AdvancedTrombone Warmup and Daily Routine samples from the methods of Emory Remington, Charlie Vernon, Mark Nightengale, and Mark Hetzler Prof. Chris Van Hof, Colorado State University
Emory Remington was the long-time professor of trombone at the Eastman School of Music in the mid-20th century. Charlie Vernon is the bass trombonist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Mark Nightengale is an excellent Britich jazz trombonist. Mark Hetzler is the Professor of Trombone at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and former trombonist with the Empire Brass. Exercises 1, 2, and 3 are what I consider my important "warmup" exercises. Once those are complete, I consider my warmup over and my "routine" or "practice session" to have begun (exercises 4 onward). Remember that in all these exercises, quality of sound should be the most important thought in your mind. At CSU, we spend immense amounts of time in lessons and Trombone Choir thinking about, talking about, analyzing, and executing the best, most beautiful soud we can muster. And then we constantly try to improve. Your best tool will be to visualize the "world's best possible trombone sound" and seek to recreate that in your playing. Of course, listeneing to as many professional trombonists as you can is also highly advised.
1. Remington Long Tones. My first notes every day! I never use the tongue here, always focusing on even air and blowing "through" the glissando between pitches. Play at a comfortable medium volume. q=60
2. Nightengale "Stetching Down." My second notes every day! These may be played with or without tongue, and with or without the f-attachment. If not using the f-attachment, play "false tones" below low E-natural.
q=60
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continue lower as possible
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3. Vernon "Valve Slurs." I use this as both a completion to my warmup and as a way to rest my chops during an intense practice session or to "warm down" after a long rehearsal. Focus on even air to make the transition in and out of the valve as seamless as possible. For this exercise, every other pitch (C and F in the first two measures, for example) must be played with the valve. Remember: except for first position, all valve notes must be lowered more and more until valve-sixth position, which is actually in the same place as open-seventh position. Never use your tongue in this exercise.
q=74
4. Remington Lip Slurs. These have been standard exercises for decades. Always play with a metronome at a medium tempo, never use the f-attachment, and strive for a consistently smooth connection between pitches. Set 1
Set 2
6th _________________________
6th _________________________
7th _________________________
7th _________________________
3 Set 3
6th _________________________
7th _________________________
4 5. Nightegale "bass line" downward slurs. Use all natural slurs and/or the F-attachment. If notes are in the same partial, use a glissando--never move the tongue from the bottom of the mouth.
6. Nightegale "tritone" downward slurs. Use all natural slurs and/or the F-attachment. Use false tones for low B-natural and/or if you opt to not use the f-attachment at all. 3 3 3
3 3 3
3 3 3
3 3 3
3 3 3
3 3 3
3 3 3
continue lower as possible
3 3 3
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7. Hetzler "3-S Articulation Clarifier" This excellent exercise is a must for inclusion in your daily playing. Since it is soft, it is also a great way to warm up before an ensemble rehearsal without being obnoxious! This exercise will fine-tune your articulation and encourage you rely almost exclusively on air for articulation, and not tongue. There are 3 "Ss" key here: - Short note lengths (be sure there is space between every note, and alway strive to play as short as possible) - Soft dynamic (never louder than mezzo-piano) - Steady rhythm (always at 74) You will play through the pattern three times in three different ways. Always have your metronome on and set to quarter note equals 74. Here is how to execute the exercise: First time through: play with no tongue at all, just the syllables "HAH-HAH-HAH-HAH-HAH" as you expel air out of your lungs and past your lips to engage the buzz. These are called breth attacks.Don't worry if you don't sound good the first number of times you try this--it is a challenging and rather awkward thing to do! It will get better, though. Second time through:Using the same air flow as the first time, use the double-tongue syllables of "TAH KAH TAH KAH TAH." Be careful not to over-articulate. What you are trying to do is rely on your air to drive the sound and the tongue to simply give a clear definition to the front of each note. Third time through: Using the same air flow as the first time, use regular tonguing syllables of "TAH TAH TAH TAH TAH." Once again, let the air be your sound creator. Your tongue is just there to direct traffic.
q=74
mp
6
Articulation
Find where the fastest tempo is that allows you to single tongue. Begin this exercise 20 beats per minute (bpm) slower than that. Each day over the course of a week, increase by 3 bpm. At the beginning of the next week, start the process over again, but begin 3 bpm faster than you did at the start of the previous week. I suggest using the same procedure for improving double and triple tonguing as well.
Scales
proceed though all major and minor scales at moderate, even tempo, with focus on sound quality and watching intonation with a tuner. Practice legato, marcato, and "normal" or not marked articulation.
