was relaxed and upright while the air made its unhampered passage directly to the audience. The mouthpiece looked like it belonged there!

We study the art of music, but we also must learn the art of controlling its vehicle, the air stream. Behind every great trumpet performance there is a well functioning embouchure whose job is to manage air flow. Call him the quarterback, the point man, the executive officer, or the busy air traffic controller of your playing. If he has been trained to handle all that passes his way, you are good to go. Don't be at odds with your embouchure. The quality of your music depends on how well he functions. I was always amazed that so much great music could travel through such a tiny aperture with such efficiency and ease!

Treadmill on the Incline

It's just what you asked for, your very own Life Style Treadmill! It comes complete with lengthy practice manuals and a lifetime guarantee. The fine print warns that you will wear out before it does! Nevertheless, you accept the challenge, and it quickly becomes the focus of your life. You're on it 24/7.

But what happens when that treadmill seems stuck in the inclined position? Instead of walking on air, your every step is a painful uphill climb. Or worse yet, that exhilarating jog has become a joyless drudgery. Soon you're thinking, "How could this have been so much fun, and now so much work? And everything hurts! Do I really want to keep doing this?" Congratulations! You have just run into your first wall.

Playing trumpet can be just as rigorous as a long uphill jog. Various degrees of burnout are quite common at music schools. In fact, it might as well be in the small print of every course description: WATCH OUT FOR THE WALL! The problem is that we didn't expect it. After only a few months you are seriously tempted to rethink your commitment to your ongoing warfare with your trumpet.

Be encouraged. You are fortunate to have just experienced a microcosm of reality. It happens after school just as much as in school. Start learning to deal with it now and prepare yourself. Those oncoming walls have their way of blindsiding you. Our job is to expect them and to learn to avoid their damaging physical and emotional effects. A wall can ruin your music making. You must tear down that wall! (or avoid running directly into it)

In my opinion there are two things that will help overcome debilitating discouragements. The first is a mindset that is committed to a daily routine of basic fundamentals regardless of how you feel. You can't wait for winds of inspiration to blow before you ever tackle your work. On the other hand, you don't beat yourself up, but you regularly develop those basics that will make you great.

The second is the most powerful. It is what got you were you are so far. It is your love for music. Without that, you cease to be an artist, only a mechanic. Go ahead and be the mechanic, but also be the musician. An intense passion for music can be the most effective weapon in sustaining you through stressful times. Your musical message must be stronger than the steep road in front of you. Use the looming walls out there to motivate you to develop your musical instincts and skills before you ever encounter the opposition.

One last thought. It's not about how great you become, but how much you love what you do. It is those who will have the most impact. Few seem to really enjoy their work. Be one of those who do. Keeping alive your love of music will sustain you and give you much to share. Keep running. You're not done yet. That wall may be the best thing that you ever ran into!

Filling Up Space

Conservatory practice rooms have their purpose and even a benefit or two, but there is a big problem with them. There just isn't enough space in there, physically or acoustically. Sometimes there is barely enough room for a mute change. If you want to switch mouthpieces, you first have to leave the room. Take a deep breath, and your shoulders are touching both walls. After a couple of long tones all of the air is stale, and in mere moments everything in there smells as bad as it sounds.

What's more, all of your notes are dead on arrival. Because there is no resonance, the only feedback you get is the slap in the face from your notes ricocheting directly off the wall, which soon describes your playing. Breathing tends to become shallow since everything is plenty loud in there. Consequently, the lips can be forced to do way more controlling than necessary. It isn't long until Frankie Fatigue and Sammy Smashmouth once again barge into the room to keep you company for the rest of your day. Assignment: find a way to get rid of them!

With that said, these cubicles do offer a great benefit. You can hear everything! All flaws are quite audible and exposed. We now have no excuse for ignoring weaknesses. Such a completely unforgiving acoustic teaches us honesty and humility, revealing that we are not as good as we imagined. That miniature stage presents us with our urgent practice agenda. It's clean up time!

Let's move to the concert hall. Look around at the space that needs to be filled up. Your sound will have to travel all the way back, all the way up, and to both sides in a split second! First lesson is to breathe accordingly. Your sound must have presence, projection, and resonance. Good air flow, and lots of it, will be the key to your survival. With a destination for your sound in mind, you will be able to shift much of the work from your chops to your air. Chops squeeze, lungs blow.

