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[RichWilley]

The great thing about modern publishing methods is that once a fix in a document is made and saved it's there permanently. In the old days they had to totally reset entire pages which allowed even more errors to creep in while fixes were made.

Also print runs can be much shorter than before, one can print as little as 25-50 copies and still make a reasonable return on investment as costs are lower and turn around times are faster.

Therefore I am never embarrassed to mention print errors to an author as the document WILL get progressively better and better. Pretty much there's no reason for a author NOT to fix the masters anymore

Very astute, and right on the money! These files are all resident (in their various incarnations) on back-up media, and the corrected files are dated so (hopefully) only the newest one(s) will be used.

I combine Finale files (saved using the graphics tool as 1200 dpi .tif files) with PageMaker files so the final version of each book is one master PageMaker file contained in its own folder right along with all its own art files. When corrections get very extensive, I'll print out a whole new set of masters, which is what I'm preparing to do for getting them to press tomorrow.

The advantage of getting one of the first books from a "modern" publisher is that the flaws will prove it's an original first printing, and may one day fetch bigger bucks on eBay . . . of course, that may not be for decades, but it will be more valuable, just like flawed coins.

Back to work. Thanks again, everybody, for all your comments and suggestions.

By the way, I am eliminating all the metronome markings and just using words (andante, largo, etc.) for the "real thing" run. Oh, and the "test" run was 40 books.

[Paul Martin]

I bought the book, and am up to Day 4:


One thing I note is that some of the statements seem fairly dogmatic, for instance, inhaling slowly through the nose, as a means of avoiding a quivering sound:  taking in air slowly in this way seems only to limit the amount of air in my lungs, and the length of the phrase I can complete in one breath.

While I want to drink the Reinhart Cool-Aid as much as possible, certain things seem either counter-intuitive, or inapplicable, but before I start doing a "Reinhart according to Paul Martin," I thought best to ask.

[Doug Elliott]

It can take a while to see the real benefits of some of Doc's ideas, but we're talkng about long-term benefits, not quick fixes.  Just do it the way it says.  The only alteration I would suggest is to shorten some of the exercises if you want.  The ones that repeat through all 7 positions can be done 1-4 or just in 1st.  That's how he gave them in later years.  Boredom doesn't accomplish anything.

I can't think of a reason why inhaling slowly through your nose would limit your capacity.

[Paul Martin]

Doug,

Thanks for the quick response.

The reason for less air is that I'm only drawing in a normal breath through my nose, not a "full tank" as I would normally do quickly through my mouth, it is another thing to relearn.

[WaltTrombone]

You can fill up just as much, but it takes longer. Maybe you can add some beats to compensate?

[Dave]

You can fill up just as much, but it takes longer.

I agree.  Reinhardt advocated that in practice you should breathe in slowly whenever possible.  A slow breath tends to be more relaxed than a quick breath.  Over time, the relaxed feeling of a slow inhalation should become part of your normal (interphrase) inhalations without you needing to consciously think about it.

One thing I note is that some of the statements seem fairly dogmatic,

I never studied from Reinhardt so I can't speak about him from personal experience, just from his books, handouts, and second-hand stories.  He was quite adamant that his exercises were to be played exactly as written, unless he had instructed you personally to do otherwise.  From what I gather, many of his students came to him initially after experimenting with their chops in a way that actually made things worse.  By being as precise as possible with his instructions I think he was trying to avoid students making similar mistakes by experimenting on his exercises in ways that would do more harm than good.

I also suspect that for Reinhardt his exercises served as something of a "control" for learning more about each individual student and about brass players in general.  In the former case he might change a certain aspect of an exercise, select a different one, or eliminate it altogether based on how a particular student responded to practicing that exercise.  If a student is allowed to experiment on the exercise it looses its value as a diagnostic tool as well as risking not doing the job it was designed for.  In the case of brass players in general, by seeing how players with different embouchure patterns responded to the same exercise he was able to formulate practice suggestions that would be more beneficial for the individual player.

I suspect the strictness of instructions he wrote were more for the above reasons than for being unchanging in his beliefs about brass playing.  You can see evolution in his ideas as his observations became more complete by comparing his early books with his later ones.  In fact, I think one of the goals of "The Reinhardt Routines" was to get these exercises out there with text that more accurately reflected how Reinhardt taught late in his career.

I've used the basic routine in my own practice and teaching for years.  Let us know how you feel after you've completed the cycle one time through.  It seems to me that most people start noticing some improvement on the second time around and I'm curious to see if that's typical.  Does anyone else here who uses this routine know?

Good luck!


Dave

[Pivotbone]

I agree.  Reinhardt advocated that in practice you should breathe in slowly whenever possible.  A slow breath tends to be more relaxed than a quick breath.  Over time, the relaxed feeling of a slow inhalation should become part of your normal (interphrase) inhalations without you needing to consciously think about it.

