Just a reminder to...

trumpetjunkie · Heavyweight Member Joined: 07 Jan 2003 Posts: 622

To keep yo' roll-out sounding nice 'n ugly! The other day I noticed my roll out was becoming habitually more of a round, comfortable sound. I then proceeded to fix it and do it like the book says, really edgy n ugly. Much better results! PUT AN EDGE INTO THAT ROLL-OUT!

Charlie Cheeseburger · Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2004 1:26 pm Post subject:

Thanks for reminding us of this very important aspect of BE. Remember, the worse it sounds, the better you will sound afterwards! I play the double pedals as loudly as possible, using a practice mute so I can still get on with my neighbours!

Best regards,

Andrew

Larrios · Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2004 4:58 am Post subject:

Hi Andrew!

How are things going at the Opera? I hope you're having fun!

You wrote the following: <<< I play the double pedals as loudly as possible >>>

I want to throw in a little caution here. Unlike early Callet writings, the BE book doesn't talk about a specific volume to match the sound quality and feel of the double pedals. Of course, if it's giving you better results, then it's great. Even if you'd become your neighbour's nightmare! But, as with all loud playing, it takes more strength to keep everything in place. For a lot of us, one of the reasons to practise BE is to develop that strength. If you have strength enough to play the pedals louder, that's fine, but if you don't, you might seriously hurt your lips, if they collapse inside the cup of the mouthpiece too violently. Playing them loudly could be fun, but I don't think it's the main purpose. More important are sound quality and feel. Expanding range of motion is delicate enough as it is. A too loud approach to the pedals might blow things apart and slow down your development.

Ko

_dcstep · Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2004 8:38 am Post subject:

I think that the CD is provided instead of words in the book, so that we'll have an even clearer understanding of how each excercise is supposed to sound. That's why it's so important to use the CD in conjunction with the book.

Frankly, I don't understand how you can "hurt" your lips playing pedals. If you're not getting enough sound, pull the horn away (as Jeff suggests), don't push in. Your lips need room to resonate in order to play the pedals. Once you get them going it's a simple matter of adjusting the air volume to match the CD. Maybe I misunderstood your comment.

Dave
_________________
Schilke '60 B1 -- 229 Bach-C/19-350 Blackburn -- Lawler TL Cornet -- Conn V1 Flugel -- Stomvi Master Bb/A/G picc -- GR mpcs
[url=http://www.pitpops.com] The PitPops[/url]
Rocky Mountain Trumpet Fest

oj · Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2004 8:53 am Post subject:

Andrew,

I'm in full agreement with Ko on this. When starting on the roll-out, do it light (mezzoforte) and try to get a raspy, brrrrrr-sound.

When I met Gunnar (a "BE freshman") some weeks ago, he had already developed this sound. He told me he had seen the info from Jeanne Pocious (who got the double pedals from Callet). He was able to sustain the pedals very long with a good raspy but even sound.

After doing these pedals for more than 2 years, I can play them loud and ugly, and the upper lips do not touch the cup. But when I started doing it, my upper lip made contact with the cup (I have a GR 66 with shallow cup).

If you feel a sting in the upper lip after these exercises, you probably made contact with the cup and playd too loud.

Perhaps Jeff could comment on this? Should we do them loud, when we can?

Ole

P.S.
Jeanne Pocious advice can be found here:

http://abel.hive.no/trumpet/jeanne/daily_routine.html

(see under point 3 & 4 in WARMUP)

[ This Message was edited by: oj on 2004-02-05 11:59 ]

Charlie Cheeseburger · Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2004 2:22 pm Post subject:

Hi guys,

It has never occured to me to play the double pedals in any way other than very loudly and aggressively, so perhaps it would be helpful if JS could give some guidance on this.

I still don't really see any advantages in playing the double pedals softly. For me, if I play them at a softer dynamic, there is a danger of losing the feel, and the notes can begin to sound too 'musical'. However, I suppose we can all agree that at whatever dynamic we play the double pedals, we need to get the characteristic sound as described by JS and as demonstrated on the CD by those annoyingly-good teenagers!

Best regards,

Andrew

trumpetteacher1 · Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2004 5:34 pm Post subject:

Loudness is a component to double pedals, but not the most important component.

As long as the lips are focused to get the characteristic DP sound, volume preferences may vary from player to player. Some players notice added benefits to playing a little louder. However, most play at a medium volume, like the student on the CD, as witnessed by how long that he holds each note!

Jeff