Re: [Hornlist] More air enigma
All these terms we use are metaphors because we cannot really describe what goes on. These metaphors are not to be taken literally. However, the diaphragm is not a metaphor, and it cannot be used to pressurize your air supply. The diaphragm is the muscle of inspiration. It can only be used to fill the lungs with air and to resist exhalation. When you say push from the diaphragm (metaphorically), you really mean to relax the diaphragm and to push with the abdominal muscles. Too often teachers use metaphors that mean something to themselves. However, the student doesn't know the code and takes them literally, and is therefore, a poor learner. Herb Foster --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: The term 'more air' is too limited, and just doesn't convey the process except to someone who already knows it. The explanation I find my students can relate to, and practice, is to equate it to blowing out the candles on a birthday cake. First you must learn to fill your lungs completely, then use the diaphragm to pressurize your air supply. Finally, the throat and lips are used to release the air in controlled puffs directed at each individual candle. When you are told to use more air it is often because your sound is fading out from loss of air supply, or you are sneaking up on attacks to preserve what little air you have stored. As you start to gain control of the air release, you will gain the ability to feel the quality and location of the natural resistance in the horn. There is a big difference between mouthpiece resistance and the resistance of a smaller bell throat. __ Yahoo! Music Unlimited Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. http://music.yahoo.com/unlimited/ ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
RE: [Hornlist] More air enigma
That´s exactly what I am preaching too often: Release air instead of pushing air through the instrument. -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Herbert Foster Sent: Monday, November 28, 2005 6:10 PM To: The Horn List Subject: Re: [Hornlist] More air enigma All these terms we use are metaphors because we cannot really describe what goes on. These metaphors are not to be taken literally. However, the diaphragm is not a metaphor, and it cannot be used to pressurize your air supply. The diaphragm is the muscle of inspiration. It can only be used to fill the lungs with air and to resist exhalation. When you say push from the diaphragm (metaphorically), you really mean to relax the diaphragm and to push with the abdominal muscles. Too often teachers use metaphors that mean something to themselves. However, the student doesn't know the code and takes them literally, and is therefore, a poor learner. Herb Foster --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: The term 'more air' is too limited, and just doesn't convey the process except to someone who already knows it. The explanation I find my students can relate to, and practice, is to equate it to blowing out the candles on a birthday cake. First you must learn to fill your lungs completely, then use the diaphragm to pressurize your air supply. Finally, the throat and lips are used to release the air in controlled puffs directed at each individual candle. When you are told to use more air it is often because your sound is fading out from loss of air supply, or you are sneaking up on attacks to preserve what little air you have stored. As you start to gain control of the air release, you will gain the ability to feel the quality and location of the natural resistance in the horn. There is a big difference between mouthpiece resistance and the resistance of a smaller bell throat. __ Yahoo! Music Unlimited Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. http://music.yahoo.com/unlimited/ ___ 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] More air enigma
Just a wild guess on the more air stuff. One thing that may be giving some folks problems is that when they start to concentrate on other areas of horn playing they start to ease off on providing the required air movement. A couple of possible reasons for this might be 1) they haven't got to the point where moving air is near automatic. There a quite a few steps, it seems to me, in producing a pleasant sound on the horn. If air flow isn't automatic, when you get stuck on one of the other areas, you lose focus on moving air. 2) Some folks might have some insecurity and when things don't seem to be going well they might cut back on the air unknowingly to cover up that fact that things are going well. Or, speaking metaphorically, they sense the sound isn't right so they try to dig a hole to hide in by cutting back on airflow. -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Herbert Foster Sent: Monday, November 28, 2005 11:10 AM To: The Horn List Subject: Re: [Hornlist] More air enigma All these terms we use are metaphors because we cannot really describe what goes on. These metaphors are not to be taken literally. However, the diaphragm is not a metaphor, and it cannot be used to pressurize your air supply. The diaphragm is the muscle of inspiration. It can only be used to fill the lungs with air and to resist exhalation. When you say push from the diaphragm (metaphorically), you really mean to relax the diaphragm and to push with the abdominal muscles. Too often teachers use metaphors that mean something to themselves. However, the student doesn't know the code and takes them literally, and is therefore, a poor learner. Herb Foster --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: The term 'more air' is too limited, and just doesn't convey the process except to someone who already knows it. The explanation I find my students can relate to, and practice, is to equate it to blowing out the candles on a birthday cake. First you must learn to fill your lungs completely, then use the diaphragm to pressurize your air supply. Finally, the throat and lips are used to release the air in controlled puffs directed at each individual candle. When you are told to use more air it is often because your sound is fading out from loss of air supply, or you are sneaking up on attacks to preserve what little air you have stored. As you start to gain control of the air release, you will gain the ability to feel the quality and location of the natural resistance in the horn. There is a big difference between mouthpiece resistance and the resistance of a smaller bell throat. __ Yahoo! Music Unlimited Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. http://music.yahoo.com/unlimited/ ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/bgross%40airmail.net ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
