A FEW WORDS ABOUT SLIDE TECHNIQUE
If it sounds good, it is good!
If it sounds good, it is good!
Hand Position
A colleague once said (something like), “The slide doesn’t care how it’s held as much as how it’s moved."
Many teachers have iron-clad commandments, but a quick survey of YouTube will reveal a marvelous variety of world-class players exhibiting a veritable smörgåsbord of hand positions. People are different; hands, fingers, arms, shoulders, etc. are different. There is an interesting paper here.
Many teachers have iron-clad commandments, but a quick survey of YouTube will reveal a marvelous variety of world-class players exhibiting a veritable smörgåsbord of hand positions. People are different; hands, fingers, arms, shoulders, etc. are different. There is an interesting paper here.
Slide Speed
It is just as possible to move the slide too fast as it is too slow. Many of my colleagues will disagree. Oh well . . . so it goes. Don’t jerk the slide!! A jerky slide arm jerks the whole body, including air, embouchure, and tone. Just because somebody else can move the slide at light-speed without jerking, doesn’t mean you can! And it's just not necessary. (See the survey.) My friend, Bob McChesney (who has amazing facility) has some advice. I don't agree with all of it – particularly his explanation the "why" of his "trick" – but there's a lot of truth there. (See Slide Positions.)
Some colleagues do agree with me. Bass trombonist and composer, David William Brubeck (jazz great, Dave Brubeck’s cousin) wrote an article for the International Trombone Journal titled Trombone Slide Motion, An Alternate Position, that addresses this. And see Jay Friedman’s article, Legato and the Arms Race. International soloist and teacher, Abbie Conant, wrote in her Trombone Teaching Philosophy: “Yes, it is possible to move the slide too fast. Slide must be coordinated with air and tongue. Yes, it is possible to move the slide too slowly. Move the slide so as not to disturb the sound in any way.”
Some colleagues do agree with me. Bass trombonist and composer, David William Brubeck (jazz great, Dave Brubeck’s cousin) wrote an article for the International Trombone Journal titled Trombone Slide Motion, An Alternate Position, that addresses this. And see Jay Friedman’s article, Legato and the Arms Race. International soloist and teacher, Abbie Conant, wrote in her Trombone Teaching Philosophy: “Yes, it is possible to move the slide too fast. Slide must be coordinated with air and tongue. Yes, it is possible to move the slide too slowly. Move the slide so as not to disturb the sound in any way.”
Coordination
Move the slide in rhythm – neither too soon nor too late. (There are a lot of theories about this, too.) Ian Bousfield, in his Teaching Talks, says, “Don’t go crazy about the speed of your slide. A lot of people talk about using a fast or a slow slide arm. It’s not about that, it’s about the timing. . . . We move the slide as we articulate.” Charlie Vernon says, “The slide moves in rhythm. It doesn’t move before the beat. It doesn’t move after the beat. It doesn’t move somewhere in the middle of the beat. It moves right – with – the rhythm.”
Practicing with no tongue – just glissandos and slurs – can help. When we play legato, the tongue is the "glissando eraser" – it can also mask other things. When we set it aside, there is one less variable and we can clearly hear the effect of the slide's movement and it's coordination with the embouchure and air. Make the glissandos concise, relaxed, accurate – rhythmic – and as musical as possible – like a great singer singing on one syllable (melisma). Move the slide at that speed – no faster – no slower – and add back the tongue as needed. Jim Markey demonstrates this nicely. This exercise can help.
Practicing with no tongue – just glissandos and slurs – can help. When we play legato, the tongue is the "glissando eraser" – it can also mask other things. When we set it aside, there is one less variable and we can clearly hear the effect of the slide's movement and it's coordination with the embouchure and air. Make the glissandos concise, relaxed, accurate – rhythmic – and as musical as possible – like a great singer singing on one syllable (melisma). Move the slide at that speed – no faster – no slower – and add back the tongue as needed. Jim Markey demonstrates this nicely. This exercise can help.
Imitation
We can learn a lot by imitation. It is obvious we can model tone quality, intonation, and phrasing by imitation – just like speech (see Steal 'Em Blind). What may not be so obvious is breathing, relaxation, posture – and slide technique – can be improved by watching others perform. People can learn motor skills by watching (also see Motor Learning by Observing).
We learn to talk and walk as we are taught and by imitating our parents and siblings. We learn to move the slide as we are taught and by modeling our trombone teachers and section-mates. We usually only see our teachers once a week, and they may not play in lessons. Our section-mates may or may not be “world-class” examples. (I was very lucky to sit day in and day out with some the very best for decades.) There are, however, many, many, video recordings of world-class trombonists available online – a wonderful opportunity to observe (listening is good, too).
Repetitio Mater Studiorum Est. I have learned that when I devote an entire lesson to watching (and listening to) many online videos of great players – observing slide grip, slide speed, arm relaxation, and timing – the student’s slide technique invariable improves. It is my belief this modeling is largely subconscious – speaking to “Mongo” not “Bart.” (See The Ballad of Bart & Mongo in Slow Practice.) Our friend Mongo is not a quick study! But he won’t let us down – if we give him time and great examples. (Again, see the survey.)
We learn to talk and walk as we are taught and by imitating our parents and siblings. We learn to move the slide as we are taught and by modeling our trombone teachers and section-mates. We usually only see our teachers once a week, and they may not play in lessons. Our section-mates may or may not be “world-class” examples. (I was very lucky to sit day in and day out with some the very best for decades.) There are, however, many, many, video recordings of world-class trombonists available online – a wonderful opportunity to observe (listening is good, too).
Repetitio Mater Studiorum Est. I have learned that when I devote an entire lesson to watching (and listening to) many online videos of great players – observing slide grip, slide speed, arm relaxation, and timing – the student’s slide technique invariable improves. It is my belief this modeling is largely subconscious – speaking to “Mongo” not “Bart.” (See The Ballad of Bart & Mongo in Slow Practice.) Our friend Mongo is not a quick study! But he won’t let us down – if we give him time and great examples. (Again, see the survey.)
AND REMEMBER