TromboneChat

Hi all!

I've been super fortunate lately to record some piece I really love, and also been developing my extended techniques video series.

The newest video, Joohyun Park's Slide for solo trombone, represents a piece that I had no clue about while I was learning it. Sometimes, even with a background in modern music, a piece can be so tricky that it's hard to know exactly what I'm doing. But after listening back, I realized that this work was really quite marvelous. I don't get surprised by much anymore, but this piece really did it for me!


I premiered Anthony Vine's Scrim, a work for trombone and five foot-controlled cassette decks(!!) back at the ITF Festival at the University of the Redlands back in 2017. It is a super chill sound world piece, and has been super fun to develop with the composer over the last few years.


For my extended technique videos I've been tossing up little videos here and there highlighting different sounds you can make on the trombone. They might not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's alway fun to explore what's possible!

Multiphonics without singing? a guide to advanced harmon use:
Vowel Forments and you, a quick guide:
Combination Techniques, Vol. 1, Split Tones and Harmon:

Thanks for reading!

On vowel formants, not being a speech person, it does seem that some vowels differ from others not by what's going on in the mouth but with the lips. "E" vs "O" for instance. The lips on a horn though are pinned from movement by the piece. Seems rather there are perhaps three basic tongue positions in American long vowels. Interesting. These positions roughly correspond to my tongue positions that I practice during flexies so that the tongue becomes familiar with acting from any position in the mouth.

I'm sure this topic is very deep.