Wow. As of today, last week’s post generated 11 comments, a new record for my blog. I’m thinking that since a lot of readers enjoyed my last post, it would be anticlimactic to talk about leadpipes and valve oil, so I thought I’d continue with a few more random thoughts about BE (Balanced Embouchure).
It’s fun to have joined the BE club. It may seem a little cult-like to outsiders, but on the whole it’s a great group of people. Consider me part of the cult! :)It’s difficult to be cutting-edge about something like horn playing, which has been around for hundreds of years, but I think BE is as close to cutting-edge as you’ll find in the music world. Valerie and Jeff are really on to something and I predict even more players will begin to recognize BE as legitimate.
Personally, I think that BE is a great tool for horn players, but not for beginners. I think it’s more important to get a beautiful, characteristic horn tone in the middle register before working on extreme range. After all, the horn is known for its sound, and we don’t want to turn all our horn players into trumpet wannabees. Every beginner must develop an appreciation for good horn tone, if it isn’t there in the very beginning. If I were working on the basics of horn playing, I think I’d also have the beginner work on the LCS (lip clamp squeak) a little bit away from the horn, and perhaps on a few pedal tones. Then after a year or 2 of playing, once a great horn sound is established, it might be a good time to start on BE.
One fun new thing I’ve done this week is occasionally play the BE exercises on the descant horn. All the exercises are supposed to be done on the Bb side of the horn, so since I’ve been wanting to learn my descant horn a little better, I’ve just been doing the BE exercises on the Bb side of the descant (not the high F side). After playing the RI/RO exercises on the descant horn, I play through some descant horn excerpts (like Haydn 31) using normal mechanics and normal usage of the high F horn. Haydn 31 is so easy compared to the BE exercises!
Playing through the RO #4 exercise, I’m realizing that those great orchestral horn players who can scream up in the high range like lead trumpeters (I’m thinking Phil Myers, Dale Clevenger, Bill Caballero, and others) MUST do some extreme high range exercises much like the BE ones, or perhaps Caruso. BE is great training for that kind of playing, no doubt about it!
It’s good that my son has started school again for the year, because now I can raise all sorts of BE racket in my practice room during the day without disturbing anyone. The only one who is bothered by it is my dog, but I know it’s nothing personal- he howls along to whatever I play. (I’ve got to put a videotape of his howling up here sometime. It’s hilarious!) I think I’d be a little self-conscious of how weird I sound if family members were around. By myself, I don’t give a rip. 
If I spin things just right in my mind, I see that I am extremely blessed to have a normal family life with lots of time with my family, lots of time to practice, and lots of time to try new things (like BE) and otherwise “sharpen my saw,” perhaps for something better in my musical future. A busier musician would not have the time to practice that I do. Many musicians look at my personal situation (only being employed by the Columbus Symphony for 26 weeks per year due to severe cuts a few years ago) extremely negatively. Yes, it sure sucks that my orchestra’s only working for 26 weeks rather than 46 weeks just a few short years ago. But all that free time does allow one to practice A LOT if they so choose, work on other musical projects and have a “normal” family life. Sure, I’d much rather be playing in an orchestra right now, but when life hands you lemons, you make lemonade.
I agree with Julia, BE is not for beginners. I believe this for different reasons than Julia has stated and wrote about it in 2009:
http://beforhorn.blogspot.com/2009/12/to-be-perfectly-honest.html
Julia’s made a really good point. I developed horn tone as a separate skill AFTER I developed range, endurance & flexibility with BE. Before finding BE, my tone was as puny & weak. After I started BE, although I rapidly developed range & facility and my tone strengthened & became more consistent, it still lacked that sweet roundness that we seek. I did not begin to crack the tone code until a year later when I had a productive 2 hour lesson with Wendell Rider. I can’t say Wendell is the only horn teacher who can teach you how to develop tone, but I can say he is the one that taught ME how to do it. He has techniques & methods that served to guide me to listen & feel for my most desirable tone. Wendel did for my tone what Jeff Smiley did for my range & endurance. I know some horn players who have developed gorgeous tone, range and endurance on their own without instruction, but I’m definitely not one of them!
Great to see BE take hold in the horn world!
Two points: BE can also be used for beginners, maybe not in the first few days, but certainly after a month or so. In fact, Jeff Smiley has a lesson plan in his book for beginners who have been playing 6 to 8 weeks. I am a comeback horn player that came back via the trumpet (where I learned about BE). I used BE at first on the trumpet from the beginning and then later on the horn (when I got one several months later). The only caution on the horn, as has been mentioned, is to develop on your “horn” for normal playing and not let explicit RI dominate, especially in the middle register.
The other point is that BE can be used on both Bb and F sides of the horn. The Bb side is good for RO on the pedals (not the double pedal tones as used by trumpet in the BE book). I can’t get very far down on the F side pedals (C, B, sometimes Bb). In the high range for RI, I use both the F and Bb horns, where the Bb is easier and the F side a little more challenging.
The biggest problem I had as a comeback player was being consistent on the F side of the horn, and getting that characteristic sound all horn players want. It turned out that BE was the answer to both of those problems, and I’d be hard pressed to tell you which one I cherished the most. I don’t believe BE is only about range and endurance. After more than a year and a half on BE, I’m still finding new benefits. A better tone is one of the more important ones.
Right on, Julia! You have found an excellent (and inspiring) recipe for lemonade. If I were a brass player I think I’d be a BE convert!
Also, I strongly encourage you to post a video of your howling dog….
My dog Chewie’s favorite excerpt is Till Eulenspiegel.
I’ll work on getting him up here next week.
Hmm. BE only for non-beginners after getting a good tone? That doesn’t make sense to me because a beginner may need the benefits of BE in order to get a good horn tone. He/she may not be one of the “naturals” who falls into efficient tone production. Efficient tone production is one of the requirements for good tone on any brass instrument. A beginner CAN and should work on tone, range, flexibility, articulation, etc. at the same time because they are all related.
To each his own, apparently. For a horn player, tone is paramount and I stand by my statement. BE exercises can be very strenuous, and for a beginning horn student, stressing BE aspects may teach him that that how high/low you can play is more important than tone. It isn’t.