So, I haven’t written in a long time, but I have a senior recital coming soon!
So, I haven’t written in a very long time, but I’m still a woman trumpet player!! Woo-hoo!! I’m a senior trumpet major now and my senior recital is just in a mere 3 weeks….For all of my trumpet friends out there I will be playing the Hummel Trumpet Concerto, Mvt. 1. (which is my favorite, so classic) I also will be playing, Hymn for the lost and living by Eric Ewazen, the Manfredini Trumpet Concerto for two trumpets, (on piccolo) The classic Trumpet Voluntary on picc (not my favorite..) And last but not least, to end the recital, is the Carnival of Venice by good ole Arban. I’ll tell you what, that piece is a beast but worth every minute put into it!! (and man does it take a lot of air!) I absolutely love it, even though some days it gets the best of me… If anyone has any tips for success for any of the pieces I’m playing, or how i should be practicing (warm ups, warm downs) or even tips on nerves. I know i just did my jury the other day, and even though my lips were fine, they still got a little tight from nerves. And so i didn’t play my absolute best, so if anyone has any tips on that, I’d appreciate that!!
I think another issue on my mind is the problem with consistency and endurance. My biggest problem is that when I get into a performance situation my breath support becomes less than what is needed, so I don’t have the endurance I need to play everything. I have played through my whole recital at one time before with no breaks and was fine and probably could have played more, yet when I ran through everything, my lips gave out on the fourth piece. I’m not really sure at the moment what to really work on to have that not happen. Because I know that I do have the endurance to get through everything and be fine, but it’s not always about being fine, I want to be able to play my best even when I’m in a performance situation, or I should say especially. I know consistency is a problem even for professionals. I just don’t understand how I can get the best sound and all the right notes perfect on one day, then a week later something happens and I don’t know what I’m doing “wrong” or differently, when nothing is coming out, my notes are all fuzzy, and high notes aren’t even reachable. I know that when i get nervous i depend too much on my embouchure to do all the work, and not my air, and that’s when there’s going to be a problem with endurance. I guess i just need to work on being consistent with breath support to find some success in this….Sometimes this stuff is just too stressful.
Technology in the Classroom
This is a permalink to the question: http://mustech.wordpress.com/2007/03/26/technology-blogs-and-music-assignment-4/
Technology is changing so fast that it’s hard to keep up. Programs are constantly coming out with new editions that offer different and more options. Newer editions of programs are usually better and offer easier ways to manipulate the program, but how are music teachers supposed to keep up? These programs are very expensive and they’re hard to keep updated. There are so many music computer programs offered that it’s under the teacher’s discretion to pick the best one. It would be impossible to teach all about all the programs offered. Each one has it’s own special capabilities but the teacher has to think about the student.
(picture from yotophoto.com)
How should a teacher pick the technology to teach? An important factor to consider would be time. Not just the time that it will take to effectively teach the program and it’s capabilities but also classroom time. A lot of music programs are really cutting down on classes so it would be important to utilize the time given. Another factor would be needs of the student. There would be programs that are more suitable for advanced students and some that are more basic. It’s important to know what kind of students that are going to be taught beforehand. It’s always important to get the basics down first. It’s also important to think about what the students are going to use the technology for. How do you create a balance of teaching the different kinds of students? Not just students, but people are very individual and have individual abilities. Some students will be better with computers than others and will understand a lot more clearly, then others will struggle. It’s important to find a happy medium where you can challenge the technologically inclined students but also not too difficult that other students won’t be able to complete assignments.
Another important factor to think about is school budget and access to music technology. If a teacher wants to teach a program effectively, are they going to be able to consistently get computer lab time, are there enough computers, or keyboards, or whatever is needed for everyone? Are the class sizes going to have to be small? Which would then leave some students out that are interested. Are students being denied exposure to music technology because of money? I realize there are a lot of school districts that have no problem with this, but then i also know of lots of school districts where funds and supplies are not what they should be.
I realize that technology, especially in the realm of music, is going out and beyond what many people probably couldn’t have imagined, but how accessible is it going to be for the masses? Composing music now can be done at the touch of a button, if one knows how to use it. Maybe we don’t want to teach these so thoroughly. Will this teach the next generation to depend on computers to generate the music. I just don’t want classic theory and composition to be lost in translation.
Copyright, Video, and Ensembles
have Permalink to the question: http://mustech.wordpress.com/2007/03/19/assignment-3-copyright-and-ethics/
(copyright: yotophoto.com) I think that schools should be allowed to film concerts, but for educational purposes. I know a widely used teaching technique is going over a video of the concert in class after the concert with the ensemble. This allows the teacher to let the students hear themselves and listen and point out the parts done well and the parts done poorly with them. This really allows the teacher to be exact and gives the students a chance experience their concert for themselves as the listeners and not the players. Also, it allows them to ask specific questions about their performance. This also gives the group a chance to grow together and strive for new goals for the next concert. Isn’t that the point of instrumental programs at school? To teach students to become proficient instrumentalists and help them to get there? If they’re not able to hear or see how they played at the concert, how are they supposed to be accurate judges for themselves and as individual musicians? Also, an important part of the learning process as growing musicians is that the students need to be able to study their performances and hear/see their weaknesses for themselves. This also teaches them to have a better ear for intonation, mistakes, and tuning.
