The Trombone Player's Survival Guide contains easy-to-do movements to assist players in getting out of pain and staying pain free. The approach is based on the seven principles of Movement Alignment Technique. These movements provide a means through which players can re-calibrate the postural alignment of their bodies.
Flow Studies for Bass Trombone is a companion book to the Breathing Book for Bass Trombone. Flow Studies is designed to help trombone players learn to effectively use their air flow to achieve smoothness and enhanced musicality. Flow Studies includes a suggested etude rotation schedule, so players may receive the maximum benefit.
Modern low brass instruments—trombone, tuba, and euphonium—have legions of ancestors, cousins, and descendants in over five-hundred years of history. Prominent scholar and performer Douglas Yeo provides a unique, accessible reference guide that addresses a broad range of relevant topics and brings these instruments to life with clear explanations and the most up-to-date research. Brief biographies of many path-changing individuals highlight their influence on instrument development and use. The book’s inclusive scope also recognizes the work of diverse, influential artists whose important contributions to trombone and tuba history and development have not previously been acknowledged in other literature. Extensive illustrations by Lennie Peterson provide insight into many of the entries.
How can musicians express themselves and recreate the great masterworks with ease and expressiveness and yet avoid injury in the process? Musicians face many challenges: a highly competitive environment, performance anxiety, demanding repertoire, years of solitary practice, and awkward postures. The hectic pace of rehearsals and performances when added to the mix often results in the very real risk of physical pain and injury. This book is a readable and comprehensive guide and reference for all concerned with pain in musical work: professional and amateur musicians, teachers and students, doctors and therapists. This book is essential for all musicians. String, keyboard, percussion, harp, brass and wind players will play better and feel better. Read about: Why it may hurt to play; Injury susceptibility quiz; Risk factors & danger signals; Hearing, back, disc, arm and shoulder problems; 10 onstage tricks; TMJ, teeth, larynx and joint laxity; Stretching & strengthening; Rehabilitation & work-hardening; Musician's survival kit; 10 do's & don'ts; Instrument modifications; Guide to safe practicing.
The Low Brass Player's Guide to Doubling is a guide for low brass players who wish to learn a different low brass instrument. By performing well on several instruments, doublers become more complete musicians, regardless of the instrument being played at any given moment. Taking up a secondary instrument will introduce you to new composers, repertoire, and ideas that will enhance your musicianship. Doubling necessitates more thoughtful playing and leads to more thoughtful teaching; your resulting instruction becomes more effective on every instrument you teach. Playing more instruments will also increase your earning potential!The Low Brass Player's Guide to Doubling includes chapters devoted to: tenor trombonists doubling on bass trombone; bass trombonists doubling on tenor trombone; trombonists doubling on euphonium; trombonists doubling on tuba; tuba players doubling on euphonium; euphonium and tuba players doubling on trombone; alto trombone; contrabass trombone; bass trumpet; and cimbasso. Also included are fingering charts, overtone series charts and targeted fundamentals for each instrument. The targeted fundamentals are designed to help players learn the new instrument efficiently by extracting fundamental skills unique to the new instrument.
A new approach to improving quality of life through your most accessible resource: your breath. Internationally renowned yoga instructor Donna Farhi presents a refreshingly simple and practical guide to reestablishing proper breathing techniques that will dramatically improve your physical and mental health. Complete with more that seventy-five photos and illustrations, The Breaking Book offers a thorough and inspiring program that you can tailor to your specific needs. Whether you need an energy boost or are seeking a safe, hassle-free way to cope with everyday stress, you will find answers here. These safe and easy-to-learn techniques can also be used to treat asthma, depression, eating disorders, insomnia, arthritis, chronic pain, and other debilitating conditions. "Donna Farhi has been a student, researcher, and teacher of the breath for many years, and now we get to reap the results of her studies in this exquisite manual." -- Yoga Journal
Caring for the Whole Musician brings together insights from two expert musicians and educators to consider the relationship between mental and physical health and artistic practice for musicians. Offering a holistic perspective that encompasses the whole being – body, mind, and heart – this book provides emerging musicians with tools, practices, and mindsets to address key challenges throughout their journey. The first part, Awareness, addresses wellness and embodiment in music, exploring how our bodies are constructed and how the use of our bodies as instruments affects function. Using approaches including Body Mapping and the Alexander Technique, this part helps readers discover adverse habits that interfere with natural movement, and nurture awareness of the body. The second part, Mindfulness, explores how meditative practice can be incorporated into every stage of concert preparation and embedded within the daily life of the musician. Offering mindfulness exercises related to each stage of the music-making process, these chapters provide strategies for readers to enhance their well-being and focus. Centered in the understanding of the musician as a whole being, this book provides an essential guide to how practices of awareness and mindfulness can allow musicians to better care for themselves and flourish in their artistic careers.