Playing Clean

Mitch2797 · Posted: Mon Oct 20, 2014 1:07 pm Post subject: Playing Clean

I have found that no matter how much I practice a piece that I can never get it as clean as I would like to. There is always a few fracked notes, and missed tonging. How can I learn to play with a more defined sound, and with better clarity?

Don Herman rev2 · Posted: Mon Oct 20, 2014 2:48 pm Post subject:

Random thoughts:

Play it on a piano, or enter it into Notepad or whatever so you get the right sound in mind. Getting it right in your mind is step one.

Slow down, focus, and get it right. Then speed it up.

Break it into little phrases, or pieces of phrases, if you have to, with a little break between.

Play until you get it right, however slowly, several times in a row.

Take high stuff down an octave if need be.

HTH - Don
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homecookin · Heavyweight Member Joined: 07 Nov 2013 Posts: 868

You mention two specific things in your post.
"Fracked notes, and "missed tonguing" .
both of these things are very common problems
that all trumpet players deal with.
Don gave you some very good suggestions
and you should pay heed to them.
In addition, I would suggest that you get out your Arban book
and woodshed on the fundamentals, in addition to practicing
your solos or etudes.
"Fracked notes" usually are a result of playing too loudly and
using too much tongue. Missed tonguing can also be a result
of using too much tongue. You just want to use the very tip
of the tongue as the articulator.
Also, a lot of times the problems that you indicate you're having are
a result of playing too loudly and overblowing in the instrument.

Andy Del · Posted: Mon Oct 20, 2014 3:32 pm Post subject:

The first thought is - 'what does your teacher say?'

If you don't have one, get one. There are MANY reasons you may be feeling this way. Regular one on one sessions will go a very long way to identifying this and working out a positive way forward.

The suggestions about slowly, down an octave, play the pitch to get it in the ears, etc. are all very good. They may help, but only if this is what you need to help clean things up. So, the second thought is, see thought number one.

cheers

Andy
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juliasgra · Regular Member Joined: 20 Mar 2012 Posts: 16

In addition to most of what has already been said, I suggest that you work on intervals practice, (Arban's, St. Jacome, Daily Studies by Johansen) playing as slowly as necessary for accuracy, and then very gradually increasing speed and maintaining accuracy.

Peter Bond · Posted: Mon Oct 20, 2014 4:10 pm Post subject:

Everything comes down to thoughtful and discriminating practice of your fundamentals.
Many players treat their warm up as some kind of calisthenic warm up, or worse, a series of boring chores that they mindlessly and half-heartedly go through in order to then play the "important stuff."
FUNDAMENTALS ARE THE IMPORTANT STUFF.

This is what I recommend to students (and pros) who see me:
Make your daily warm up a miniature practice session, with attention to attack, clarity, sound, intonation. If you are paying attention, they won't be boring.
Make the first sound of the day as perfect, clear, and singing as possible. Then make the next one better.
Develop the habit of demanding excellence of yourself; don't let yourself make a series of crappy, sloppy noises in the name of "warming up" in order to hopefully sound good later. That is ridiculous.

Be critical, demanding, and discriminating. Decide what you're going to play and how you're going to sound BEFORE you begin playing: even a long tone. It's remarkable how few players do this.
This kind of consistent approach to practicing fundamentals will raise your performance level and consistency immediately.

For example, if you begin your day with something as simple as whole notes scales separated by whole rests (and use a metronome) you can already be practicing:
Posture/grip
Breathing
Setting the embouchure (remove mouthpiece from lips between notes)
Attack
Sound quality
Timing/coordination (with m'nome)
Dynamics < >

This is arguably 85% of what we have to be able to in most music, and we need command of these fundamentals to be reflexive. A habit.

Move on to flexibilities or 'lip slurs' (practice sound, pitch, vocal smoothness)
Then maybe some repeated articulation (attack, clarity, fluency, naturalness of speech. Later, speed)
Maybe some scales or "flow studies" (smooth, 'vocal' connection of notes).
Intervals (attack, evenness of sound, intonation, clarity).
Some more flexibilities (covering wider range)
Technical finger patterns (clarity, evenness, coordination, smoothness, ease of production)
Moving articulation, coordinating articulation and fingers.

"Weight" your practice towards things you don't do well, or are called for in upcoming repertoire;
Unusual or difficult articulation patterns (Sheherezade, for ex),
Range (start in higher than usual register, play scales high to low, linger on high notes, move your comfort zone "up," push the envelope)
Be creative, thoughtful, and demanding of yourself even with the simplest things.
ESPECIALLY the simplest things.

