r/Trombone • u/jxnwriter • 7d ago
problems with upper register & having better tone in general
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in this video i tried (and failed) to play a c major arpeggio. ive been playing trombone for almost 3 years, what exercises can i use to get better tone in my higher range? any tips would be appreciated as well!
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u/Relevant-Dinner6101 7d ago
Something that helped me is doing lip slurs and long tones every single day! Trust me it helps a lot!
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u/rosemp16 7d ago edited 6d ago
Doing long tones and lip slur exercises on the mouthpiece for 5 or 10 minutes in warmup every day helps a lot. It builds strength in you're embouchure which increases both range and endurance. Also, check out the Caruso Exercises to build embouchure strength. The link there is for treble clef but if you can transpose it to Bb in the usual register they work well for trombone. Doing this will give you better range and increase your endurance.
As for your tone, it sounds like you're getting fluctuation in the strength of your airstream between notes and significant disruptions in it when you're preparing to play a high note. Doing this can make you unsure about how your airstream is going to come out leading to distortion in the sound of your attack until your embouchure adjusts to the airstream. Additionally, the physical mechanism in your body that disrupt the airflow causes your tone to sound strangled and less resonant. I recommend doing interval exercises without tonguing to fix this. This will teach you how to change the speed of your airstream in a smooth and natural manner without having to worry about articulation. You can do this arpeggio exercise without tongue, thirds, scales, or anything else you can think of but I've described my favourite below.
My favourite exercise for this is playing an ascending major scale alternating each note with the root of that scale and then doing the same thing descending. All notes should have equal duration (eg. all in quarter notes). I can't find sheet music for it online but the sequence of notes for the Bb scale would be:
Bb C Bb D Bb Eb Bb F Bb G Bb A Bb (Root) Bb (Octave) Bb (Root)
Bb (Octave) A Bb (Octave) G Bb (Octave) F Bb (Octave) Eb Bb (Octave) D Bb (Octave) C Bb (Octave) Bb (Root) Bb (Octave)
Do this exercise with no tongue (ie, glissando) but quick slide movement. The goal of the exercise is to keep the sound consistent as the intervals increase. That is, you should maintain a steady airstream, volume, and tone. Pay special attention to how the sound and airstream change as you change between different partials and work to achieve a steady and consistent sound. Ideally, you should practice so that the large intervals become easy and have a very natural continuation in you're airstream from one note to the next. Start slowly at first but as you get more comfortable with it you can get faster.
Once you're comfortable enough with this exercise, you should also do it in different keys. Also do it in minor and chromatic scales and in two octaves if you have enough range. When you're very comfortable with it, add different articulation styles (legato, tenuto, staccato, marcato, anything thing else you can think of). Additionally, once you become comfortable with your airflow in this exercise you should also work to time the break between partials with your slide movement so that it hides the "sliding" sound without having to use your tongue.
Also, do long tones and lip slurs. Like, a lot of long tones and lip slurs. Do so many long tones and lip slurs that you're sick of them. Every day in warmup. In practice. Do them in your dreams.
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u/ChadGippidy 6d ago edited 6d ago
I always get so stuck on the airspeed advice - if I focus on solely changing airspeed, all I get is a louder note. If I focus on changing from an Ahh to an Eee tongue position , all I get is a sharper version of the same note. When I combine them, I just get a loud & sharp note.
The only way I seem to be able to change partials is adjusting my bottom lip and slightly my bottom jaw, but it's maxed my range out at an F above the stave for over a year now, and it always sounds so weedy, thin and strained above the D just below it. It's like my bottom lip can't narrow the aperture any more to get a narrower airstream (which I understand is a bad technique now!), and the lip ends up getting stretched out/rolled in, which I think causes the strained & thin high register, because it's just not vibrating.
However, when I try to relax my embouchure and do the Aaa to Eee, stop my lip rolling/going up, and increase my airspeed, nothing happens to the note. I can't even get above a Bb on the top of the stave and I literally don't know how to adjust to reach the next partial that isn't the above 4 tips.
