The Brass Junkies: Wes Funderburk and Tom Gibson - Episode 47

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Two of my knucklehead friends, Wes Funderburk and Tom Gibson, joined us for one of the most chaotic and accidentally informative episode yet. Wes and Tom both live in Atlanta and write, gig, teach and conduct there (both play/conduct/arrange for the Atlanta Pops, the Joe Grandson Big Band and teach at Kennesaw State University. Additionally, Wes teaches at Georgia State and Tom teaches at the University of West Georgia). They each have also launched successful online projects (one of which involved a banana and a net pot) and happen to be two of the funniest people on the earth. 

Tom unpacks his tone color, time and note shape approach to teaching and Wes recalls the time he borrowed a burger from Hardee’s.

Warning: It’s a little chaotic at the beginning of the episode. Hang in there. It’s worth it. 

Links:

Wes' personal website
Wes' Kennesaw bio page
Tom's West Georgia University bio page
Atlanta Pops
Joe Grandsen Big Band

Want to help the show? Take a minute to leave us a rating and a review on iTunes.

You can help offset the costs of producing the show by making a small donation at https://www.patreon.com/thebrassjunkies. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Produced by Joey Santillo

The Brass Junkies: Phil Snedecor - Episode 46

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Phil Snedecor is one of the most talented people in know in the music business and I don't just say something like that lightly. He is an accomplished composer, arranger, conductor, teacher, entrepreneur and on top of all of it is one of the best trumpet players in the world.

I hate saying nice things about my friends but some of them give me no other options!

I really enjoyed this interview for The Brass Junkies Podcast. Phil gives practically a step-by-step rundown of how to succeed in the music business. The information he shares in this episode is invaluable to anyone trying to make it (or make it a little further!) in the music business.

Good stuf..

Links:

Personal site
Hart School bio
Publications
Washington Symphonic Brass
Lessons From a Streetwise Professor

Want to help the show? Take a minute to leave us a rating and a review on iTunes.

You can help offset the costs of producing the show by making a small donation at https://www.patreon.com/thebrassjunkies. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Produced by Joey Santillo for Pedal Note Media

Just Trace It

The great pedagogue Arnold Jacobs had a famous concept of always playing two horns at one time: the horn in your hands and the horn in your head.

He always talked about hearing what you were trying to sound like in your head and then simply trying to make that come out of your bell. I use this approach for literally every single note I ever play. From a tuning B-flat to a difficult cadenza. I hear it first and then simply try to make that come out of my horn.

I recently came up with an analogy that seemed to really resonate with students. (I won't mention the 30 before that that only kind of, sort of, not really registered!)

I asked them if they were good at drawing. All of them said they weren't which is something we have in common! I then asked them if they had ever tried to draw a bowl of fruit in art class. Most of them said they had and that it looked terrible.

I then asked them if they had ever used tracing paper to trace something and they all said they had. I pointed out that if either of us tried to trace a picture of a bowl of fruit that we would be able to do it well and it would be recognizable by anyone.

Finally, I explained that all we are trying to do is trace the sounds we have in our heads. And the key to tracing that well is having a crystal clear idea of exactly what we are trying to sound like.

When using tracing paper, no one is thinking about proportions, depth or anything else that makes drawing it by freehand so difficult. We just copy what is below that thin piece of paper and all of those difficult aspects of drawing a three-dimensional object magically take care of themselves.

The same goes for "tracing" the horn in our head. It gets the player (even the young one) away from focusing on process and towards making music which makes tone, phrasing and a long list of other things magically better.

The key to tracing something is of course not having a blurry picture underneath that tracing paper. So students need to be encouraged to have as clear an idea of what they are trying to sound like in their head as they can (which of course comes simply from practicing it.)

The more good playing and bad playing we hear (which I usually just refer to as data), the more in focus what we are trying to sound like becomes in our heads.

And then we just have to trace it.

Barry Tuckwell: Monday YouTube Fix

Here is an EMI recording of horn soloist Barry Tuckwell performing Mozart Horn Concertos No. 1 and 2 with Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields under the direction of Neville Marriner.

