Yet another flexibility exercise – seems to be that time of the year! These patterns show you some ways to get out of the first-down-to-seventh-position-playing-the-same-pattern-mode, making it more fun to play. This also makes your flexibility practicing come closer to the actual use of it in real music.
Many trombone (and other brass players) tend to do their flexibility home work, but as soon as they start moving the slide around, they put an attack on every note and cut up their airflow. Don´t go there! On of the benefits of flexibility exercises, is that it improves your legato playing – that is, if you actually use your flexibility skills. Both legato and flexibility should focus on constant air flow!
The patterns are quite simple, but skipping slides and moving up and down make them come alive and sound more fresh. You should try to get some speed going, and aim for a totally smooth phrasing. Think of it as one long note played with a steady air flow. And watch the pitch, some of the patterns can be a bit tricky to intonate, especially when you start on 7th position.
As I said, no rocket science here, just some simple but effective tools to help you master the art form called trombone.
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You will find this exercise and many others in the book Flexibility for Trombone – 38 pages in print friendly pdf format.
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