Hello all,
Well Wednesday was the end of a long and tiring journey. I mailed out four copies of my audition excerpts for the ITF trombone competition. These past two weeks have been filled with much work and intense focus. Many I was out past midnight working on excerpts and getting them just right. Being able to record on my own at my own time did wonders for me. I was able to get the excerpts to be just right. One song took me 16 tries to get it just right (two nights worth). Another took me about 26 attempts. All in all, I recorded over 80 attempts for just 5 excerpts and 1 solo. And I am very pleased with the finished product. Two things from this experience of recording is that I could do it as many times as I wanted to make it just right; however the flip side is I won't be able to play Bolero 16 times in front of a live audition committee. :)
But being able to play these excerpts over and over and listening back to what I heard helped me so much with listening to how I want it to sound. A lot of good habits were made during this experience. One thing that stuck out the most to me was my sense of rhythm. As I listened back to many of the selections I noticed that there wouldn't be a steady beat. This took much to fix, and it was really exciting when I did play them with a steady beat. The other side is that this will have happen to be a key part in ALL excerpts that I prepare now. But the good thing is now that I have instilled a habit of keeping a steady, internal beat that that is overflowing into my work with ensemble and practicing other pieces.
So what's in store for me now? Well there is a very similar competition in Minnesota that I have to send in an audition tape of some different pieces--some are the same. Also, I will be applying for some more openings that have popped up recently. One particular is the Dayton (OH) Philharmonic. But the big BIG thing is now my Junior recital. My music came in yesterday, and I am really looking forward to preparing for it these next few months. :)
A lot of good things going on in this journey that I am excited about and great looking forward to it.
So what to do now? Whelp I'm gonna go practice now :)
I end with this quote by Martin Luther. May this be my desire as a Christian who happens to be a trombonist: "Next to the Word of God, music deserves the highest praise. The gift of language combined with the gift of song was given to man that he should proclaim the Word of God through music."
From
J-man (Romans 12:1-2)
Friday, December 5, 2008
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
a long time
Hello All,
Wow it has been a LONG time since I wrote on here. But I guess it's because I have just been plain busy. The past few weeks I have been recording excerpts and listening to playbacks. Last week I did some intense recordings. I have been recording the excerpts individually, and I have learned a lot about my playing.
Three things are really becoming aware to me that I have heard others (higher up) say they listen for in an audition. In time--In tune--with a great sound. At times I have wondered if I have to be really nit-picky about my playing. But a question my dad mentioned to me that came from his former teacher is "Would you buy a recording of that?" And honestly, there are a few times I have thought maybe I'll let this little thing slide. But then I have to think I'm wanting to give the listeners my best foot forward so in one sense "no shortcuts." One excerpt it took me 15 tries to get it the way I liked it. BUT that 16th time when I played it back, I was very excited and yelled, "Yes, Yes!"
Tonight was a frustrating session with a particular excerpt because I just could not play it in time. I spent a good half-hour to 45 minutes on the excerpt, but had to leave not picking one of the recordings. Yea it was frustrating (it showed in intramurals) to leave on a damper, but it's an excerpt where you can lose a lot of gas and need to rest the lips to play it well. So tomorrow I will pick up where I left off tomorrow.
Three excerpts left to record, and then this long journey will come to an end; the rest will be in God's hands, and it'll be time to move on to a new and exciting journey.
This is going to be a busy, but rewarding week
Disziplin und Hingabe wird gewinnen den Tag.
From
J-man (Romans 12:1-2)
Wow it has been a LONG time since I wrote on here. But I guess it's because I have just been plain busy. The past few weeks I have been recording excerpts and listening to playbacks. Last week I did some intense recordings. I have been recording the excerpts individually, and I have learned a lot about my playing.
