What is a good sound?

[BeboppinFool]

That's something that I remember Doc talking about frequently, and I'd like to hear from others before giving you my take on this topic.

What kind of music do you play?

What kind of gigs do you work?

What do you consider a good sound?

Rich
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Puttin’ On The Ritz

[blasticore]

-"What kind of music do you play?"

Everything from orchestra literature to jazz.

-"What kind of gigs do you work?"

None, I'm a poor student musician...

-"What do you consider a good sound?"

Call me too inexperienced to answer the question, but I consider a good sound to be any sound that's clear and fits in with the music it's being used for. I can personally enjoy a sound that's "terribly bright" if it locks in with what the ensemble's doing. The Madison Scouts' sound makes perfect sense to me, however, replace Phil Smith with Roger Ingram and we have a problem .
_________________
Chris King
http://www.cktrumpet.com
http://www.ckbrassworks.com

[Mr.Hollywood]

I'm strictly a commercial type trumpet player.

I play shows (name acts) club dates (weddings, bar mitzvahs, private parties), latin bands, a few night clubs now and then, and some record dates, although there are not as many as there used to be. I also play in some big bands even though I don't like it very much. The big bands all seem to play too loud and never pay any attention to dynamics.

I consider the Maynard Ferguson of the late 1950's to the early 1960's to be the greatest sound of all times. Just listen to "Hey There" ( Maynard Plays Jazz for Dancing) or " Moonlight in Vermont" ( Boy With Lots of Brass) If I could pick any trumpet sound in the world, thats the one I would choose.

Chris

[ This Message was edited by: Mr.Hollywood on 2002-12-22 23:58 ]

[kentfoss]

What kind of music do you play?
Lots of stuff. Mainly orchestral, band, and jazz.

What kind of gigs do you work?
churches, weddings, some jazz stuff.

What do you consider a good sound?
Pretty much anything that sounds good or 'right.' I personally prefer a more rounded tone, but some music calls for something different.

[Wilktone]

It's interesting to note not only the variations in what we all consider a good sound, but also in the termonology we use to describe it:

"Round, dark, bright, laser, firm, weak, thin, full, etc."

Most of us have also noticed how a "good" sound is different depending on the style of music you're performing. If you're primarily an orchestral brass player you're likely going to have a "darker" sound than a big band lead player. What's also interesting to note is that their has been a tendency (at least in the trombone community, and I see it in all brass instruments) towards bigger equipment and darker sounds in both classical and jazz playing lately - especially in the orchestral field. Orchestral trombonists 50 years ago or earlier played on smaller equipment with a brighter sound than they do today. Many of today's top jazz trombonists are now playing on bigger equipment and are noted for their darker sounds. Do you trumpet players see the same thing with orchestral and jazz trumpet?

I'm glad this topic has started, because it comes at a time in my practicing where I'm becoming very interested in my sound. A French horn student of mine recently nailed his jury. I was very pleased with his progress during the semester and his performance on the jury and he got high marks from the entire jury. One member mentioned, however, that he would have liked to have heard a darker, "more orchestral" tone. My thoughts were that his tone had focus and resonance, what was wrong with it? So what if it had some higher overtones more prominant? If he had to blend with a professional horn section in a major symphony orchestra he would have to work on this, but certainly for solo work I really liked his sound (of course, as a trombonist I may be a bit biased on what a "good" horn sound is).

This got me thinking about sound and got me paying more attention to my own sound in my practicing. I realized that my own tone could use a little more focus and resonance. The naturally bright sound I get doesn't really bother me, in fact, I actually prefer it to the darker sound (being primarly a jazz player who dables in classical).

What does a type IVA trombonist need to do to improve the focus in sound? The type IVs and IVAs seem to have to work more on tone than other types. What kind of things would Dr. Reinhardt recommend for this?

Dave
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wilktone.com

[jakepainter]

mostly latin/jazz/commercial

At the moment mostly playing for a pop band, although ANYTHING that pays i will generally do

I personally like a big full sound, lots and lots of air, I think a a horn should sound like its singing

I think a lot of people confuse "a good sound" with the ability to play with expression. Playing with expression and passion is IMO what makes someone sound good, whether or not their sound is fat or thin, if you can make your horn sound like its singing then i reckon you have a good sound.


jake

[bgibson]

Rich;
Go back and look at your old lesson sheets.
Check your old lesson tapes.
Doc talks about the center or core of a note, the symphonic player has a sound that favors south of the Equator,
the commercial player north of the equator. (Don't you remember" too bright it is nasal and sharp and too far south dull, dead, flat the so-called _________________ sound that I detest." ? This was then followed by "Dark is not symphonic.")
Doc was concerned with getting the center or core of the sound and then fine tuning it to the type of playing we were doing.
Chris and all the other former Doc students,
How many of you remember those Doc quotes?
There was a tape Doc had titled "This Thing Called Sound"
I think Sheetz has a copy of it.
Rich, I believe that would answer your question.
WEG

[Mr.Hollywood]

Hi Bill,

Yeah I have that sheet, it's the one with the three circles on it.

On that sheet Doc says that a good commercial sound should be 60 to 70% brillance and 30 to 40% resonance.

As Doc would say regarding sound ; "The punishment must fit the crime."


Merry Christmas,

Chris