The stage also is the arena for music-making, whereas the practice room is the classroom for working. Since playing is more fun than working, and performing is more fun than practicing, your challenge is to bring the stage into your practice room. Add play to your work. It then becomes not about where you are, but how you are thinking.

Visiting Houghton College

Late October in upstate New York has got to be an artist's perfect getaway. If you never dabbled in water colors for lack of the right scenery, or ever dreamed of picturesque outdoor photography, consider camping out at Houghton College in the fall. It is a 125 year old Christian Liberal Arts College founded as a Seminary in the Wesleyan Methodist tradition.

Post card photographers must have a field day there. No photo shopping needed. Nature remains as it has always been, still unaltered by a single McDonalds, KFC, or even a Starbucks. Once over the shock of that reality, life can nicely settle down to what really matters. At Houghton, it is all about being in the ideal surroundings for lots of intense study, practice and worship. In such a place, how could you not?

The campus is pristine, and the students appear to be thriving in their distraction-free zone. The new music building is first rate, modern, classy and bright, and seems built to encourage all who enter. One is struck by the friendliness of each student as well as the school's dedication to excellence. Quality abounds.

Three trumpet students played for a brass meeting in the auditorium. First up was a lyrical study from one of the new etude books by Phil Smith. It was played with beautiful tone and expression. Wider contrasts of volume and operatic expression was the goal. Goal reached!

Next was the Lied by Bozza. Emphasis was on focus of tone quality and intonation. It's always nice when those two happen.

Finally we heard parts of the Concertino by Jolivet where there were high marks for confidence! Mr. Jolivet was our instructor that night as all that was needed he had already printed in the music. Who doesn't need to pay more attention to dynamics, tongue-finger coordination on fast notes, and centered intonation? We always get better when we observe major details. With each player, more efficient air flow made them sound better. It takes much patience, but practicing under tempo is worth the effort. Slow motion reveals our flaws. Nicely done!

Dr. Paul DeBoer, professor of brass instruments, must be doing many things right at Houghton. His students are obviously being well trained as the learning curve is fast and adjustments were made quickly. Fine people and fine musicians are being graduated from Houghton College. You get the correct impression that everything about the school matches its surroundings perfectly.

Noodling Matters

If you must noodle, you'd better make it good. Actually, it better be great! No super-fast, sloppy warming up allowed. Who wants to hear it? Especially in an audition, you want to make a great first impression. Don't broadcast your lack of attention to quality with a few careless licks. You don't want to hear those dreaded three words, "Thank you. Next", at least not so soon. So put on that gold crown, because you are about to perform on your King Trumpet, the Midas Edition. Nothing comes out of it but pure gold. That includes your noodles, all of them!

You're thinking, "I'm just stretching and bending." Well then, stretch and bend nicely. Imagine a preacher stepping to the pulpit before his sermon to test the volume level of his microphone. What would be the reaction if he were to let fly a bunch of off-color phrases unfit for the ears of his congregation? We've all heard what happens when a politician is unaware that his mike is on! Sadly, although he didn't intend for all of his words to be heard, those are often the most remembered. It all counts!

What if you went down to Great American Ball Park to see batting and infield practice before a Reds game? Immediately you are shocked at all the strikeouts and errors. One batter mistakenly lets go of his bat as it flies straight into the stands. First base is being overthrown consistently. Runners are tripping, and outfielders dropping fly balls by the bucket. "These are only warm ups" you say, "but still we paid for this!"

You've just boarded your Delta flight for Chicago (for musical reasons only). Then you hear the announcement. "Fasten your seat belts. Our pilot is going to warm up the plane first. He likes to test the runway a couple of times before taking off. Please bear with us. It may be a bit jerky before he is ready."

Our next scenario of horrors is at Bethesda Hospital in Cincinnati where you are witnessing your own heart operation! The young surgeon appears very nervous and highly unskilled as he approaches you. He quickly proceeds to make his first incision into your chest as if he were using his Black and Decker drill! The attending physician tries to calm you down. "Don't worry. He needs to warm up a bit. Once he's ready, he is really good." We get the picture.

