Lockdown 2020 - Zoom meeting with David Bremner

Who would have thought 2020 would bring so much change. News... the Coronavirus - Covid-19 has created a set back to the way we do things... no band practices as we go from Level 4 - 3 - 2... perhaps level 1 will bring us back together? What a celebration that will cause.  As of today, gatherings of 10 people are allowed and no more... this is a very serious virus with many people dying around the world and I do not want to downplay the havoc it has brought to the world...  in the meantime we have continued to be creative with online Zoom parties (Thanks TeReo for organising these), Zoom lessons with tutors and facebook.  We've had an opportunity to practice and record from home and share to each other. Malcolm Barr brought many together with his rendition of Abide with Me (shown in the ANZAC Day post earlier in this blog).

Zoom Meeting with David Bremner 

Hamilton City Brass organised a zoom meeting with David Bremner to share his wealth of knowledge and experience with us. Band members had the opportunity to ask questions in advance.

 

Questions & Notes:

Nerves: - we have to believe we can get through these, they're an expected part of the performance, make sure you know the tune you're about to perform and know that the conditions for performance will change just go in prepared and be mentally prepared (many focus on physical preparedness but mental preparation is just as if not more important. David shared how he does this, by visualising himself playing in the hall/competition location before he actually plays there. Take one out of James Morrison's book "Prepare to play that the audience is going to enjoy what you have to share." Practice breathing before playing, take your time and have confidence in what you're about to do.

Practice time: - trust the MD, they have chosen music which is a good match for the bands strengths. As players we need to work hard at home and not assume the MD will fix everything when we come to band practice. The Orchestra David meets with has two days of preparation before the performance! We are on a musical journey, talk in sections to sort out when people breathe, have the culture/environment that is conducive to helping our band get the best out of practice time. 

Notes for Composers: - David appreciates New Zealand composers e.g. John Richie, Ken Young, Jack Bewley,  be honest in what you want to do, make the music honest to your style, the more people hear the "you" coming out in the music the more they will want to hear. 

Warm Ups: - Practice with articulation, scales and double tongue, mix it up. David does a mixture of breathing, buzzing, warm up, low range, buzzing is more beneficial than warming up the instrument. 

Musical Theory: - The more you know about music theory the better your playing will become individually and as a band e.g. intonation, rhythm. Level 1-3 music theory is a great place to start grade 4-6 is more tricky but test pieces have become harder over the years so we need to try and understand this to keep up. 

Intonation: - Red hymn book: play hymn, sing, buzz play. Find out where you fit in the chord, usually built from the bass tonic (foundation of the chord) The more in tune we are the better the band plays and sounds.

Section Leaders: - things we can learn from orchestras - it is more powerful in what you don't say, listen to what others are doing in the band, take time to work on balance and intonation as a section. One section leader in orchestra set a goal to have the conductor say nothing bad about their section for a practice. Sit in a circle listen to each other, ask. Every band member is important, everyone has a role to play and if everyone is strong in their part then the section will become stronger as a whole.

Goal Setting: - David mentioned the importance of building up to a goal... this made me think about SMART GOALS 

Saying you want to get " x" amount of points is not a smart goal because every contest has different judges however we could focus on our timing, our dynamics, learning scales, range, sound, articulation, practicing Longer and more focussed on specifics that will help our performance improve over time.  If we focus on these things our overall performance will improve.

Motivation: - listen to a lot of music, perhaps transcribed trumpet (play along)  and listen to musicians who inspire you e.g. JJ Johnson, Herbe Green, Miles Davis. IMSLP - these are out of copyright tunes worth looking at too.

Attitude: - This is a long road and things will improve, be positive, be encouraged, be encouraging towards others, set goals and you will see progress

Performance: - Feel freedom, no tension, sit up straight, shoulders down and back, find a position breathe.

What piece of music should the band play: - As a performer we can't control what the adjudicator does, choose a piece for you. Choose tunes that fit the band strengths/weaknesses. David said he has 3-4 pieces he likes and then lets the band have a listen and usually something will come up that band members like/dislike and go from there. 

Adjudicator 101: - When David adjudicates he likes to think about the basics: Intonation, rhythm, balance, ensemble, control, sound, strength of the band is it musical, is it warm, am I enjoying this?  Never give the adjudicator something to fixate on, mistakes must be fleeting (mistakes will happen but let it be a once, not a continual problem). 

Informal Sectionals: - it is good for everyone to do something at regionals for example, play a solo, play an ensemble, play a quartet or trio etc. Play together for fun. 

Mouth Pieces: - Rim size feels good, makes a good sound, medium cup think about sound flexibility.