Reinhardt also said that he believed overly rapid and careless inhalations were the number one cause of embouchure breakdown.  When one inhales more slowly, you are less likely to "cheat" in a muscular sense.  A simple thing like breathing slowly when possible actually has long-ranging chop implications.  Nose inhalations are also used to help one develop the ability to breathe without disturbing the embouchure.  These two techniques go hand in hand.

Rich Hanks

[Paul Martin]

Thanks, guys, I will reteach myself to breathe as prescribed, and otherwise stick to the explicit instructions in the book.

[Bassbone2107]

So the title of the book says "A Total Embouchure Development Plan".

Im definitely interested in the book, but what exactly is it teaching, only a method in which to build a strong solid embouchure? I just want to clarify in what ways it will improve the user of the exercises. Thanks  =]

Jeff

[Joel Felberg]

I'm intrigued by the breathing ideas. I've been doing th Maggio Studies, and he instructs you to do just the opposite. The Maggio says:

"Take a breath like a drowning man going down for the third time."
Louie's meaning was to get as much air as possible into the lungs in the shortest amount of time.

[Paul Martin]

One question:

Where should one place the tongue in the Reinhardt world after placing the embouchure, and inhaling?  I have a habit of placing it between my teeth, and then moving it a split second prior to the end of the inhale, and the articulation, but I might guess this would be a bad habit.

[Paul Martin]

So the title of the book says "A Total Embouchure Development Plan".

Im definitely interested in the book, but what exactly is it teaching, only a method in which to build a strong solid embouchure? I just want to clarify in what ways it will improve the user of the exercises. Thanks  =]

Jeff

I would think that if a method book were "only a method with which to build a strong, solid embouchure," and had this effect, it would be worth its weight in gold, isn't the embouchure 95% of the battle for a brass player, when you get right down to it?

[Bassbone2107]

I would think that if a method book were "only a method with which to build a strong, solid embouchure," and had this effect, it would be worth its weight in gold, isn't the embouchure 95% of the battle for a brass player, when you get right down to it?

I thought that a constant steady airstream is the most important aspect of playing, and with that concept of sound.
Embouchure is just the stance in which all of this takes place, and should simply be a natural take on it. And I realize that it must be steady, but I think the above ideas are far more important. I guess Im placing more emphasis on the musicality potential than the technical potential.

Of course, Im young  =]

Jeff

[Paul Martin]

I thought that a constant steady airstream is the most important aspect of playing, and with that concept of sound.
Embouchure is just the stance in which all of this takes place, and should simply be a natural take on it. And I realize that it must be steady, but I think the above ideas are far more important. I guess Im placing more emphasis on the musicality potential than the technical potential.

Of course, Im young  =]

Jeff

I don't think you can teach musicality, and I'd suggest that everything physical that takes place behind the mouthpiece, can be considered the embouchure.

[Dennis K.]

I don't think you can teach musicality, and I'd suggest that everything physical that takes place behind the mouthpiece, can be considered the embouchure.

This is a whole nuther ball o' wax, probably worthy of its own topic:

http://tromboneforum.org/index.php/topic,36110.0.html

[WaltTrombone]

Embouchure is just the stance in which all of this takes place, and should simply be a natural take on it.

Not to suggest that air and concept are unimportant, but embouchure is both the "nozzle" that controls the air, and the vibrating medium itself. When we practice long tones, we are actually learning to balance the airflow vs. chops in order to get the desired musical result.

Some folks prefer to take a simplified Jacobs approach to playing- If it sounds good, you're probably doing it right. (The more I learn of Jacobs, the more I realize that that's vastly oversimplifying his work.)

Others are more analytical, and need to pick apart every discrete step. There are also those who have been told for years that their chops need to be a certain way, which may be totally wrong for them, and now they've hit a brick wall. (Ask Jan Kagarice about some of the ones she's dealt with...) This book can be a diagnostic tool for those folks, as well as an exercise routine for those who have their act together.

[Bassbone2107]

I think I definitely take the more simplified broad view of playing, rather than the technical detailed (which is always good to do now and then.)  I suppose I'll inquire about it during my next lesson  =]
So with this view in mind, is it a good investment? I'll probably buy it anyways, lol.

Jeff

[Dennis K.]

The book is excellent quality, printed on nice, thick paper.  It is an excellent addition to the stack of other method books I have.  As a trombone major, you will eventually build a library of books like this that will become a substantial part of your personal knowledge base.

Will it make you a better player and help to fix any problems you may have?
There once was a HS Senior who, while taking a tour of a prospective college campus, asked "How many books are in the library?"  The guide responded "How many do you intend to read?"

[Paul Martin]

One question:

Where should one place the tongue in the Reinhardt world after placing the embouchure, while   inhaling?  I have a habit of placing it between my teeth, and then moving it a split second prior to the end of the inhale, and the articulation, but I might guess this would be a bad habit.

I'm not quoting myself to be vain (although I am), but rather to ask the above, mundane question again (with important technical correction), it having been lost in the shuffle...

[Doug Elliott]

As you firm your embouchure and place the mouthpiece, put the tip on the gums behind and below your bottom teeth.  Then as you inhale, pull it backward so it's out of the way of the air coming in.