Tag: reviews

Top 5 Best Gifts for a Trombone Player!

Ok, so we’ve all been there…

You tell your grandma or distant relative that you have started to play the trombone and for the next twenty years you’re receiving gifts with treble clefs on. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good treble clef pencil - but when you start getting cuff-links and socks and ties it gets a bit old! So, here are some of our recommendations for the best gifts for a trombone player.

5 Gifts Every Trombone Player Will Love!

Trombone Cleaning Kit

Any trombonist will thank you for replenishing their cleaning supplies. For a beginner or someone lucky enough to be receiving an instrument as a present, I would highly recommend buying a kit as a bundle that contains multiple parts, as it is usually cheaper to buy in bulk than buy each item separately. A beginner cleaning kit should include:

  • A mouthpiece brush – Keeping a mouthpiece clean is very important when playing a brass instrument for obvious reasons. If you are a beginner player, often cleaning and caring for your instrument is not a top priority but it really should be. Many teachers may neglect to teach you how to care for your instrument. Check out our handy step-by-step guide to mouthpiece cleaning if you need a quick refresher!
  • Slide oil or cream – Keeping a trombone slide well lubricated and in good condition is paramount to the maintenance of your instrument.
  • Valve oil – Yes, trombonists (if they have a trigger anyway!) need valve oil. Anything that helps us to avoid asking French horn players to borrow their oil is a plus in my book!
  • Spray bottle – A quick spray with water before you play will help to keep the slide smooth and agile. One usually comes as part of a kit, but any spray bottle will do.
  • Polishing cloth – Pretty self-explanatory but sometimes overlooked. There is nothing nicer than polishing your instrument before a big performance.
  • Cleaning snake – Perhaps the most important cleaning item for a brass player. The cleaning snake allows you to maintain a clean interior and helps to flush out any nasty “lumps” that can gather inside your trombone.

For a beginner or someone who needs a full brand new cleaning kit, this one on Amazon is my recommendation.

If you wish to purchase any of the items listed above separately, just click on the links to see the products that we recommend.

Trombone Stand

This gift would be perfect for a player entering the world of ensemble playing. A trombone stand is so useful in many different ensemble settings, but particularly orchestral musicians and those that do a lot of shows will find it almost a necessity.

My recommendation is the Konig & Meyer stand as it is both extremely sturdy (I use the bass trombone model) and easily portable.

Mute Bag

Again, this gift would be perfect for an intermediate player who is starting to join ensembles. Most trombone mutes are way too big to fit in a musical instrument case, and when playing in higher level ensembles and bands, you are expected to have a full complement of mutes.

We recommend this tenor trombone mute bag for only a couple of mutes, but if you need to transport a full set then this bass trombone mute bag will be better suited. These bags also include compartments so that the mutes do not bang against each other and get dented.

Metronome and Tuner

All musicians should have access to a tuner and a metronome. While there are many great apps that you can download to help do the job, there is nothing better than having a physical device handy just in case. For a combined metronome and tuner, this Snark device has many excellent reviews . For just a metronome, I like this KORG. And for just a tuner, again, this KORG will do the job perfectly.

Pencil Clip

This sounds like possibly the most boring gift in the world but trust me - seasoned trombone players will thank you for it! A pencil clip attaches to the trombone and you can then slot a pencil into it. The amount of times I have misplaced pencils in my case and been stuck without one in a rehearsal is beyond belief and this handy little device will ensure that it never happens again. You can buy pencil clips for all brass players so if that special brass-playing someone in your life is prone to embarrassing pencil loss, buy them one!

Best Bass Trombone Method Books

In this post we’ll be looking at some of the best bass trombone method books available. Bass trombonists have always had difficulty finding good methods and resources to learn from, probably because of the comparative newness of the modern double valve instrument when compared to other brass - especially the tenor trombone. However, we will also be looking at methods that are beneficial and appropriate for tenor trombone players seeking to improve their low range.

Methods for Beginners or Tenor Trombonists

Allen Ostrander: Method for Bass Trombone (and F attachment for Tenor Trombone)

Originally published in 1948 after teaching a bass trombone student at Julliard, this is one of the first study books aimed specifically at the bass trombone. It deals only with the F valve (and the related E/flat-F tunings) but despite this is still a great resource especially for intermediate players or tenor trombonists looking to explore the lower range more.

Included are: valve use exercises, progressive etudes and some orchestral excerpts.

Cover tiny file
look inside		 Method for Bass Trombone
And F Attachment for Tenor Trombone. Composed by Allen Ostrander. Classical. Student book. With Standard notation. Published by Carl Fischer (CF.O4517).

 

Lew Gillis: 70 Progressive Studies for the Modern Bass Trombonist

In a similar vein to the Ostrander book, this method is aimed at tenor trombonists who are moving to bass trombone. It also only looks at use of the F-attachment. The studies are well marked with both valve suggestions and alternate positions.

The etudes are of intermediate difficulty and high musical quality and are ideal for beginner bass trombonists or tenor trombonists looking to develop the low register.

Included are: 40 F-attachment studies, 10 pedal note studies and circles of 5ths scale studies.

Click here to purchase “70 Progressive Studies for the Modern Bass Trombonist” at Amazon

General Bass Trombone Methods

Alan Raph: The Double Valve Bass Trombone

This is one of the first books written with the double trigger bass trombone in mind, and covers the use of a few different possible valve tunings. Included are: the Single Valve in F, the Double Valve in flat E, the Double Valve in D and the Independent 2nd Valve in Gb.

My only criticism is that the book spends too much time looking at the use of the valve in the upper register, something hardly ever required in performance. Nevertheless, this is still an excellent tutor for the use of both valves.

Here is a quote about the book from Tom Everett’s Annotated Guide to Bass Trombone Literature - “All aspects of playing requirements are covered with many of the exercises”.

Click here to purchase “The Double Valve Bass Trombone” at Amazon

Eliezer Aharoni: New Method for the Modern Bass Trombone

Widely considered to be the best method available, this book covers everything a bass trombonist will need to mastery to reach professional competency. This method has the most extensive coverage of valve tunings, and includes practically every system commonly used on the modern bass trombone.

The full list includes:

  • Single Valve in F
  • Single Valve with E pull
  • Double Valve (side by side): Second valve in flat E, in Eb, and in D
  • In line: Bb - F - G - Eb, Bb - F - Gb - D, and long tuning slide on 2nd valve
  • Single valve in F with a sliding E extension (“Slex”).

The Aharoni method also includes sections discussing the development of the bass trombone and the pros and cons of each valve tuning system.

I would recommend this book to every player serious about improving technical fluency. It thoroughly covers everything from learning the F-attachment onwards and can be used effectively by everyone from beginners to professionals.