You hold in your hand much more than an instrument. Your trumpet can preach the most eloquent and powerful sermon ever heard without you ever uttering a word. It can so speak as to mightily move hearts and minds. You are that highly talented and trained athlete who performs to the acclaim of multitudes. You are the pilot that can skillfully transport your listeners to many distant lands in an instant. And you operate with the precision of a surgeon who contributes to mankind by his invaluable life-changing ability. Your work matters.

Marshall Scott at CCM

Guest artist Marshall Scott of Western Kentucky University took the Trumpet Studio Class today at CCM. Playing really cool flugelhorn and classy intimate jazz, he and his terrific accompanying guitarist played several original tunes, spoke about the business and took questions.

Scott is accomplished in classical as well as jazz playing. If we were to take a peek at his music stand back in his home studio, we would find music the likes of Scarlatti, Beethoven, Holst, Haydn, Charlier, Arban, Sousa, as well as dozens of charts for gigs, and musicals, and everything else trumpet. Call him Professor Versatile. His hat rack surely has many pegs, and his Kentucky license plate ought to read "PLAZALL"!

Mr. Scott is an experienced and versatile musician who teaches as well as he plays. His resume includes working at Interlochen and in other positions where he gained valuable experience teaching students of other brass instruments. Commenting after a student's nice playing of a Concone study, Marshall offered good suggestions on shaping, vibrato and tone. The quick fix worked yet one more time. Buzzing the mouthpiece for clarity always yields the results of more resonance, better tone and pitch center.

Marshall is a humble, down-to-earth musician who loves what he is doing. It was a pleasure to hear him in the all-to-brief hour allotted.

Breathing for Us Dummies

Brass playing, what a profession! We spend six years of college or more learning how to put air through a piece of metal. Basically we are all just wind machines. Some blow hard, some soft, and some seek to blow the house down. And there are huffers, and there are puffers. There are squeezers and there are pinchers. There are sprayers, and there are flinchers. Sometimes we blow hard, and sometimes we can actually blow soft! We come in countless varieties and shapes, but we all share our dependency on air.

Before we can establish a reputation for a great exhale, we must learn to be comfortable with a great inhale. The exhale is going to be crucial, for hopefully it will carry a great cargo of musical goods. No one likes to see or hear them crash and burn, so fuel up well. Because the journey is usually longer than expected, the inhale will have to at least match the volume of the exhale, ie. enough fuel to get to your destination.

Assignment: No horn, no mouthpiece. Just get used to large intakes followed by fabulous exhales. Think of the music that will be supported by your awesome exhaling!

Four exercises: 1-fast intake, slow release. 2-slow intake, fast release. 3-fast intake, fast release. 4-slow intake, slow release.

Observation: Most embouchure problems suffer from a lack of enough air, rarely an over abundance. Simply, the lips become oxygen-starved. The cure is cheap! Let us not forget the key ingredient of our existence. It's O.K. to be an air-head!

Bowling for Notes

What does a bowling alley have in common with a music conservatory? Hopefully not much, but consider for a moment a split screen profile of a great bowler taking his steps as he releases the ball. On the opposite side of the screen we are listening to and observing the textbook embouchure trumpet player as he makes his grand entrance on that first note. Before we consider our two pros, let's first look at our wannabes - pros in training.

You don't even have to watch a bad bowler to know he's bad. How do you know? You can hear him even at a distance. The give-away is that thud-clunk as the ball bounces a bit, loses speed, and heads for the gutter. Team mates shutter and wince. And so does he.

Next, the camera moves to our conservatory trumpet dude as he/she proceeds to smack the first note as if with a sledge hammer. The poor note never gets a chance. It sputters and immediately loses energy, volume and direction. Even with the practice room door shut, the trademark of our artist still-in-the-making is obvious. Passersby shutter and wince. And so does he.

Our hidden microphone has told us all we need to know. It says to us, "It's the attack, stupid!" Is it fair to say that those consistent smack downs by both contestants will leave many of the pins and notes uncovered? In vain we play and bowl, and wonder why we get low marks and no bucks.

Think about the approach, power, and finesse of a top bowler. There may be a good firm start as the ball meets the floor, but it is graceful and controlled as he aims for all 10 pins. Likewise the trumpeter begins with momentum, power and control. There may be a good firm start as he begins, but the sound is clean and focused as the air follows through to cover all of the notes.

