[Trombone-l] airy sound

[Wayne Dyess]

Great advice.  I have known at least two trumpet players who  
completely "blew out" their lips from over-practice.

In talking with some incredibly gifted technical players, they all  
say the same thing -- practice technique incredibly slow.  Muscle  
memory is a powerful thing.

More than we might give credit for, I should think.  In performance  
situations, the muscle memory can just take over.

If you're not on Beta blockers and can use the adrenaline to your  
advantage.
(ha.  Sorry.  Couldn't resist that one).

For Scott,
--Wayne



On Nov 25, 2006, at 9:37 AM, Dean Hubbard wrote:

>
>
> One thing occurs to me Julie.  I think you may be  over  
> practicing.  You may not be resting enough between etudes, solos,  
> scales etc.  Rafael Mendez, the great trumpet soloist use to say  
> that you rest for as long as you've played.  There are exceptions  
> to this of course.  When I was in high school I had the pleasure of  
> touring with Mr. Mendez.  All the students would listen to him  
> practice daily for hours.  He played everything extremely slow, no  
> multiple tonguing at all and in what we perceived as perfect  
> rhythms. .  Scales, etudes, slurs and solos would be so slow we  
> couldn't believe it!  He would rest for the same amount of time he  
> had played.  He would play his guitar during his trumpet rest  
> period.  This method really worked for him and many others.
> If you're practicing the instrument 4 hours a day, you should only  
> be blowing on it for two hours.
> This sounds like a waste of time but, for many it isn't.
> Many famous brass players such as Bud Herseth practice for 45  
> minutes playing everything at a good volume.  He rests from the  
> trumpet for several hours and repeats the process.
> Perhaps by breaking up your practice sessions over the day,  your  
> lips would have more time to recover.
> Muscles need recovery time.
> Make sure you have plenty of water in your system.
> Don't give in to this.  As brass players we all have slumps from  
> time to time.  We all come out stronger from working through these  
> impediments.
> Best of luck on your journey--keep us updated.
>
> Truly,
> Dean Hubbard.
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Dr. Wayne Dyess, Professor of Trombone
Lamar University
P. O. Box 10044
Beaumont, Texas  77710
http://lamar.edu

The Night & Day Orchestra
http://ndotex.com