Energized Air?

Steve A · Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 11:33 am Post subject: Energized Air?

Hi all,

I'm wondering if anyone could take an informed stab at explaining the concept of "energized air" in the context of Mr. Adam's teaching? I've read a fair amount here, and have found lots of great listening examples, but am a bit perplexed by the question of what exactly "energized air" is, relative to staying relaxed, and avoiding overblowing.

Thanks!

PH · Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 2:56 pm Post subject:

I see a lot of people today playing in a "relaxed state" and I'm not sure this is actually what we want. We want the sound to be relaxed, but it takes energy and engagement to play the trumpet. A relaxed trumpet player can't be a flaccid blob or they won't produce a characteristic trumpet sound, have range, endurance, etc. The thing we want is to eliminate counterproductive muscular activity. This means that we constantly focus on keeping the air in motion through the sound with energy. Don't think about how this is done. Think instead about the kind of sound you want and move the air through the sound you are imagining relentlessly and energetically.

Overblowing isn't an issue to think about at all. If you are constantly focused on a beautiful sound you will never overblow.
_________________
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Nonsense Eliminator · Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 11:13 am Post subject:

One of the things Mr. Adam said to me a few times was something like, "We want to be relaxed, but not relaxed blah." I think the example he used was a batter waiting for a pitch — loose, flexible, and not tensed up, but not relaxed like the guy lying on the couch watching him. Pat's right — the sound model is more informative than any description. If the sound is full of energy, but relaxed and vibrant and free, then the air is right.
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Richard Sandals
NBO

Steve A · Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 12:15 pm Post subject:

Thanks!

PH · Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 2:09 pm Post subject:

razeontherock · Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 8:37 pm Post subject:

I'm a big fan of discovering the same truths, as taught by different teachers, even if they happen to be of differing schools of thought that appear on the surface to be polar opposites. Great playing is great playing, no matter who you study under. (Or don't, as the case may be)

A phrase to verbalize a concept here is "relax does not mean collapse." Nothing I ever heard Bill Adam say, but Doc Reinhardt taught that and I think the overlap is not only interesting, but valid.

Mr Harbison, I hope my post is not out of place here but if it is please remove it.

Something I think not only addresses the thread topic but is certainly Adam-specific, is the blowing bubbles thing. I never got much out of that exercise until I read Bill Bergren's description of it just a few months ago. Without quoting his post, the eye-opener for me was something along the lines of not playing the horn to blow the bubbles, but making the bubbles to ... shucks, how did that go again? Anyway it formed a connection I had not experienced before, and it helped. Obviously I need to re-discover that

ETA: here it is: "Focus on the bubbles, not the sound, the air or anything else. If the bubbles are small and continuous you are blowing flat out. We are getting the blowing to be a result of the bubbles, not the other way around."

Even though I had never really gotten anything from doing this before, when I did it after reading that there was an immediate improvement in my playing that could possibly be best described as better energized air.

I need to do this tomorrow