3 Reasons Why the “Selected Studies” book by H. Voxman I

[Branson]

http://www.thetrumpetblog.com/3-reasons-why-the-selected-studies-book-by-h-voxman-is-killing-your-band-programs/
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[kehaulani]

I appreciate the blog. There's one thing that became clear to me is that, while Voxman, Rubank et al may have timelessly relevant technical values that, musically, they became relatively irrelevant to contemporary students.

I'm not saying a dedicated student who recognizes that can't see their value but that their motivation is greater when they are given contemporary music to play. After all, one reason they're in music is to express themselves in the idiom of the time. And we're not addressing the obvious dedicated student but students in general.

But regarding Voxman having killed children's motivation, there are two things that come to my mind. One is that that's a bit of looking at the finger pointing at the moon and not the moon itself. IMO Voxman is not the culprit but a manistivation of the culprit and that is the failure of some band teachers to realize that times and tastes change.

Yes, Voxman et al do have relevant technical values but you have to get the student's attention first. There's an old marketing addage that you have to get a customer in the shop first, then you can sell them a product. I evolved to using contemporary songs and new looking materials and then gradually added the chestnuts, rather than giving them at the offset some book that looked 80 years old.

Another question I have regarding the premise of the thread is that everyone os using Voxman in the first place. Really? Is it that widespread? I don't know the answer to that but in most teaching situations I've been in lately Voxman is not to be found.

So, while I think the point of contemporizing methods is a valid one, I question that Voxman alone vs. the mentality of using old methods per se, is the reason and also that Voxman is that widely used anymore.
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[Branson]

We agree on several things and I thank you for your comments.

As far as the use of the "Selected Studies" book, I can speak from my teaching experience in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin and now in Texas the book is still a main staple for most auditions.
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[trpt.hick]

Three reason why I like the Voxman book:

1. It covers many different keys fairly equally, both major and minor.

2. It is useful in teaching basic phrasing and musicianship to advanced high school and early college students.

3. It has a nice balance of lyrical and technical etudes, with challenging endurance requirements for players of this level.

I do admit, however, that I also assign more modern materials along with these etudes, such as appropriate solo pieces or pop things, depending on the student's interests and ensemble demands.

I also teach other "old" etudes by Charlier, Balay, Bitsch, Longinotti, Tomasi, and Chaynes, as well as "old" solo repertoire and orchestral pieces.

Dave Hickman