As student musicians learn and grow it’s important for them to learn self discipline and learn to become judges of themselves. It is also important for them to hear justified criticisms, which would be from the teacher and maybe from other peers. To help with this it’s important for them to have tools such as films of their concerts for them to use as learning tools and as memories. I think it’s a good idea to give the ensemble members films of their concerts. They were the ones that played the music so they should have the right to listen and watch themselves.
I also don’t think it’s fair for the schools to release videos of a performance “for cost”. That would be selling the recording for a profit, which would not be legal. I do find it fair to have a film done of the concert free of cost for memorabilia purposes. Once a video is being sold for profit, that’s taking away the rights of the composers. I don’t really agree with the law in this case about only one copy of the concert can be legally made for filing purposes but the students can’t really have any. I know it’s important to me to be able to have films of concerts for my personal enjoyment; it’s something to be used only in the privacy of a household, not something to make a huge profit off of. Plus, on a realistic note, most people won’t want to buy a random video of a high school or middle school band concert off of the internet, and if they did, it wouldn’t be for much. Films of concerts are a personal thing, I know I don’t like watching concerts of an ensemble where I don’t know anyone. Most parents want to be able to have their childrens’ concerts on file at home so they can enjoy it once and a while and show relatives that live far away that were not able to make it to the actual concert. Isn’t this law in a way infringing the rights of the family? Isn’t it a grandma’s right that lives across the country to be able to watch their grandson or granddaughter in their band concert when they come over for a holiday? To me those kinds of memories are very important.
As a future music educator I feel like copyright is going to be even more an issue because of the technology advancements. It’s important to be updated on all laws especially as a teacher. It’s important to know limitations and boundaries because composers don’t want teachers stepping on their toes. It’s particularly hard since teaching music and having concerts requires so much copyrighted material. But each musician really deserves rewards for their work. Whether its the composer or the students, it’s important to make sure all laws are being followed. There would be no concerts if there were no composers, so we must do them a favor and make sure we grant them all of their rights and give them the recognition they deserve. Also, on the other hand, composers should make sure students musicians and teachers are granted their rights too. As performers and teachers, they should have a right to film and distribute (free from cost) performances, but for educational purposes only. This is such a hard issue, even for today, but I feel like musicians, composers, and teachers, need to work together, to come up with the best agreements with the most logic behind them, which is already being done. I just want to live in a world where teachers, musicians, students, and composers can live in harmony! (enjoy the pun!)
What about professional trumpets?
Recently, I have been experiencing major problems with finding a professional trumpet. If I’ve been playing brass all my life, shouldn’t I expect a very expensive and well made horn to be very beneficial? This, in fact, is not what I found. When I went to ask advice of other trumpet players and teachers, they all highly recommended the Bach professional horn, which is the Stradivarius. Most professional trumpet players favor this horn, and it is widely used. It is a versatile trumpet that can be used for all areas of playing, which is why I was interested. As a trumpet major in college, I am involved in jazz, as well as concert and solo playing, I wanted and needed an instrument that would work for each.
What I experienced was nothing of what I had anticipated. The actual Bach company had been on strike with difficulties in management and ownership and now had started releasing horns again. (more information on the strike) What does this mean for the trumpet player? Are Bach’s still a reliable and high quality horn? I believe that they are still reliable, but some caution should be taken. Older horns are now becoming more valuable and now are the more reliable source for Bachs. After deciding on the model 37 Stradivarius , which is considered the most popular amongst trumpet players. I’m not totally sure what happened, but the model 37 was very constrictive in the upper register and was not like any other 37. When I went to try another newly released 37 it was fine. It seems like I just experienced a “lemon” of a trumpet.
The Yamaha Xeno series seems like a good choice now for professional level players. They have a subtly darker sound and a bit more ease in the upper register. There is no sound like a Bach trumpet though. They have that true trumpet and bright sound. Is it worth it to sacrifice ease of playing for a more trumpet sound? I thought so. I feel like it was a hard decision to make because both horns offered so much. It’s really hard to find a good instrument these days, especially with such high prices. I know it was vital for me to find just the right one if there was thousands of dollars at stake. I ended up favoring the Bach model 43 with a reverse leadpipe. It has such a full and rich tone because of the 43 bell size. It’s bigger and rounder. I feel like it’s definitely a trumpet I have to get used to playing. If I don’t put the air through it exactly in the right way, it won’t react as well. Although, I am beyond pleased with the trumpet.
My friend is also interested on the reliability and maintenance of pianos, if you are interested, go here.
Women in the Trumpet World
For the most part, the trumpet is played more by men than by women. This does not mean that women should be discouraged. It is true that more men are famous for trumpet playing than women, but is this because of actual physical abilities?