Three things are really becoming aware to me that I have heard others (higher up) say they listen for in an audition. In time--In tune--with a great sound. At times I have wondered if I have to be really nit-picky about my playing. But a question my dad mentioned to me that came from his former teacher is "Would you buy a recording of that?" And honestly, there are a few times I have thought maybe I'll let this little thing slide. But then I have to think I'm wanting to give the listeners my best foot forward so in one sense "no shortcuts." One excerpt it took me 15 tries to get it the way I liked it. BUT that 16th time when I played it back, I was very excited and yelled, "Yes, Yes!"
Tonight was a frustrating session with a particular excerpt because I just could not play it in time. I spent a good half-hour to 45 minutes on the excerpt, but had to leave not picking one of the recordings. Yea it was frustrating (it showed in intramurals) to leave on a damper, but it's an excerpt where you can lose a lot of gas and need to rest the lips to play it well. So tomorrow I will pick up where I left off tomorrow.
Three excerpts left to record, and then this long journey will come to an end; the rest will be in God's hands, and it'll be time to move on to a new and exciting journey.
This is going to be a busy, but rewarding week
Disziplin und Hingabe wird gewinnen den Tag.
From
J-man (Romans 12:1-2)
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Time to Buckle Down
Hello All,
These next few weeks are going to be quite busy with the trombone. I have been preparing for months for the International Trombone Festival's Lewis Van Haney Philharmonic Prize. This competition is a mock "audition" that is judged by some of the best professionals in the world, and trombonists all over the world with the same ambitions as myself enter the competition striving for the same goal. I entered the competition last year for the first time and scored below averages, so this year, I would like to score much better than last year (who wouldn't).
As I said much preparation has gone into playing these excerpts: recording, listening, outside trombone lessons. All of this has helped immensely, and now it is getting close to "gametime". The deadline for these excerpts to be turned in is December 5th. So from now until then much will be spent doing detailed listening and playbacks from the recordings and actual recording for the competition. I was talking to a friend tonight, and she feels that it's time to buckle down in the schoolwork after a break last week and some rest this past weekend. I feel the same way.
So these next few weeks I'm going to try work my tail off to do the absolute best that I can. I ask for your prayers that I will be focused on the task at hand, stay studious in my schoolwork, and above all, stay close to my Best Friend through all of this. Because of what He has done for me, I want to give back and give honor to Him by submitting the best possible work that I am physically and musically able to do. To my close friend, It's all for YOU.
I've been waiting a good while for this journey..........see you at the end of the trail!!
From
J-man (Psalm 31:14-16)
These next few weeks are going to be quite busy with the trombone. I have been preparing for months for the International Trombone Festival's Lewis Van Haney Philharmonic Prize. This competition is a mock "audition" that is judged by some of the best professionals in the world, and trombonists all over the world with the same ambitions as myself enter the competition striving for the same goal. I entered the competition last year for the first time and scored below averages, so this year, I would like to score much better than last year (who wouldn't).
As I said much preparation has gone into playing these excerpts: recording, listening, outside trombone lessons. All of this has helped immensely, and now it is getting close to "gametime". The deadline for these excerpts to be turned in is December 5th. So from now until then much will be spent doing detailed listening and playbacks from the recordings and actual recording for the competition. I was talking to a friend tonight, and she feels that it's time to buckle down in the schoolwork after a break last week and some rest this past weekend. I feel the same way.
So these next few weeks I'm going to try work my tail off to do the absolute best that I can. I ask for your prayers that I will be focused on the task at hand, stay studious in my schoolwork, and above all, stay close to my Best Friend through all of this. Because of what He has done for me, I want to give back and give honor to Him by submitting the best possible work that I am physically and musically able to do. To my close friend, It's all for YOU.
I've been waiting a good while for this journey..........see you at the end of the trail!!
From
J-man (Psalm 31:14-16)
Monday, October 27, 2008
My "first" trombone lesson
Hello All,
Well this fall break weekend will definitely be one to remember. Yesterday I was able to have a trombone lesson, with Peter Sullivan, principal trombonist of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. This is the first of many future lessons with different professionals. And it was a good one to start off with this new endeavor.