Enjoy!

Uploaded by serioso serioso on 2014-04-28.

The Brass Junkies: Joey Tartell - Episode 44

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Joey Tartell, Professor of Trumpet at Indiana University, is someone I truly look up to in the music business. Not just for his playing, which is stunningly awesome, but for his approach to teaching and to life. He is one of the nicest guys you could ever hope to meet and plays so incredibly well that he could "get away with" being a completely pain in the rear end and still work as much as he'd ever want to. But he doesn't.

In this interview, Joey details the keys to his success including the insights he gained from his former teachers, explains the good news/bad news about the advent of YouTube and how he equips his students to succeed in music.

Along the way there is also mention of Mexican food, vuvuzelas, the San Antonio Spurs and the story of how Joey almost got thrown out of a women’s basketball game.

Don't miss this one!

Links:

joeytartell.com
Joey at IU
Raya Brass Band

Want to help the show? Take a minute to leave us a rating and a review on iTunes.

You can help offset the costs of producing the show by making a small donation at https://www.patreon.com/thebrassjunkies. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Produced by Joey Santillo for Pedal Note Media

Activity Is Not Productivity

Activity is not productivity. Have a plan set before you start practicing and execute it. Then evaluate how it went afterwards.

Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

Silence Can Not Improve

“Start with bad sounds and make them into good ones. Silence can not improve.”

— Andrew Hitz (@JacobsQuotes) January 25, 2016

The last four words of this quote pretty much sums it all up, doesn't it?

Barry Tuckwell: Monday YouTube Fix

Here is a recording of baroque horn concertos that horn virtuoso Barry Tuckwell recorded in 1987 with Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields under the direction of Iona Brown.

Complete Track Listing:

1. Knechtl Concerto In D Major 9:03
2. Reinhardt* Concerto In E Flat Major 7:13
3. Quantz Concerto No. 3 In E Flat Major 8:42
4. Quantz Concerto No. 9 In E Flat Major 9:24
5. Graun* Concerto In D Major 10:28
6. Rollig Concerto No. 14 In E Flat Major 7:07
7. Rollig Concerto No. 15 In D Major

Enjoy!

The Brass Junkies: Leonhard Paul of Mnozil Brass

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Leonhard Paul of Mnozil Brass joins me & Lance for a spectacular conversation about the phenomenon that is Mnozil Brass. I am so pumped that we got to interview him. He is one of our heroes.

Over the last 24 years, Mnozil Brass has charted a path that is completely unique and continues to amaze audiences all over the globe. Leonhard explains how they plan and develop their shows, pieces and stage settings. He goes on to talk about the development of the YouTube sensation Lonely Boy.

From learning how to work a crowd to the subject of "lip disability", this conversation was both fun and illuminating.

You can help offset the costs of producing the show by making a small donation at https://www.patreon.com/thebrassjunkies. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Produced by Austin Boyer of FredBrass

Leonhard Paul of Mnozil Brass joins Andrew & Lance for a spectacular conversation about the phenomenon that is Mnozil Brass. Over the last 24 years, Mnozil Brass has charted a path that is completely unique and continues to amaze audiences all over the globe. Leonhard explains how they plan and develop their shows, pieces and stage settings. He goes on to talk about the development of the YouTube sensation Lonely Boy. From learning how to work a crowd to the subject of "lip disability", this conversation was both fun and illuminating. You can help offset the costs of producing the show by making a small donation at https://www.patreon.com/thebrassjunkies. Your support is greatly appreciated! Produced by Austin Boyer of FredBrass

Arnold Jacobs on Developing the High Register

“Take music you know and put it in the high register. It will take a little time, but it will develop with more practice.”

— Andrew Hitz (@JacobsQuotes) April 20, 2016

This is a really great way for a student to begin developing their high register on any instrument. Starting with something familiar takes a few layers of complexity out of the equation.

And playing music rather than exercises will keep the brain focused on the phrasing which keeps the wind or the bow moving.