John Mohan · Posted: Mon Oct 20, 2014 5:13 pm Post subject: Re: Playing Clean

Mitch2797 · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 6:18 am Post subject:

Thanks! I currently play on a 1.5C so it's pretty big. Ill just keep practising using all of your great tips.

Nonsense Eliminator · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 7:38 am Post subject:

Not surprisingly, Peter has hit the nail on the head.

Accuracy comes from consistent fundamentals. Almost all of the time, when we fail to play music that we've practiced cleanly, it's a result of underlying issues. Solve those underlying issues and most of the accuracy issues will go away on their own. If you focus on accuracy instead of fundamentals, there's a good chance you will actually make matters worse, because a lot of the things we do to "play clean" involve tensing up, playing individual notes, stopping the air between notes, and other habits that seem to help our odds on an individual note, but in the long run actually make matters worse.

This is connected to your other thread about pressure as well, and the same thing is true: excess pressure is a result of deficiencies in your fundamentals. Taking away the pressure may help, but most of the time it just results in developing a different set of deficiencies. Again, solve the underlying issues and the excess pressure will take care of itself. Taken together, it's clear that there are some inefficiencies in how you're approaching the instrument. Without hearing you play, though, I'd just be guessing at exactly what they are and how to solve them.
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Derek Reaban · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 8:00 am Post subject:

RandyTX · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 11:23 am Post subject:

Like'd Peter's contribution so much I have it saved to the computer and printed.

x9ret · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 12:09 pm Post subject:

How about practice some single tonguing with a metronome, pp, as the Clarke book suggests?
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Pops · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 1:54 pm Post subject:

We need to practice lots of different ways.

WE need to practice sight reading and NEVER stop no matter what. The beat goes on.

But we also need to practice for execution. 1 frack and we do it over and over and over. You don't except the splatted note and you don't move on until it is right.

All you need to do is learn 1 line a day and really master 1 hard measure a day. Seriously If you have to spend the entire day to fix 1 measure then at least you accomplished something.

Now the tip to stop the fracks.
Often fracked notes are a mismatch between the embouchure and the tongue position. Whistle the section and then Mouthpiece buzz the section a few times and the problem often goes away.
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cheiden · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 2:17 pm Post subject:

I can't know the OP's situation but I've met a lot of young players who play a lot but don't practice a lot. Echoing what's been said, consistency comes from a commitment to some sort of regular routine most every single time you pick up the horn. And until you find a way to get excited about playing Clarke (and other fundamentals) every single day consistency will forever elude you.
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mcgovnor · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 2:34 pm Post subject: One

The better balanced the embouchure function the more efficient and exacting the playing. Certainly all aspects of fundamental playing aide in cleaning up. Discipline in varied circumstances is a great help as well.You must perform regularly, live, to play cleanly, live. You must record regularly to learn how to play cleanly in a recording situation. Thinking outside of the horn is also helpful.

jadickson · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 4:19 pm Post subject:

Well I learned something from the website. I did not know that cornets and flugelhorns did not have a gap, because there is no step between the receiver and the leadpipe. Cool.

And yes, the gap stuff is legit. Wrap some tape or a piece of paper around your mouthpiece shank. Your mouthpiece should be sticking out at least 1/8" from where it usually is. Try playing. It's different, right? Maybe not better or worse, just different.

jungledoc · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 6:24 pm Post subject:

I get frustrated with myself when I make the same kind of mistake, or even the exact same mistake over and over. Yesterday I drilled a single measure over and over until I got it correct consistently. Then I played the passage which contained an exact repeat of the troublesome measure. Yep. Got it right the first time, but the same old mistake the second time. I have a life in music beyond the trumpet, and I read music fairly well in general, so I'd think that some of these things would come easily for me.

The ironic thing is that I went back to trumpet because I thought it would be an easy way to do music in my spare time. Sheesh.
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Nonsense Eliminator · Posted: Tue Oct 21, 2014 8:36 pm Post subject:

TrpPro · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2014 1:52 am Post subject:

Get your mouthpiece gapped. It can make an amazing difference along with implementing much of the advice already given

ssbtrumpet1 · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2014 9:05 am Post subject:

Peter Bond & Derek Reaban - THANK YOU for the most insightful posts I've read in a while on TH. I have printed those reply's out to remember!!

This topic reminds me of something Chris Gekker said or quoted: "We are often too hard on ourselves in performances, and not hard enough on ourselves in the practice room."