Posted by Tabor on May 16, 2003 at 11:02:02:
In Reply to: Is it true ? posted by Bill on May 16, 2003 at 10:41:10:
To me, this sounds like total garbage, but I am sure it makes perfect sense to your instructor. I can't say that one method is the right way or the wrong way, because in my estimation the right way is the one that works for the individual player. I don't really care if a player puts the mouthpiece to their eyeballs and hits the bell with a hammer if the result is an amazing sound with clean articulation. Because you posted this question you have probably noticed that this method doesn't work for you. My advice to you is to try to do what your instructor says, but don't practice it to the point that it hinders your performance. (and if he really is insistant about the method either lie about it or change instructors.
Teaching anything as the only way to a desired result is suspect to me. I think that the product, in brass playing (and teaching), should be the goal. One example of process-oriented teaching is the expand to breathe technique. One of my voice teachers used expand to breathe. He used the analogy of a horse, expanding its body because it didn't want the saddle to be sinched too tightly. A horse will blow itself up, and then the saddle will fall off. Jacobs used breathe to expand. For me, I need to think of inspiration happening at the same time as the vaccum of expansion to be most effective. The method I use to teach breathing is very simple: 1. have good posture 2. pant like a dog 3. slow the panting down a little and observe what is happening kinesthetically. While it works for more than 90% of my students, some need to think about breathing a different way.
Pedagogy books tell us that there have been many methods used successfully over time by professionals for breathing, while the more consistant part of voice training is in the vibration itself. (initiating the Bernoulli effect). I think that this is also consistant with training on brass instruments. (venturi) When it comes down to putting lunch on the table, we need to remember to be product oriented in our practice and performance.
hope my opinion will help, or just give you something to read
Tabor