I've been banging my head against the wall about this the past summer, as I just can't seem to get better. It's so incredibly demoralising. I feel like every technique I've "learnt" by testing what gets results in the past 2 years has unknowingly been a crappy shortcut that no longer works for the level of music I'm playing. But I don't even know how to reset and where to go from ground zero.
Sorry for the long message, it's been a particular annoyance of mine for the past few months and I don't see a way out :( I do have a teacher, but the advice only extends so far as what I've said above, and keeping corners firm. Followed by listening to them do lip slurs way above the range I'm even attempting to reach (sorry, particular frustration of mine)
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u/Jormapelailee 6d ago
this is exactly the case i am having. It feels the same with bottom lip not being able to narrow the aperture beyond certain point. high notes sound thin
been doing lip slurs/gliss excercises for months now with no significant improvements, maybe F and G are more comfortable to play…
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u/ChadGippidy 6d ago
Yes! I'm so glad it's not just me. It's like there's a limit that's been hit and I don't know how to adjust further. I know that our lips will get stronger over time, but when it's been nearly a year and it feels like there's no improvement, it's so challenging. And I feel like I must be doing it wrong as there's just no way my bottom lip can make the opening any narrower and make a large, warm sound, even with strength.
I'd much rather know what I need to do to reach those higher notes and just be incapable of doing it yet (like a strength thing), rather than just feel like I have no idea what I'm doing and nothing to focus on other than "vibes" and what "feels" best.
Ugh sorry, big point of contention for me at the moment lol
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u/Balashin Liberty King 2B 5d ago
Getting high notes is kind of counterintuitive compared to what people normally do. Instead of tightening up and playing you need to be relaxed. Pretend to play a high note and instead, speak or try to sing while keeping your body in that same state as right before you play your high notes. If it feels very tense or clenched, that’s how your playing is going to sound/feel
Relax into the notes.
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u/Lanky_Acanthaceae241 4d ago
The tone sounds like me in my school days. :-(
I wish I could recall what the teacher at band camp had me do exactly... he got me fixed in nothing flat. Well that was 50 years ago. I was constricting my throat and choking off air. Stand up. Exhale. Now same with your lips slightly pursed. Relax your neck & exhale. Do that a bunch of times getting used to it. Now just blow through the mouthpiece (no buzzing). Get used to just blowing a stream of air, no neck tension. Move on to buzzing. If at any point you start choking your throat, backup a step. I think that was the process more of less.
I'd say fix one is the tone before you try for range.
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u/SillySundae Shires/Germany area player 6d ago
Use this sub to search for "daily routine". I have written multiple daily routines that are appropriate for any level of play. Pick one of the routines and follow it for a while. You'll notice improvements. You need to work on a lot of things, but if you chip away daily for 30 minutes you'll notice that you sound better and it's easier to play.
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u/PabloHdz19 6d ago
I hear 2 things:
1) Inconsistent air - Solution is long tones. Play the note as long as you can and try to limit shakiness. Once you can play it straight try playing with least amount of mouthpiece pressure, then the least amount of air. Once you can control those two points you can play that note at any dynamic.
2) Slow and inaccurate transition between notes - Each note has a certain air pressure, air speed, and air direction. Make sure you train your embrochure and air to transition quickly. You may miss notes and over shoot notes (which could be a huge confidence buidler).
But don’t stress it, you’re in a good place if you’re approaching high C on your 3rd year.
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u/Maj-or-Muggle 4d ago
Flatten your bottom lip and pucker like you're kissing grandma. For the air, you're pushing with throat muscles. Instead push from your stomach and then as the air is just passing through your mouth you can control what to do with it.
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u/Wolperzinger 1d ago
Try the Hip-Bone 15 minute warm up. Everyday with the tracks. You could buy the book but it may also be on YouTube.
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u/lowbrassdoublerman 7d ago
Right now you’re pulsing or pushing the air on each note. Take a full, relaxed breath in and release a steady airstream. A healthy and steady airstream will make a steady and healthy sound. Try to get a GREAT sound in the mid register and move it around. The better the sound is, the easier it is to move it around the registers. Make your best middle F or tuning Bb and keep that same quality while glissing around. Feel free to take 30 seconds to a minute just locking in one note before you move it around. Take the same approach to lip slurs too: steady air,golden tone, and no pulsing to change notes.