Arnold Jacobs CD

johntpt · Posted: Wed May 08, 2002 1:17 pm Post subject:

Probably the best way to learn the basics of the "Chicago School" way of thinking is through the Arnold Jacobs "Portrait of an Artist" CD. This CD was put together a few years ago by some of Jacobs' former students and released by Summit Records. Included are selections from several interviews and masterclasses given by Jacobs' over the years, tapes of Jacobs' practicing at home, excerpts from several Chicago Symphony recordings, several CSO brass ensemble recordings never released before, and a unique performance of Jacobs playing the 1st Strauss Horn Concerto on Tuba accompanied by a band! How's that for something different!

This CD has probably been the most influential CD I've purchased in the last few years. There are so many ideas here, so much to think about and to add to your thought processes while performing and practicing.

Jacobs' really had a way with words. I met him several times and was fortunate to attend several of his masterclasses, including the 1995 ITG at Indiana U. His friendliness and warmth always made you feel comfortable and in the presence of an old friend. His deep colorful voice always reminds me of my own grandfather. This is probably the most valuable part of the CD - Jacobs' himself explaining how one becomes a great musician.

In all there are 13 tracks devoted to masterclass snippets. Each one highlights a particular aspect of his teaching philosophy. For example, the first spoken track is called "We are enormously complex". Here he talks about the need to focus your attention on the "product" as he calls it. Players spend too much time analyzing what's going on inside their body instead of focusing on the end desired musical result. It's impossible to control all the complex things that happen in the body when we play. What we can control is the "computer level" of the brain - the thought process while we are playing. We must have a strong idea of the sound and musical story we want to tell, not be worrying about the mechanical details.

Ideas? Thoughts?

JU

"Take enough air so you can waste it - it's cheap, it don't cost anything!" - AJ

[ This Message was edited by: johntpt on 2002-05-08 19:36 ]

tcutrpt · Posted: Wed May 08, 2002 1:55 pm Post subject:

I totally agree. That CD is great. I need to go back and listen to the masterclass tracks more to absorb the information. The playing on the CD blows me away when I hear it. When I hear tuba playing like that, it totally sells me on the Chicago school thinking. Without totally devouting the mind to music, there is no way Mr Jacobs could have sounded so amazing. Czardas is just mind boggling on that CD. Like John, I highly recommend it.

Matt

_Don Herman · Posted: Fri May 10, 2002 9:47 pm Post subject:

Well, my teacher got one last year, and we listened to it through several lessons. John's post prompted me to order my own this week -- and it came today, two days later! Kudos to Summit for fast service! There is some incredible stuff on the CD, both playing (the CSO brass, many other top groups and players -- and Arnold, of course, doing unbelievable things with his tuba!)

As to the mental game of trumpet (sorry, just finished reading Zen in the Art of Archery) I tend to agree. A good teacher can point the way, and offer numerous stimuli to help direct the student, but in the end I still think "song and wind" is what we have to fall back on. Using our conscious mind to guide the myriad muscles used to play the music, muscles spread all over our body, strikes me as counterproductive and best and more likely completely impossible. Certainly we can focus on certain aspects of our chops, tummies, toes, or whatever to provide a stimulus to effect change, but actually thinking about all that in daily playing is beyond me. Everytime I think too much, i.e. beyond how I set the mpc and chops to start, and maybe to breathe more, I get in trouble. In performance, I try to think of only the music, as anything else is distracting. There was an excellent article (from the ITG Journal, I think) discussed in the TH a while back which essentially says a large part of the reason for clamming/freezing/generally messing up in performance is that, instead of just playing like we were in the practice room, we start thinking too much about what we need to do to play, instead of the sound we want to emerge.

