Your Musicianship
In order to be adequately prepared to perform the finest in instrumental
literature, it is essential for instrumentalists to know and understand the
basics of musicianship. It is for this reason that these guidelines have been
prepared. Following, you will find a list of commonly used terms. A fine
instrumental organization is made up of fine musicians. In order to secure the
confidence and rewards that come with fine musicianship, you, as an
instrumentalist, must strive to do your very best and to always put out 100%.
100% best effort = 100% success
Your Musicianship
Your musicianship can develop only through consistent effort. No doubt you
have heard the phrase "practice makes perfect." That says a lot, and in very
simple terms; but it has quite an important loophole. You see, practice makes
perfect only when the practice itself is perfect. Repetition means progress
only if it is repetition of the correct principles. For example, you might
plant a thousand grass seeds, but you won't grow one blade of grass unless the
seeds have been cared for properly. It is for this reason that we need to know
how, what, and why to practice. Careful study of this outline should give you
a clear picture of how you develop your musicianship.
How to Practice
Select a time of day that will be as free as possible from interruptions, and
try to use this same time everyday - "rain or shine". "Practice on the days
that you eat".
Choose a place where you will be as free from distractions that may be caused
by improper temperatures, poor lighting, or noises.
Have your objectives/goals well in mind. (What do you hope to accomplish
during the practice session?)
Criticize yourself more severely than others would dare to criticize you. The
criticism should be based on the objectives listed below.
Make sure that your posture is correct. Unless your instrument makes it
impossible, stand up often to practice. Play in front of a mirror often.
Highlight troublesome passages and work on them. Reduce the tempo until all
elements have been mastered; then gradually increase the speed, keeping all
elements under control, until you have reached the desired excellence of
performance.
Keep a running list of practice tools for your reference.
Above all...be patient.
Objectives
1. Correct Breathing 5.
Articulation
2. Tone 6.
Rhythm
3. Intonation 7.
Phrasing/Dynamics
4. Reading Ability and Technique (fingerings) 8. Steady Beat
Analysis of Objectives
1. Correct Breathing - To breath properly while playing an
instrument, only the diaphragm area should move - not the chest or shoulders.
The air must come directly from the diaphragm, through the mouth and into the
mouthpiece. The throat must not stop or start any tone, but rather, must
remain open (like yawning). Blow as if you were blowing out a candle or
singing the syllable "ah". Ration your air supply; make the least amount of
air produce the biggest possible tone. Do not use up all air on the attack -
you will need an ample amount as a proper release. Think of breath support
like a pitcher filled with water: As long as there is sufficient water behind
the escaping water, you have a healthy stream. Thus, as long as there is
sufficient air behind the escaping air, you have a healthy, full tone.
2. Tone - Fine tone quality may be achieved through persistent
practice of sustained long tones. There is a great deal of beauty in a single
tone. Sing it out softly as well as loudly; don't ever hold it at one stagnant
dynamic level. In order to be able to concentrate on the sound you produce,
it is better not to use music, but rather to invent your own long tone
exercises. For example, play each note on your instrument as a separate tone
study, or slur scales as slowly as possible within one breath in an attempt to
achieve evenness of tone quality throughout the range of the instrument. Other
possibilities include sustained octave jumps or other interval skips and
playing slow melodic passages while listening carefully. The more you can
perceive in the expression of the tone, the more musically mature you are.
Think of every tone as consisting of three parts - "Attack - Body - Release".
Attack and release are the consonants; they define the tone. The body is the
vowel - the life of the tone. This is where you project yourself. Remember
that there is no tone without life-giving energy.
3. Intonation - There are two general pitch problem
areas.
a. Attacking the note in tune.
b. Maintaining the correct pitch while the note is sounding.
Overcoming the first problem will require work with a tuner to learn the
particular pitch problems of the instrument. The ability to make the necessary
fingering and/or embouchure adjustments and proper breath support are also
important in correcting faulty intonation.
As for the second problem, concentrate on keeping the pitch level constant. A
common fault is the tendency to be sharp while playing softly and flat while
playing loudly. An exception to this is the flute, which is very easily
sharped by over blowing, especially in the upper register.
Unfortunately, there is no simple solution to the pitch problem, especially
when considering temperature and fatigue as factors. The ear is the final
judge. You must always listen carefully to yourself and everyone around you,
and work relentlessly to develop naturalness, consistency, adn correctness of
embouchure (facial muscles, lips and tongue).
Factors Important to Tone and Intonation
Each student must learn to rely upon their ears and not those of the director.
They must become "tone and intonation conscious".
~ Correct posture, hand position, and head position have a decided and direct
effect upon tone and intonation. An alert body is directly associated with an
alert mind and vibrant sound.
~ It is impossible to accomplish anything on a brass instrument unless the
instrument is held properly.
~ Carelessness is the biggest single stumbling block to the development of
musicianship. You must learn to be the strongest critic of your own playing.
~ In general, students should learn to play with full, healthy tone quality
before attempting to play pianissimo(pp); but, of course, one should never
confuse full and round with loud and rough.
4. Reading Ability and Technique - Being able to read easily through a
large variety of music is a very important aspect of your musical growth. To
develop this phase of musicianship, use a portion of your daily practice
session to just read through technical and soloistic passages, introducing new
materials to yourself every couple of days.
Whereas reading ability is developed by constantly playing new material
necessarily mastering it, technique is developed by persistently practicing
difficult passages and exercises (such as scales, patterns and arpeggios)
until they are mastered.
Becoming an excellent technician with very little reading ability is a serious
problem. Technique and reading ability must develop hand in hand. A solo and
ensemble festival defeats its purpose if it focuses all attention on the solo
or ensemble work to the complete exclusion of all other material.
Unfortunately, this is too often the case, when it would be so simple to avoid
by continuing to spend a little time reading through new material during each
practice session.
5. Articulation - Articulation concerns the use of the tongue. There
are two basic tonguing styles - legato and staccato. The legato tongue employs
a very smooth attack, which allows no space between succeeding tones, whereas
the staccato attack is separated and necessitates space between succeeding
tones. Of course there are countless degrees in between.