(Part 2) Top products from r/Trombone

Play more in public. Volunteer to play at church, or for a nursing home. Perform for your family, your friends, your classmates.

The thing is, performance anxiety and nerves don't just go away. As you get more experience performing, you get more used to them, to the point where I've heard (and read) professionals talking about how nerves are that extra little spark that makes a performance more special than a rehearsal - in other words, their anxiety doesn't disappear, it becomes a part of how they perform.

Now, all that said, there are things you can do to help you cope with the side effects of nerves on your playing. If this is something you're serious about tackling head-on, I highly, highly recommend tracking down either Performance Success or Audition Success by Don Greene. Perhaps see if your local public or college library has a copy or can borrow one via interlibrary loan before buying either one yourself. Two other books I see recommended a lot (that might be easier to find at your local library) are Zen in the Art of Archery and The Inner Game of Tennis, both of which have valuable insights that can be applied to performing. (The is even an adaptation of the latter called The Inner Game of Music, but I don't feel it adds much to the original.)

But yeah, the best thing you can do overall is to find and create more opportunities to play for more people. Force yourself to step outside of your comfort zone often enough, and you'll find it soon becomes comfortable. We've all been there to some extent!

Hey, do you have a trombone yet?

Trombone is probably the most straight-forward instrument to learn (except for maybe the voice). My best advice is to practice in front of a mirror. My second best advice is to learn how (and when) to put it down! That might not be so easy if you're coming from a woodwind instrument.

I have some friends who are professional saxophonist/reeds who learned trombone because they also love the instrument. I will be seeing one of them on labour day. I will ask him what he thinks.

This is my favourite book to go back to and practice the basics: http://www.amazon.ca/Studies-Legato-Trombone-Reginald-Fink/dp/0825802458. The preliminary exercises are a great way to benchmark your technique. And the legato studies are a great way to get ready for the Rochut books. You can open the Fink book at any skill level and find something that's worth working on.

You probably already know everything else you need to do to get started. Just put the horn on your face and give it a go!

That's what I mean. My suggestions are probably within your skills, but you probably don't know how to interpret and adapt a solo to your abilities yet. Not putting you down, but any collegiate level audition piece suggested needs some coaching.

Start with a Rochut exercise for your legato, but I don't know what solo is within your ability.

Perhaps you should look at the Voxman Selected Studies for a start. You might even consider picking up the baritone book for that price, as well. Either way, I truly believe you would benefit greatly by sitting with a local trombone teacher and discussing this between yourselves. Moreso than asking a bunch of strangers that have never heard you, and you don't know our qualifications.

I have found that it really helps to integrate listening, singing, and playing. I really like David Vining's Ear Training for Trombone. Fantastic resource. I have used it with a number of my students. They have all benefitted greatly.

https://www.amazon.com/WF83-Training-Trombone-David-Vining/dp/0825868408

I own this book

http://www.jazzbooks.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=JJS

I'm not home but from what I recall, they're all in bass and/or tenor clef

Speaking of JJ Johnson, he has a book out of jazz etudes

https://www.amazon.com/Exercises-Etudes-Jazz-Instrumentalist-Bass/dp/0634021206

this book is nice, too. Short etudes in the jazz style.

a Zoom H1 or H2 or another Tascam should do an adequate job, they have pretty decent condensor mikes but you'll have to have a room that doesn't reflect too much sound off the walls.

If you want to move towards audition quality recording, you want (probably) a large diagphragm condensor mike, an audio interface and DAW software (Logic pro, cubase, FL, garage band, reaper, etc). For a bigger budge, you're getting into a a second mike, maybe a SDC (small diaphgram) or ribbon mike, and a mike preamp like the $300+ ones that ART and focusrite make.

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If you want to read about home recording tech, books by Dave Hunter, Dave Huber, Gervais, Idiots etc, look for them in your library:

https://www.amazon.com/Home-Recording-Handbook-Youve-Great/dp/087930958X

https://www.amazon.com/Home-Recording-Studio-Build-Like/dp/143545717X/

https://www.amazon.com/Recording-Secrets-Small-Studio-Senior/dp/0415716705/

So something like this? http://www.amazon.com/Hetman-15-Ball-Joint-Lubricant/dp/B0002F7IT4

I've never actually used anything like this before :o

HAhahahha.

I've got both of those books, and I'm doing almost exactly the same thing that you are! I added in the Rhythmic Training so that I could still be doing things related to music when I don't feel like unpacking my trombone.

I plan on finding/making some flashcards that have the slide positions and alternate ones too.

So. It sounds like we're in the exact same place, I think? There's that page in the front of the Rubank's method that you can use to walk through the exercises. We could maybe go through that and hold each other accountable?

The Arban would be a good book to check out:
https://www.amazon.com/O23X-Arban-Method-Trombone-Baritone/dp/0825893313/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1483127923&sr=8-1&keywords=arban+trombone

Buy a BERP (https://www.amazon.com/BERP-BERP4-Trombone/dp/B0002F59RW). It allows you to buzz the mouthpiece and move the slide at the same time. 30 seconds of work with it can improve a piece tremendously.

• Shure SM57
  
• Audio-Technica PRO 35
  
• Blue Snowball
  
• Audio-Technica AT2020 (XLR) - Audio-Technica AT2020 (USB)
  
• Knox Clip-On Gooseneck
  
  ​
  
  I can not guarantee all those are good for brass instruments, but I have seen all them used for instrumentals.

Carl Fischer catalogue number N5156:

https://www.amazon.com/Rhythmical-Articulation-Bass-Clef-Inst/dp/0825834988#immersive-view_1491699620927

http://www.worldcat.org/title/rhythmical-articulation-for-bass-clef-instruments/oclc/222018304

I guess they mean this: https://www.amazon.com/Trombone-Gems-Book-CD-Pack/dp/0634049224.

This Protec Case has worked really well for me over about 8 months, used it for everyday use with a couple different horns and it has space for a trombone stand and even a wire stand in addition to that. Has a nice little organizer for some pencils, tuners, what-have-you. It doesn't come with backpack straps, but I went ahead and bought them because I have other bags to sling over my shoulders (backpack, mute bag). Here are the backpack straps and Here is their mute bag which I also use and it fits much more than just those 2 straights they show in the picture, and has a pocket for music. The only thing about the bag that broke on me is a zipper tag (the thing you pull - I don't know the actual name for it) on the accessories pocket but it doesn't bother me.