AMI 2O-Warm-up Assignment-Firmino Goncalves

I find that my abilities in playing the trombone are progressively

improving, yet it seems that I struggle with playing certain articulations,
tonguing and my tone. More specifically, I lack the ability to play slurs,
especially between two notes that hare the same position (e.g. B and F),
playing a constant flow of notes (consecutive quarter notes or eighth notes
for many consecutive measures) and playing notes at a certain level of
sound (soft low notes and loud high notes). However, there are many
exercises that can aid me in developing these imperfections in my playing.
Part two of this assignment will present these useful exercises.

A few exercises that can help me to improve my slurring in general is

exercise number 129, Slippery Slurs, from the red book. If I play the exercise
slowly twice each day, I will eventually familiarize myself with the mechanics
of slurring. In addition, since each of these notes is merely one semitone or
one whole tone apart, playing the notes will not be a difficult task. Exercise
number 129 is therefore an ideal exercise with which to practice slurring.
Slurring between notes that share the same position is a very difficult task
for me. However, exercise number 68 from the red book, Warm-up, is perfect
for improving this problem. Since there are sets of measures that slur
between the notes of first position (B, F, and high B) and the song isnt
extremely advanced, it is an ideal exercise to perfect same-position slurs. If I
practice the first two measures of this line five times and perform the entire
exercise twice at a slow pace, I am sure to better my slurring abilities.
Performing the following exercise will allow me to improve my slurring
abilities, especially since it focuses on slow slurring. If I practice this exercise

twice daily, my slurring will no doubt improve.

There are a great variety of exercises that can allow me to improve my
abilities in playing many notes all while tonguing. For example, line 32 from
the red book, Jolly Old St. Nicholas, is extremely appropriate for this problem
since it has many consecutive quarter notes. If I play either line A or B (or
rotate each day) slowly once and once more a little bit faster, I am sure to
improve my tonguing ability.

Additionally, line 58 in the blue book, Cut and Paste, is an appropriate

line with which to improve my tonguing ability. It is a simple B major scale,
but the notes in the scale differ from one another. If I follow the same steps
as with exercise 32 from the red book, the results will be fantastic.
A simple exercise to practice tonguing is the one below. If I repeat the
theme below while progressively accelerating the tempo, I will not only learn
to tongue properly but also to tongue while playing slower OR faster lines.
Finally, since I struggle to play certain dynamics given the note, there

are a few simple exercises I can perform to resolve the issue. To focus on
playing low notes softly, exercise 134 in the red book, Go for Excellence!, is
extremely useful. I will perform this activity twice daily, every few days
lowering the volume at which the notes are played. So, one Day 1, I will play
the entire piece mezzo-piano, and on Day 3, I will play the entire piece piano.
Next, to heighten the volume of my high notes, I can consult exercise
85 from the red book, Warm-up. This exercise focuses on the higher notes
that can be played by a trombonist, and the entire piece is to be played
forte. Therefore, if I play line 85 from the red book twice each day, I will
experience a great improvement in my use of dynamics while playing high
notes.
The follow exercise is a simple one that focuses on high and low notes
and opposing dynamics. Since the entire exercise is based around air control,

if I play the simple piece two to three times a day, I will gain a much better
control over my volume while playing the trombone.

EXERCISE SHEET

Red Book, Exercise 129, Slippery Slurs; slowly, 2x

Red Book, Exercise 68, Warm-up; first two measures 5x, entire piece 1-2
times
In-project exercise 1; 2x
Red Book, Exercise 32, Jolly Old St. Nicholas; rotate between lines, once
slowly, once faster
Blue Book, Exercise 58 Cut and Paste; once slowly, once faster
In-project exercise 2; repeat theme while progressively accelerating
Red Book, Exercise 134, Go for Excellence; 2x
Red Book, Exercise 85, Warm-up; 2x
In-project Exercise 3; 2-3 times

Firmino Goncalves