More Clinic Notes plus Lesson Notes with Bud Herseth

[_Don Herman]

These notes are graciously provided by Mark Minasian, who this past April was able to attend a clinic and obtain a lesson with Mr. Herseth, former Principal of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Enjoy! - Don
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Ok, here's bit more about the past few days.

First, Jussi Bjorling. Adolph Herseth calls this operatic tenor his all time favorite musician to listen to. After hearing that, of course, I had to go out and buy a Jussi Bjorling recording (The Ultimate Collection, RCA 74321 63468 2). I have been listening to Jussi in my car for the past few days and what first struck me was how much his singing, the intensity of his voice, the vibrato, reminds me of Maynard Ferguson! I mentioned that to Bud and he agreed, saying that as a boy, Maynard listened to great opera singers and violinists and that was his concept of sound when learning the trumpet. As Bud said, "That's what it's all about!" Well, from now on, any students of mine that aspire to be principal or lead players are going to be listening to Jussi Bjorling! I brought my Jussi Bjorling CD to dinner last night and Bud was kind enough to autograph it "My Favorite! Bud Herseth".

My lesson with Bud. For many reasons, Bud was only giving half hour lessons. I repeatedly asked for a full hour or more, but was only able to get 30 minutes with him. So, to make maximum use of the limited time, I went in with a plan and was able to get quite a lot accomplished.

First off, I have been asked to perform Robert Russell Bennett's "Rose Variations" for trumpet and band with the Honolulu Community Concert Band sometime in late June. So, I played through the work and had Bud coach me on the solo. For the opening lyrical theme and the lyrical passage just before the dbl tonguing variation, he asked me to play softer and softer and softer, treating the tunes as would a vocalist. I don't think I've ever played so soft or used such light tonguing ever before but the effect on the work, especially when contrasted with the more bombastic and technical movements was really something special.

Playing so soft, occasionally the high notes or notes a wide interval away would not speak. Bud said that for him, placing a bit of emphasis on the lower note provides the support for the upper note of the interval to sing out. Oh, but not too loud! (My God, he can play softly with no apparent loss of finesse)

The technical single tongued and hummingbird movements went fine with little comment other than some discussion of our mutual respect for Raphael Mendez. He again did have me really work the dynamics, contrasting the softs with the loud climactic moments. I'm not sure how being that soft will work when accompanied by a 60 piece band, but musically, I can see how his suggestions can raise me to another level of musicianship.

The Valse, he liked my use of rubato in some places but had me play in strict time through the syncopated passages, saying that it creates almost a 2/4 feel against the waltz.

For the double tonguing mvt, he suggested I "aim for the 16th notes". Emphasizing those downbeats actually allowed for a cleaner and faster articulation and made the high A's pop out of the horn effortlessly. He mentioned that a similar approach works on the similar passage in Sheherazade.

After finishing the Rose Variations, I said that I am primarily a commercial player and asked if we could work a bit on C trumpets. First thing was transpositions. He said he still practices out of the Sachse transposition studies book and said of intervallic or clef transposition that clef transposition was far better. I told him of my practicing of transposition using Solfegio and he said that yes, That's the whole point of aural training studies and that solfege gives you a clear picture in your mind of the melody, it's harmonic and key relationships, everything. Having a clear image in your mind of how the piece should sound is of utmost importance. So, I guess I'll continue on singing my trumpet music.

We finished off the lesson with me playing some of Mahler's Blumine movement on my C. Bud said that he only had the opportunity to perform it once, but thought it was a lovely piece of music. Again, he wanted it softer, softer softer. less tongue, more lyrical. Always think how a singer would do it. He played the work for me and demonstrated the difference in sound between his usual Bach 1 and a custom piece with a flugelhorn-like underpart. He says he uses that mouthpiece for works like Blumine or the Mahler 3 post horn solo because he likes a darker, richer sound on those works. Again, his control at soft, lyrical playing is awe inspiring.

After my lesson, I hung around and chatted with George Nomura, the organizer who brought Herseth to Hawaii. After my lesson, a friend of mine had his. Through the door, I could hear them working on the Chocolate solo from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker. Bud repeatedly flew through that solo effortlessly. What amazing command of the horn he has. (I Guess that's why he's Bud Herseth!) My friend's lesson ended with he and Bud playing mariachi music! (He has a Cinco de Mayo gig and wanted help with his tonguing. Bud was game for anything and always has fun with the trumpet)

Next, was Kristin Kohler's lesson. She repeatedly asked us to leave, as she was nervous enough without us hanging outside the door. We intended on giving her privacy, but my friend, George Nomura and I all started talking and never moved. I don't know what Bud did in Kristin's lesson, but there were several moments when George, my friend Greg and I would stop talking and turn towards the door wondering was that Bud or Kristin? He had her really sounding great in very little time!

Well, that pretty much summarizes my experiences over the past few days. Bud has today off so he and Avis are checking out museums. Monday, Bud does a private master class at the Punahou School, a private k-12 school that put up a lot of the money to bring him here. I have several private students attending that school and have told all of them that if Bud asks for volunteers to come up on stage and play during his masterclass to jump at the opportunity. I'm looking forward to hearing my students' impressions.

Mark Minasian