Wendell, I have read your article and have looked at your video. I do thank you for your helping us. I don't think I have "got it," though I think I know what you mean by arsis and thesis, which are new to me. It's Greek to me :-).
For example when I perform "America the Beautiful," I sing or play it as I would say it. That means that the pick-up notes "O" and "for" in "O beautiful for spacious skies," are not emphasized, as I think I have heard teachers say. However, these are not just notes in the rhythm, but I think and perform them as leading into the following notes, which have more emphasis. Maybe that's what you mean, and I do get it. I have heard the next phrase performed as "For amber waves OF grain." That's unmusical to me, though the "of" is the highest note. Herb Foster ----- Original Message ---- From: Wendell Rider <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: horn@music.memphis.edu Sent: Friday, April 18, 2008 2:09:09 PM Subject: [Hornlist] Re: Phrasing, was changing tone color On Apr 18, 2008, at 10:00 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > message: 10 > date: Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:48:15 -0700 (PDT) > from: Herbert Foster <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > subject: Re: [Hornlist] Changing tone color > > As well as being a fine teacher, Douglas is a singer, and he adds > that perspective to his teaching. > > This brings up a question. We are taught not to de-emphasize pick- > up notes, if not to emphasize them. However, when I am singing, > pick-up notes are usually on weak syllables. How do I "sing on the > horn" with these seemingly contradictory directions? > > Herb Foster Hi Herb, I'm not sure what you mean by "weak syllables," so maybe this won't help, but pick-up notes and other weak beats are the most expressive notes in music. That is where all expression begins. This was part of what I was writing about in my article in the February Horn Call, if you have it, and what I demonstrated on the video that is now sitting on my web site. This goes back to the ancient Greeks and their poetry. When you set a piece or phrase in motion it is the weak beats or off beats or the weak parts of beats that control the space between the stronger or more static down beats. Its like starting to move your feet when you walk, run or dance. The first move you make sets the tempo for when the feet will come down again. Rhythm comes from what is in between the beats. The pick-up note sets the whole phrase in motion. Don't worry about syllables, if I catch your meaning. Get into the flow, which is controlled by the arsis, or weak beats, that come between the static, or thesis, beats. Syllables are parts of words that contain vowels. Its just a definition. How the "syllables" of music work together is phrasing and musicality. Great singers do the same thing that all great musicians do, and that is to phrase with the weak beats. Sincerely, Wendell Rider For information about my book, "Real World Horn Playing", the DVDs and Regular and Internet Horn Lessons go to my website: http:// www.wendellworld.com _______________________________________________ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/herb_foster%40yahoo.com ____________________________________________________________________________________ Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. http://mobile.yahoo.com/;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ _______________________________________________ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
