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thinning high notes



 
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bulos
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Joined: 25 Aug 2002
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PostPosted: Wed Sep 04, 2002 6:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is for you Reinhardt experts like Hairy and Rich ..... what would Doc Reinhardt have to say do you think about thinning high notes when doing something like the warm Up #57 or really any passage that calls for slurring an interval up to a higher note? I know Chris will say play the lower note on the high note set and save the air for the upper tone but what I am looking for is the why. What causes a perfectly healthy vibrant sound to lose it's sparkle as one ascends? What are good drilss to counteract such a tendency?
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BeboppinFool
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Joined: 28 Dec 2001
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PostPosted: Wed Sep 04, 2002 7:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:

On 2002-09-04 21:44, bulos wrote:
This is for you Reinhardt experts like Hairy and Rich . . . what would Doc Reinhardt have to say do you think about thinning high notes when doing something like the warm Up #57 or really any passage that calls for slurring an interval up to a higher note? I know Chris will say play the lower note on the high note set and save the air for the upper tone but what I am looking for is the why. What causes a perfectly healthy vibrant sound to lose it's sparkle as one ascends? What are good drilss to counteract such a tendency?

First, I do not consider myself a Reinhardt expert by any stretch of the imagination.

I remember Doc telling me that the aperture size (aperture: the space blown open, not tongued open) for a p low C is the same for a mf tuning C and also the same for a f high C. This tells me that blowing out the aperture too much in the low register will cause the higher notes to have trouble responding with the same setting.

In other words, if I practice keeping the lower note of an ascending slurred interval thin and then filling out the higher note, I'm preventing my aperture from working against me.

And if I start with a small sound lower and crescendo on the way up, it's much easier to get a good sound in the upper register.

Bottom line is that I need to think about stuff like this in the practice room, not on the gig. If I practice in this manner and then play the gig according to its inherent demands, eventually all my playing in public will benefit from the repair jobs I've been doing privately in the practice room.

I have a feeling I didn't answer this as well as somebody else could have. Anybody else wanna take a shot at it?

Rich
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bulos
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Joined: 25 Aug 2002
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Location: Davie,Fl by way of Clifton, NJ

PostPosted: Thu Sep 05, 2002 6:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

[quote]
On 2002-09-04 22:34, BeboppinFool wrote:
First, I do not consider myself a Reinhardt expert by any stretch of the imagination.
I remember Doc telling me that the aperture size (aperture: the space blown open, not tongued open) for a p low C is the same for a mf tuning C and also the same for a f high C.
I have a feeling I didn't answer this as well as somebody else could have. Anybody else wanna take a shot at it?

Thanks Rich yes I have read that same thing countless times but just hearing again it is good. Just doing the stabilizer and thinking about this has helped already. I think I let too much mouthpiece practice effect me adversely, my horn angle lowered and yes I am playing considerably more spread then I was when my upper register was better. Thanks.
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scream
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Joined: 26 Aug 2002
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 05, 2002 8:35 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Chris is right and so is Rich. Another aspect of this is the application of the air to the lips. What's going on from the neck down? Typically a thin sound in the upper register is also due to the lack of "normal" breathing. Maybe a choking off at the neck (read tension).

A brief decription of the breathing process:

The diaphragm is a thin muscle separating the upper chest cavity from the lower abdominal region. You also have to remember that a muscle only contracts in one direction. The diaphragms' ONLY job is to pull the lungs down for the inhalation. That is it's contraction. "Breathe with the diaphragm". Properly expressed, "Inhale with the diaphragm". As you inhale, the lungs are pulled down and your belly will "pooch" out as it is being displaced by the lungs.

Ok, we've got the inhalation, what happens when we blow (sometimes we suck)? The abdominal muscles take over when we begin to move the air through the horn (also the intercostal muscles as well as the muscles in your back when you want to sit on it for some REALLY fast air). The abdominal muscles kinda get underneath the lungs to "squeeze" the air out like a tube of toothpaste (maybe not the best description). When we are using these muscles properly and with our EMBOUCHURE WORKING EFFICIENTLY, we can control dynamics, range, and phrasing with our air. Hence, our chops will actully last longer and have better endurance.

That's breathing in a nutshell. Basically, breathe normally. We do it all the time but get it backwards when we pick up our horn. Check in a mirror to see if your doing this properly. If your chest rises when you inhale it's time to re-evaluate your technique.

One other thing to consider, and this is pure physics. Low notes: slow air but lots of air. High notes: fast air but less air. We create fast air by taking in less air (if we need to inspirate at all) and getting the abdominal muscles to compress the air in the lungs to get those higher notes.

Doc came up with some excercises to work on this aspect of playing. "The Abdominal Lift and Lowering Routine" and "The Abdominal Slump Routine". And there may be more that I don't know about. I can also recommend a book called the "Science of Breath" by Yogi Ramacharaka. This was given to Maynard by Harry James (according to Maynard's biography) who gave it to Bobby Shew (The Wedge Breath). There is some terrific excercises and information on breathing. A "must have" in your library.

Hope this helps......

Paul Garrett

P.S. Maybe we can talk about Timed Breathing......

[ This Message was edited by: scream on 2002-09-05 22:19 ]
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