RE: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound
I used to play a Holton 281 and it was difficult to play loud without sounding brassy. My Finke horn plays with a very good sound even when loud. You might try changing the cup depth as Jerry suggested or a mouthpiece with a larger bore, especially if you are using lots of air as you should be. I use a #6 bore and this has made a world of difference for the better soundwise and also improved my intonation. Loren Mayhew \@() [EMAIL PROTECTED] Dear List, I play on a Holton 281 (a Farkas horn with a rose brass screw bell) and I have a problem with the edgy sound. I am going to describe it as best I can, if something is unclear, let me know and I will try to clarify before someone gets angry (I realize that might take all the fun out of it). There is a point on the dynamic spectrum at which I can no longer play with a 'normal' tone. At this point, which isn't very loud, the sound gets edgy and I don't feel that I have much control over the tone quality. For some time now, I have tried without success to get this problem under control. I realize that this brassy, edgy sound can sometimes be desirable as an effect. However, the undesirable sound is produced whether I am trying to sound brassy or not. Is there a set of etudes for this kind of problem? I would appreciate any advice on the subject. Thanks in advance. William Foss Paul Ingraham's advice to young horn players: Find a good teacher. Practice diligently. Watch what you say to your colleagues. _ More photos, more messages, more storage-get 2GB with Windows Live Hotmail. http://imagine-windowslive.com/hotmail/?locale=en-usocid=TXT_TAGHM_migratio n_HM_mini_2G_0507 ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/loren%40mayhews.us ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
Re: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound
Dear List, I play on a Holton 281 (a Farkas horn with a rose brass screw bell) and I have a problem with the edgy sound. I am going to describe it as best I can, if something is unclear, let me know and I will try to clarify before someone gets angry (I realize that might take all the fun out of it). There is a point on the dynamic spectrum at which I can no longer play with a 'normal' tone. At this point, which isn't very loud, the sound gets edgy and I don't feel that I have much control over the tone quality. For some time now, I have tried without success to get this problem under control. I realize that this brassy, edgy sound can sometimes be desirable as an effect. However, the undesirable sound is produced whether I am trying to sound brassy or not. Is there a set of etudes for this kind of problem? I would appreciate any advice on the subject. Thanks in advance. William Foss Paul Ingraham's advice to young horn players: Find a good teacher. Practice diligently. Watch what you say to your colleagues. _ More photos, more messages, more storageget 2GB with Windows Live Hotmail. http://imagine-windowslive.com/hotmail/?locale=en-usocid=TXT_TAGHM_migration_HM_mini_2G_0507 ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
Re: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound
Hi William, A deeper cup will help take some of the edge off the tone. Regards,Jerry ** See what's free at http://www.aol.com. ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
Re: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound
On 05/17 22:42, William Foss wrote: Dear List, There is a point on the dynamic spectrum at which I can no longer play with a 'normal' tone. At this point, which isn't very loud, the sound gets edgy and I don't feel that I have much control over the tone quality. For some time now, I have tried without success to get this problem under control. I realize that this brassy, edgy sound can sometimes be desirable as an effect. However, the undesirable sound is produced whether I am trying to sound brassy or not. Is there a set of etudes for this kind of problem? I would appreciate any advice on the subject. Thanks in advance. There are a lot of things that can cause this problem, and most seem to hinge on being too tense while playing. However, sometimes trying to eliminate tension just makes it worse in a nice vicious cycle. One thing that has worked well for me, instead of trying to force myself to relax, is to spend some time each practice session at the beginning just playing soft, long tones. Then, gradually intensify the sound without trying to play louder or more forcefully. Just try playing more. Find the point where the sound isn't comfortable, and then hold it just on the good side of that line. Then bring it back down, and try playing less instead of softer. Over the course of many practice sessions, you'll start to have more and more mastery over where that line is and how your playing relates to it, and you'll also be able to move it depending on the situation to a certain extent. Hope this helps -- Evan Cofsky [EMAIL PROTECTED] Play in a classical music Garage Band. See the world. http://www.mylifeismusic.org/ ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
RE: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound
What kind of a mouthpiece do you use ? Do you press your lips together to fit into the mouthpiece ? How about pressure (mouthpiece against lips), when you start playing louder ? Do you press your lips more together when getting louder again ? === -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of William Foss Sent: Thursday, May 17, 2007 11:42 PM To: horn@music.memphis.edu Subject: Re: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound Dear List, I play on a Holton 281 (a Farkas horn with a rose brass screw bell) and I have a problem with the edgy sound. I am going to describe it as best I can, if something is unclear, let me know and I will try to clarify before someone gets angry (I realize that might take all the fun out of it). There is a point on the dynamic spectrum at which I can no longer play with a 'normal' tone. At this point, which isn't very loud, the sound gets edgy and I don't feel that I have much control over the tone quality. For some time now, I have tried without success to get this problem under control. I realize that this brassy, edgy sound can sometimes be desirable as an effect. However, the undesirable sound is produced whether I am trying to sound brassy or not. Is there a set of etudes for this kind of problem? I would appreciate any advice on the subject. Thanks in advance. William Foss Paul Ingraham's advice to young horn players: Find a good teacher. Practice diligently. Watch what you say to your colleagues. _ More photos, more messages, more storage-get 2GB with Windows Live Hotmail. http://imagine-windowslive.com/hotmail/?locale=en-usocid=TX T_TAGHM_migration_HM_mini_2G_0507 ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/hans%40pizka. de ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
RE: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound
Hello Evan, this is very NEW to me, the thing with the long notes. I am really surprised. Exactly that is the way, we have learned, how to start a practise session. I really wonder, that it must be mentioned mentioned again, that the ONLY way to good tone quality (incl. centered sound intonation) is over LONG NOTES (in many ways) SCALES. What kind of music teachers are out there ?? Did many of you ever receive real horn instructions ? I doubt it very much, sorry. === -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Evan Cofsky Sent: Friday, May 18, 2007 5:48 AM To: horn@music.memphis.edu Subject: Re: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound On 05/17 22:42, William Foss wrote: Dear List, There is a point on the dynamic spectrum at which I can no longer play with a 'normal' tone. At this point, which isn't very loud, the sound gets edgy and I don't feel that I have much control over the tone quality. For some time now, I have tried without success to get this problem under control. I realize that this brassy, edgy sound can sometimes be desirable as an effect. However, the undesirable sound is produced whether I am trying to sound brassy or not. Is there a set of etudes for this kind of problem? I would appreciate any advice on the subject. Thanks in advance. There are a lot of things that can cause this problem, and most seem to hinge on being too tense while playing. However, sometimes trying to eliminate tension just makes it worse in a nice vicious cycle. One thing that has worked well for me, instead of trying to force myself to relax, is to spend some time each practice session at the beginning just playing soft, long tones. Then, gradually intensify the sound without trying to play louder or more forcefully. Just try playing more. Find the point where the sound isn't comfortable, and then hold it just on the good side of that line. Then bring it back down, and try playing less instead of softer. Over the course of many practice sessions, you'll start to have more and more mastery over where that line is and how your playing relates to it, and you'll also be able to move it depending on the situation to a certain extent. Hope this helps -- Evan Cofsky [EMAIL PROTECTED] Play in a classical music Garage Band. See the world. http://www.mylifeismusic.org/ ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/hans%40pizka. de ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
Re: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound
On 05/18 07:42, hans wrote: Hello Evan, this is very NEW to me, the thing with the long notes. I am really surprised. I can't speak for anyone else here, or anywhere, but I've been fortunate with teachers. Even the ones I didn't necessarily agree with (and often disagreed strongly, and with loud words and sounds) I remember a lot from. Exactly that is the way, we have learned, how to start a practise session. I really wonder, that it must be mentioned mentioned again, that the ONLY way to good tone quality (incl. centered sound intonation) is over LONG NOTES (in many ways) SCALES. I do similar things each time I start practicing, and if I'm short on time and can't warm up properly, I just lengthen the time I spend doing these exercises. They're deceptively simple, but the more you explore the notes, the more shades and colors you discover, and the more you can master moving the point the sound breaks farther and closer. And I really enjoy practicing non-traditional scales, and even Jazz scales. And improvising simple things, but still trying to capture the feeling of every note the way the note wants to be, but still coaxing it to be in the proper place for the scale and function. -- Evan Cofsky [EMAIL PROTECTED] Play in a classical music Garage Band. See the world. http://www.mylifeismusic.org/ ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
Re: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound
Well, maybe works for some folks. I'm different now. I finally got warmed up, just like John Barrows said I would, just like he did. I warmed up every day for years: Farkas, long tones, scales, arpeggios, you name it. One day I was warmed up. Now I just pick the thing up and play a High C as loud as I can and go from there. It's a great way to start the day! Sometimes I miss it, and that's a real confidence booster, too. I don't miss that other stuff but I do it now and then just for practice sake. KB In a message dated 5/18/2007 1:42:48 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Hello Evan, this is very NEW to me, the thing with the long notes. I am really surprised. Exactly that is the way, we have learned, how to start a practise session. I really wonder, that it must be mentioned mentioned again, that the ONLY way to good tone quality (incl. centered sound intonation) is over LONG NOTES (in many ways) SCALES. What kind of music teachers are out there ?? Did many of you ever receive real horn instructions ? I doubt it very much, sorry. === -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Evan Cofsky Sent: Friday, May 18, 2007 5:48 AM To: horn@music.memphis.edu Subject: Re: [Hornlist] Edgy Sound On 05/17 22:42, William Foss wrote: Dear List, There is a point on the dynamic spectrum at which I can no longer play with a 'normal' tone. At this point, which isn't very loud, the sound gets edgy and I don't feel that I have much control over the tone quality. For some time now, I have tried without success to get this problem under control. I realize that this brassy, edgy sound can sometimes be desirable as an effect. However, the undesirable sound is produced whether I am trying to sound brassy or not. Is there a set of etudes for this kind of problem? I would appreciate any advice on the subject. Thanks in advance. There are a lot of things that can cause this problem, and most seem to hinge on being too tense while playing. However, sometimes trying to eliminate tension just makes it worse in a nice vicious cycle. One thing that has worked well for me, instead of trying to force myself to relax, is to spend some time each practice session at the beginning just playing soft, long tones. Then, gradually intensify the sound without trying to play louder or more forcefully. Just try playing more. Find the point where the sound isn't comfortable, and then hold it just on the good side of that line. Then bring it back down, and try playing less instead of softer. Over the course of many practice sessions, you'll start to have more and more mastery over where that line is and how your playing relates to it, and you'll also be able to move it depending on the situation to a certain extent. Hope this helps -- Evan Cofsky [EMAIL PROTECTED] Play in a classical music Garage Band. See the world. http://www.mylifeismusic.org/ ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/hans%40pizka. de ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/kendallbetts%40aol.com ** See what's free at http://www.aol.com. ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