We scheduled the lesson to be at 10 in the morning, so I woke up at 7 A.M., warmed up at 8; ate brkfast and on the road just before 9. (I haven't been this structured in a long time, but I kinda liked it). btw, kudos to John's mom to making a "trombone" breakfast and allowing me to eat well. I arrived at his house, and it was kinda what I expected--basement with trombones everywhere. His first words when he saw me were, "Holy Toledo, you're tall!! Good lung capacity then"
So for the next hour and a half, I played excerpts for him. Basically the top 10 and some that I'm working with towards the ITF competition in December. He was very helpful in my approaches to the excerpts and with style for some of them. All in all, he reminded me a little bit of my current teacher, Jim Kraft, but he had different approaches to some excerpts which I was really glad about. In general, he was a really nice guy and was very helpful. I am particularly glad that towards the end of the lesson, he asked me "Now what are you gonna take away from this lesson?"
And so here's a few things I got from it: 1) I need to get in the "groove" before I play the excerpt--hear what else is going on in the orchestra and have that in my mind; 2) for some excerpts, it might be better to play the excerpts in a different style--for example, why not play the Wagner Die Walkure like a Bordogni/Rochut etude. It helps you listen for intonation which leads to 3) I have to be brutally disciplined when it comes to intonation and rhythm 4) and I need to work on getting a more orchestral sound--playing more fully and just round and whole. It's there at times, but needs to be consistent. Basically, playing in tune, in time, with a great sound will hands down get you that job.
All in all, Peter Sullivan had some really great helpful and encouraging comments for me. And it was great to have another person's "ears" and opinions with my playing, especially from a respected trombonist in a major symphony orchestra. What a fun day (more to come with that) and just another step, I believe, in showing this is what I believe the good Lord has for me. It really really is a fun journey!! :-)
From
J-man (Psalm 31:14-16)
Well this fall break weekend will definitely be one to remember. Yesterday I was able to have a trombone lesson, with Peter Sullivan, principal trombonist of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. This is the first of many future lessons with different professionals. And it was a good one to start off with this new endeavor.
We scheduled the lesson to be at 10 in the morning, so I woke up at 7 A.M., warmed up at 8; ate brkfast and on the road just before 9. (I haven't been this structured in a long time, but I kinda liked it). btw, kudos to John's mom to making a "trombone" breakfast and allowing me to eat well. I arrived at his house, and it was kinda what I expected--basement with trombones everywhere. His first words when he saw me were, "Holy Toledo, you're tall!! Good lung capacity then"
So for the next hour and a half, I played excerpts for him. Basically the top 10 and some that I'm working with towards the ITF competition in December. He was very helpful in my approaches to the excerpts and with style for some of them. All in all, he reminded me a little bit of my current teacher, Jim Kraft, but he had different approaches to some excerpts which I was really glad about. In general, he was a really nice guy and was very helpful. I am particularly glad that towards the end of the lesson, he asked me "Now what are you gonna take away from this lesson?"
And so here's a few things I got from it: 1) I need to get in the "groove" before I play the excerpt--hear what else is going on in the orchestra and have that in my mind; 2) for some excerpts, it might be better to play the excerpts in a different style--for example, why not play the Wagner Die Walkure like a Bordogni/Rochut etude. It helps you listen for intonation which leads to 3) I have to be brutally disciplined when it comes to intonation and rhythm 4) and I need to work on getting a more orchestral sound--playing more fully and just round and whole. It's there at times, but needs to be consistent. Basically, playing in tune, in time, with a great sound will hands down get you that job.