Great post, John! What about the rest of you? Agree, disagree, discussion? - Don
_________________
Don Herman/Monument, CO
"After silence, that which best expresses the inexpressible, is music." - Aldous Huxley

dales · Posted: Tue May 14, 2002 6:11 pm Post subject:

Thanks for the reminder. I walked down to Osmun last weekend (I bet I'm the only person here who can do that!) and picked up a copy of this CD. A number of the lectures are familiar from _Song and Wind_, though some are not. The musical highlight has got to be those nine minutes of practicing which include "Carnival of Venice," but the brass ensemble numbers are very nice, too. I'd never heard them. It's also fun to hear that Strauss horn concerto performed on tuba. In addition, the combination of excerpts and masterclass is very nice. I've never really heard a "masterclass" type CD before; is this format common? Someone oughta record Cichowicz and other noted teachers while it's still possible, if it hasn't been done already.

_bugleboy · Posted: Wed May 15, 2002 7:09 am Post subject:

The recording that I have can be listened to and downloaded at,

http://www.chisham.com/tips/

It is the 1973 ITEC masterclass.

I just found this web site today.

johntpt · Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2003 10:59 am Post subject:

AFAIK this is one of only a few CDs of it's kind featuring a famous brass teacher. While certain other famous pedagogues are still with us perhaps other CDs could be made. I would love to see CDs featuring the teachings of Vince Chicowicz, Bill Adam, Bill Vacchiano, Keith Johnson, etc, etc.

JU

thelurker · Veteran Member Joined: 04 Aug 2003 Posts: 257

i just wanted to brign this to the top..i have been going back and listening to the jacobs master classes that are on the link supplied by bulgle boy.....

i really think everyone should check those out...they are a gold mine...it doesnt matter if i hear it for the 1st or 20th time..it still gives me somethign new each time...

preacherman · Posted: Sun Dec 21, 2003 6:48 am Post subject:

@bugleboy:

just started to listen to the '73 Jacobs Masterclass! Unreal what he can do without any warmup. He really plays the instrument. He haven't to force it.

Great soundfile!
_________________
Think music!

tcutrpt · Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2003 9:18 pm Post subject:

John, it's funny you bring up wanting recordings of other teachers' methods. I have a tape that my prof got at an ITG conference of a Cichowicz clinic. I might try and see if I can somehow get it onto CD. He talks about a lot of stuff. It mainly centers on auditions and the right mindset to trumpet playing.
_________________
Matt Cyr
trumpetmc@gmail.com

robert_white · Heavyweight Member Joined: 19 Feb 2003 Posts: 1583

I don't want this to sound too much like a Scientology testimonial, but I have to say that this CD brought about an enormous turn-around in my playing. There were other factors, too, but Jacobs ideas really "clicked" for me at the particular time I first listened to the CD.

By the way, about recorded teachings of other teachers, there's the William Adam videotapes. Those are really good, too.

[ This Message was edited by: robert_white on 2003-12-24 09:45 ]

trumpetfox1234 · Regular Member Joined: 24 Jan 2004 Posts: 61

The CD is great. I was Arnold's student from 1994 until the end and I think it really is a tribute to him. I wrote a book
that talks about how Bud, he, and Scarlett of the CSO's "Chicago Sound" plau.

Bud, Scarlett, and Arnold Jacobs' son love my new book that talks about how they play. Bud and Scarlett reviewed the book favorably and Dallas Jacobs, Arnold's son, gave it his blessing. Bud told me on my porch that "he learned a few things from it.", and Will Scarlett said that "your book continues Arnold Jacobs' work."

If you want to check it out, the website is: http://www.trumpetworkspress.com

I am also going to be talking about the book on the BBC on the BBC World Service Radio show "Music Review" with presenter Mark Lowther to be broadcast on February 24th.

The book's title is:

Stage Fright in Music Performance and Its Relationship to the Unconscious, 2nd ed.

I wrote it to pay tribute to these great men who are my teachers and to help people with stage fright problems and to also reassure those who don't have any!
_________________
Michael I. Goode
Author
Stage Fright in Music Performance and Its Relationship to the Unconscious, 2nd ed.
Assistant Principal/Third Trumpet
Ravinia Festival Orchestra
www.trumpetworkspress.com