By the way, what do you think a great trumpet player and a pro bowler have in common? They don't ATTACK, they RELEASE. Consider your beginnings to be releases, not attacks. You are now free to release the music inside you, rather than attacking it!

Notes on Wynton

Just as was to be expected, it was a packed Corbett Theatre for the Wynton Marsalis Masterclass at U.C. on Monday! What can one say that has not already been said about someone at the top of his game in both jazz and classical trumpet playing? His playing speaks for itself. And yesterday he spoke for himself just as articulately and warmly as he plays.

While that luscious Monette trumpet sat there all by itself on the chair, Wynton spoke of his life and his music to a huge audience who respectfully hung on every word, analogy, and bit of music history. Impressive is his broad knowledge of music, but it is his humor and humility that make him all the more admirable.

If you went to take notes, he gave you lots to consider. What to practice seems easy and clear, the way he broke it down. At the top of his list is breathing. Then comes clarity of the first note, tone and flexibility. What else is there? Good to hear him highly recommend the Fourteen Characteristics of Arban and tons of etudes. Some things never change. There are no shortcuts.

For a career like his, incredible dedication and persistence are required, probably way more than we realize. He recalled struggling with tendinitis from so much finger work on Perpetual Motion during his recording project with the Eastman Wind Ensemble. No one would have guessed. There isn't much money to be had in music, he warned. It's a lot of work, so you really have to love what you're doing.

A dominant message seemed to be his infectious drive and passion for music. As driven as he obviously is, his trademark is still that balanced, laid back and unstressed approach - perhaps a valuable secret to his longevity and success. He emphasized absorbing the best from many different artists, and not being so much about yourself that you can't learn from and appreciate others. We can thank whomever it was years ago that slipped Wynton his first recording of Maurice Andre! The rest is history.

I admire his fresh approach to music appreciation. He still gets a kick out of young kids trying to play for all they're worth. He likes to take in the sounds of a symphony orchestra tuning up, and savors the powerful belting out of confident brass music as it makes its way into a reverberant hall. He is one gifted man with awesome musical instincts. It was great to hear him speak and play. The sheer joy of the best about music is still there even after all these years. Today I was thinking during lessons, "What would Wynton say?"

Finding Your Purpose

Making Your Marks

Which is the greatest, the one who achieves the most, or the one who has the most influence? We have become a hero-oriented society idolizing those at the very top of their profession. Our superstars have well served to motivate and inspire millions to compete for all we are worth. Drive, focus, intensity, and specialization are each the marks of greatness that separate the men from the boys. This mindset however is not without its destructive side effects.

At the core of each profession is its purpose. Does music performance edify or just serve the ego of the performer? When it is all about self the side-effects hidden in the small print begin to show themselves. The stress produced by comparison, pride and inferiority can ultimately interfere with the effectiveness of the performance and ruin the performer. When the goal is to give and to build others, the pressure and symptoms are greatly relieved and the message is more effective.

In considering your purpose consider also your odds. For instance, how many top orchestra principal positions will become available in the near future? You can count them on one hand, maybe two. To invest all of our energy on such a tiny window of "success" is beyond reason. O.K. how about section positions in a wider range of orchestras? A bigger pool for sure, but still extremely competitive. There are simply more competent brass players than there are positions to accommodate them. We have two options. We can give up and move to another profession, or we can readjust our perspective and redefine our purpose.

One one hand, there are those who will never be content unless they reach the top. Odds are, they won't. They will forever be condemning themselves and comparing themselves with perfection. That kind of life will likely be full of frustrations and self-imposed stress. In this case, a career move should happen sooner rather than later. It's a question of where one will be the happiest and most useful. Life is more than a title.

Evaluate areas that you are passionate about and pursue them. The world has a huge need for those who will challenge and inspire young people to find themselves and their purpose in life. For some being able to belt out a blistering high C is admirable. For others an equally legitimate life calling might be to inspire others to realize their potential in the many opportunities in the music field. The goal is to apply ourselves to excellence without making its pursuit an obsession.

The gifts and talents we have been given were not by chance. Our task is to go as far as possible with the tools we have, and to work diligently and see where it leads. We each run in our own lane. It's not that we might miss the mark, but that we proceed confidently preparing to make our own marks.