All in all, Peter Sullivan had some really great helpful and encouraging comments for me. And it was great to have another person's "ears" and opinions with my playing, especially from a respected trombonist in a major symphony orchestra. What a fun day (more to come with that) and just another step, I believe, in showing this is what I believe the good Lord has for me. It really really is a fun journey!! :-)
From
J-man (Psalm 31:14-16)
Friday, October 17, 2008
Finding the Balance
Hello All,
So a couple days ago I was in the coffee shop on campus reading the Good Book like I normally do around 1 or so, and a thought formulated in my mind. While reading the book of Isaiah, I came across an interesting thought about Hezekiah. First, he was a man of prayer and was a God-fearing man. Second there are some pretty exciting stories involving his life. One being Hezekiah prayed for the Good Lord to deliver Israel from the Assyrians. And He does. kills 185,000 actually and delivers Israel.
Now I am not wanting to be a Bible-beater here; but there is a tie with trombone and God here--though you'll never get it off the bat. Two things, I got out of reading these two chapters were:
(1) Prayer is one of the most direct ways of communicating with God our desires, needs, and giving Him praise. And having that communication is effective--even though it may not be the answer we want, having a "conversation" with our Father is so key in our walk with Him. (James 5:16)
(2) I have to admit when I read that part about the 185,000 being killed and how God answered Hezekiah's prayer about sparing him death, I went "Whoa!" It's pretty awesome when I come across things like that. And pretty exciting!!
Then I got to thinking, I think there are more times that I'm excited about trombone stuff than about spiritual stuff. Now don't take me wrong, many times I get excited about playing the trombone and seeing the Lord's work in my journey with the trombone. But I think it may have been a while when I got excited just about the Good Book and the relevant stories pertaining to my life.
This is where that balance comes in. Maybe I need to do more reading with the Good Book, especially these kind of stories where I see the good Lord working. If anything, being excited about God should always trump being excited about the trombone. Ask my friends, I talk aheckuva lot about the trombone, and boy is it exciting!! But I'm beginning to think I also to need to talk a lot about God, the Good Book, and awesome spiritual things. It's funny too, because those things are there in my life--it's not that it's not happening--but to be a professing believer, maybe I should have that balance of professing my excitement about the trombone as well as professing my excitement about what a gracious, loving Father has done in my life.
Whelp have a good day today :-)
From
J-man (Psalm 31:14-16)
So a couple days ago I was in the coffee shop on campus reading the Good Book like I normally do around 1 or so, and a thought formulated in my mind. While reading the book of Isaiah, I came across an interesting thought about Hezekiah. First, he was a man of prayer and was a God-fearing man. Second there are some pretty exciting stories involving his life. One being Hezekiah prayed for the Good Lord to deliver Israel from the Assyrians. And He does. kills 185,000 actually and delivers Israel.
Now I am not wanting to be a Bible-beater here; but there is a tie with trombone and God here--though you'll never get it off the bat. Two things, I got out of reading these two chapters were:
(1) Prayer is one of the most direct ways of communicating with God our desires, needs, and giving Him praise. And having that communication is effective--even though it may not be the answer we want, having a "conversation" with our Father is so key in our walk with Him. (James 5:16)
(2) I have to admit when I read that part about the 185,000 being killed and how God answered Hezekiah's prayer about sparing him death, I went "Whoa!" It's pretty awesome when I come across things like that. And pretty exciting!!
Then I got to thinking, I think there are more times that I'm excited about trombone stuff than about spiritual stuff. Now don't take me wrong, many times I get excited about playing the trombone and seeing the Lord's work in my journey with the trombone. But I think it may have been a while when I got excited just about the Good Book and the relevant stories pertaining to my life.
This is where that balance comes in. Maybe I need to do more reading with the Good Book, especially these kind of stories where I see the good Lord working. If anything, being excited about God should always trump being excited about the trombone. Ask my friends, I talk aheckuva lot about the trombone, and boy is it exciting!! But I'm beginning to think I also to need to talk a lot about God, the Good Book, and awesome spiritual things. It's funny too, because those things are there in my life--it's not that it's not happening--but to be a professing believer, maybe I should have that balance of professing my excitement about the trombone as well as professing my excitement about what a gracious, loving Father has done in my life.