Re: [Hornlist] More air enigma
More air - if I've heard it once I've heard it a thousand times. Yes, more air comes through, but what is wanted is usually more support. Think of a plastic bag, open on one end. No air moves in or out. Now, if you close one end with your hand tightly, no air moves in or out. If you open that hand slightly and push slightly on the other side, air begins to come out. The harder you push, the more air comes out. At some point, you are pushing too hard, straining your pushing arm muscles against the back pressure. Now, if you open the hand constricting the end of the bag, you can support the moving air column with more pressure before you get back pressure. More air comes out, and you can push harder to get more air to come out before it becomes inefficient. You want a relaxed, but efficient flow of the air column at all times. Counterproductive to that is any combination of constricted throat or oral cavity, poor embouchure, poor posture, poor lung filling, under- or over-support of muscles emptying the lungs. Any or all of that could be going on, causing someone to say you need more air. As you well know, just forcing more air does not produce the desired result. Finding the right combination of opening and support to produce the right sound is something you need to work on. If your current teacher can't locate the problem, find another teacher. I am sure that other listers can provide a lot of good exercises to help. I like to play exercises starting at mp or mf with a good tone, and crescendo and decrescendo over the whole dynamic range, keeping that good tone. Long tones are like strength training for me. Do this with long tones, remembering to keep everything from your shoulders and above as relaxed and open as possible, and fill your lungs before you play. Hope all that helped. Dave Weiner Brass Arts Unlimited ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
Re: [Hornlist] More air enigma
The term 'more air' is too limited, and just doesn't convey the process except to someone who already knows it. The explanation I find my students can relate to, and practice, is to equate it to blowing out the candles on a birthday cake. First you must learn to fill your lungs completely, then use the diaphragm to pressurize your air supply. Finally, the throat and lips are used to release the air in controlled puffs directed at each individual candle. When you are told to use more air it is often because your sound is fading out from loss of air supply, or you are sneaking up on attacks to preserve what little air you have stored. As you start to gain control of the air release, you will gain the ability to feel the quality and location of the natural resistance in the horn. There is a big difference between mouthpiece resistance and the resistance of a smaller bell throat. -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: horn@music.memphis.edu Sent: Sun, 27 Nov 2005 08:25:29 EST Subject: Re: [Hornlist] More air enigma More air - if I've heard it once I've heard it a thousand times. Yes, more air comes through, but what is wanted is usually more support. Think of a plastic bag, open on one end. No air moves in or out. Now, if you close one end with your hand tightly, no air moves in or out. If you open that hand slightly and push slightly on the other side, air begins to come out. The harder you push, the more air comes out. At some point, you are pushing too hard, straining your pushing arm muscles against the back pressure. Now, if you open the hand constricting the end of the bag, you can support the moving air column with more pressure before you get back pressure. More air comes out, and you can push harder to get more air to come out before it becomes inefficient. You want a relaxed, but efficient flow of the air column at all times. Counterproductive to that is any combination of constricted throat or oral cavity, poor embouchure, poor posture, poor lung filling, under- or over-support of muscles emptying the lungs. Any or all of that could be going on, causing someone to say you need more air. As you well know, just forcing more air does not produce the desired result. Finding the right combination of opening and support to produce the right sound is something you need to work on. If your current teacher can't locate the problem, find another teacher. I am sure that other listers can provide a lot of good exercises to help. I like to play exercises starting at mp or mf with a good tone, and crescendo and decrescendo over the whole dynamic range, keeping that good tone. Long tones are like strength training for me. Do this with long tones, remembering to keep everything from your shoulders and above as relaxed and open as possible, and fill your lungs before you play. Hope all that helped. Dave Weiner Brass Arts Unlimited ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/billbamberg%40aol.com ___ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
RE: [Hornlist] More air enigma
Nick, using more air does not imply BLOWING AIR THROUGH THE HORN. It means releasing more air from your lung (air storage), to support the initiated sound. Anything else is wrong. == -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Nicholas Hartman Hartman Sent: Sunday, November 27, 2005 12:41 AM To: horn@music.memphis.edu Subject: [Hornlist] More air enigma Dear List, From the day I first picked up the horn in fourth grade, I have heard from every teacher I have played for say that I need to use more air. Finally, I think I catch on. I start blowing more. Exactly what I know will happen, happens. Every dynamic marking is voided and becomes fortissimo, Tchaikovsky 5 is played with the same edge as Beethoven 7, and the high range doesn't come out easier, just louder. I have to wonder what cryptic message am I missing in the teacher's instruction? Is that how Dale Clevenger, Gail Williams and all of the Chicago virtuosos play? I always viewed the More Air technique as a sort of cure-all for all of your playing problems. Could someone please set me straight? Thanks in advance Nick - Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. ___ 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
