Category Archives: Contrabass Trombone

On Video Games and Neural Pathways

When I started this blog ten (!) years ago I found it considerably easier to write frequently (usually weekly) than I do now. The change is mainly due to my son, who was two then and family life centered around … Continue reading

Posted in Alto Trombone, Baritone Horn, Bass Trombone, Contrabass Trombone, Daily Routine, Euphonium, Music, Neural Pathways, Pedagogy, Performing, Playing Fundamentals, Practicing, Recordings, Teaching Low Brass, Technology, Tenor Trombone, Trombone, Tuba, Video Games | Comments Off on On Video Games and Neural Pathways

Preparing for College and University Auditions

One of the first articles posted on this blog back in 2012 was a list of Fifteen Steps to Playing a Better All-State Audition. That piece was so popular and, I believe, so important that I have reposted it yearly … Continue reading

Posted in Alto Trombone, Auditions, Baritone Horn, Bass Trombone, Career Choices, Community Colleges, Contrabass Trombone, Daily Routine, Education, Emory Remington, Euphonium, Higher Education, Music, Music Education, Music Theory, Pedagogy, Playing Fundamentals, Practicing, Scales and Arpeggios, Sight Reading, Teaching Low Brass, Tenor Trombone, Trombone, Tuba | Comments Off on Preparing for College and University Auditions

Insanity Brass Duo Performance at the 2021 International Trombone Festival: “Better Late than Never!”

This past summer, my colleague Dr. Michael Wilkinson from the University of South Carolina and I were able to bring our multi-instrument “Insanity Brass Duo” program to the International Trombone Festival. While time limitations forced us to shorten our program … Continue reading

Posted in Alto Trombone, Baritone Horn, Bass Trombone, Benedetto Marcello, Contrabass Trombone, Dmitri Shostakovich, Doubling, Euphonium, Fernando Deddos, Georg Philipp Telemann, Insanity Brass Duo, International Trombone Festival, Micah Everett, Michael Davis, Michael Wilkinson, Music, Performances, Steven Verhelst, Tenor Trombone, The Low Brass Player's Guide to Doubling, Tommy Pederson, Torstein Aagaard-Nilsen, Trombone, Tuba, University of Mississippi, University of South Carolina | Comments Off on Insanity Brass Duo Performance at the 2021 International Trombone Festival: “Better Late than Never!”

Method Books: “Concepts over Checkmarks”

As a high school and undergraduate student, I made it a particular goal to “pass off” as many studies and etudes as possible in my trombone and euphonium lessons. I prepared as much material as I could each week, and … Continue reading

Posted in Alto Trombone, Baritone Horn, Bass Trombone, Contrabass Trombone, Daily Routine, Euphonium, Method Books, Music, Musical Interpretation, Pedagogy, Playing Fundamentals, Repertoire, Teaching Low Brass, Tenor Trombone, Trombone, Tuba | Comments Off on Method Books: “Concepts over Checkmarks”

“Fast Notes:” A Problem in Low Brass Instruction

My son, who is now eleven, began taking violin lessons at age six. While he has occasionally had the opportunity to perform in small ensembles of some kind, his musical experience thus far has consisted primarily of working alone on … Continue reading

Posted in Alto Trombone, Baritone Horn, Bass Trombone, Contrabass Trombone, Euphonium, Music, Music Education, Pedagogy, Playing Fundamentals, Teaching Low Brass, Tenor Trombone, Timing, Trombone, Tuba | Comments Off on “Fast Notes:” A Problem in Low Brass Instruction