Whelp have a good day today :-)
From
J-man (Psalm 31:14-16)
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Results from my 540 Week
Hello All,
Well today is the start of a new week, and some of you may be wondering how I fared last week with my practicing and here are the results. I practiced a total of 375 minutes for the week. Yea it is a few shy of my intended, on the contrary, it was one of my best weeks of practicing. I made much much progress, and I could tell a difference in my excerpt playing especially. And I had one of my best lessons as well a few days ago. Progress is being made no doubt!!
So what do I do now? Whelp, I think I'm gonna shoot for that goal of 375 if not higher. I am not very consistent from a week-to-week basis. So for this week I will try to match and exceed that 375. I think it will actually be harder than last week, but I can do it :)
From
J-man (Ps. 31:14-16)
Well today is the start of a new week, and some of you may be wondering how I fared last week with my practicing and here are the results. I practiced a total of 375 minutes for the week. Yea it is a few shy of my intended, on the contrary, it was one of my best weeks of practicing. I made much much progress, and I could tell a difference in my excerpt playing especially. And I had one of my best lessons as well a few days ago. Progress is being made no doubt!!
So what do I do now? Whelp, I think I'm gonna shoot for that goal of 375 if not higher. I am not very consistent from a week-to-week basis. So for this week I will try to match and exceed that 375. I think it will actually be harder than last week, but I can do it :)
From
J-man (Ps. 31:14-16)
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
A 540 week
Hello All,
So I have decided to make this a 540 week, meaning I will practice 540 minutes this week. Sounds easy right? Actually, since I started going to college, I don't believe I have practice over 500 minutes (which is sad). So this evening I made it a goal to practice 540 minutes from Monday through Saturday of this week.
So to break it down to meet that goal, I would only have to practice 90 minutes a day from now until Saturday. which would be two 45 minute practice sessions--very attainable. May be wondering c'mon can't you do more than that. Possibly but factor in rehearsals daily (pep band, orchestra, brass), and there's a lot of playing going on.
But it can be done, then when I hit that, I'll move up the minutes. A lot of determination will be needed especially toward the end of the week. It will pay off, I'm sure of it; and this will definitely help with preparing for the upcoming competitions. I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes from Ed Kleinhammer, retired bass trombonist of the Chicago Symphony:
"World-class trombone players do not just happen. Their talents are forged in the dual furnaces of determination and diligence."
I have this quote taped to my locker. May be I should pull a Notre Dame tradition of hitting it each time before I practice. I'm already off to a good start for having gone 90 on Monday. Let's see if I can keep going. I'll update ya'll on Sunday regardless of the outcome.
All right practice room!!.....YOU'RE MINE!!
From
J-man
PS Almost wanna say pray for me.................nah...........for the sake of my brother I won't :-)
So I have decided to make this a 540 week, meaning I will practice 540 minutes this week. Sounds easy right? Actually, since I started going to college, I don't believe I have practice over 500 minutes (which is sad). So this evening I made it a goal to practice 540 minutes from Monday through Saturday of this week.
So to break it down to meet that goal, I would only have to practice 90 minutes a day from now until Saturday. which would be two 45 minute practice sessions--very attainable. May be wondering c'mon can't you do more than that. Possibly but factor in rehearsals daily (pep band, orchestra, brass), and there's a lot of playing going on.
But it can be done, then when I hit that, I'll move up the minutes. A lot of determination will be needed especially toward the end of the week. It will pay off, I'm sure of it; and this will definitely help with preparing for the upcoming competitions. I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes from Ed Kleinhammer, retired bass trombonist of the Chicago Symphony:
"World-class trombone players do not just happen. Their talents are forged in the dual furnaces of determination and diligence."
I have this quote taped to my locker. May be I should pull a Notre Dame tradition of hitting it each time before I practice. I'm already off to a good start for having gone 90 on Monday. Let's see if I can keep going. I'll update ya'll on Sunday regardless of the outcome.
All right practice room!!.....YOU'RE MINE!!
From
J-man
PS Almost wanna say pray for me.................nah...........for the sake of my brother I won't :-)
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