TromboneLessons.com Video Podcast

***PARENTAL WARNING: I have to rate this as “PG-13″ for some adult language (and Jaegermeister). No sexual content at all…sorry.*** There’s a new icon to your right ladies and gents————————————————————————–> Our loyal friend Ron has nominated us for the “Blogger’s Choice Awards” for Best Video Blog! Thanks...more

Maestro Donald Runnicles will join the Atlanta Symphony Brass Quintet on May 7 at Kennesaw State University. If you’re in the neighborhood….(I will do my utmost to get some footage if at all possible). This promises to be wonderful. The ASO this week is performing Janacek’s Sinfonietta and Berlioz’ Requiem. It is my immeasurable pleasure to participate. This is brass playing of the very highest order. Y’all would be proud:-) The brass vine is blooming here in Atlan...more

A pdf sent by our friend, Tom Matta. If Tom’s involved, I think I can safely guarantee the quality of such a project. They could use your help, if feasible. Check out more by clicking the “pdf” icon below. If nothing else, you could help spread the word, right? Thanks. PS- if you happen to know the personnel on “Kenton: Wagner”, could you please email that information to me: tom@trombonelessons.com Thanks in advance! We’ve been enjoying a well-preserved vinyl ...more

A .pdf explaing the fantastic event scheduled to take place in Mason City, Iowa on THIS Memorial Day Weekend 2008. Just click the “pdf” icon below, please. Download Ebook

A .pdf explaing the fantastic event scheduled to take place in Mason City, Iowa on THIS Memorial Day Weekend 2008. Just click the “pdf” icon below, please. Download Ebook

Richard Stout, for those that don’t know, is the 2nd Trombonist with the Cleveland Orchestra. He also teaches at The Cleveland Institute of Music. Recently, he was on tour with the orchestra and they stopped in Columbus, GA. After a breathtakingly beautiful concert (including Mr. Stout on euphonium playing the Bydlo solo from “Pictures…”!), it was our great treat to watch Rick do a master class at Columbus State University. He was hosted by Brad Palmer and his AMAZING s...more

Ladies and Gentlemen, you met my friend Adam Frey in Episode 53. In that interview, he talks about the International Euphonium Institute that he hosts at Emory University every Summer. It’s awesome! I can attest that this event is a lot of fun and very informative every year. Adam does a great job of stacking the faculty with world-class artists year after year. He and his wife, Janet, do an amazing job logistically and I marvel at their organizational skills. I recommend that those of you...more

Yippee, it’s time to clean the slide! This can be a messy and ugly proposition. It is necessary, however. I recommend doing it regularly for a lot of reasons. This video shows how I like to go about keeping the slide clean. PLEASE use a lot of care when cleaning the slide. The metal is more delicate than you might imagine. As always, if you have questions about this Episode, please contact us: tom@trombonelessons.com PS- a message from our friend Abbie Conant: A friend of a friend is star...more

George Curran is the Bass Trombonist of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (http://www.atlantasymphony.org) But you already knew that because you’ve met him on earlier episodes and bathed in his beautiful tone bath:-) For example, the re-edited Episode 71. He writes a newsletter for all trombonists in the greater Atlanta area. These often cater specifically to the Atlanta scene, but George usually includes some great info for ALL trombonists. He has very kindly allowed us to publish and share...more

The Juilliard School, located adjacent to Lincoln Center in New York City, is a marvelous place. The faculty and students are world-class. It sits in the heart of one of the world’s most vibrant and energetic cultural centers. Every time I visit there, I come away awed and inspired. In this Episode, I visit with my friends Clayton Chastain and Marc Boehm. I knew them both when they were high school standouts here in Atlanta. All of us here in the ATL are incredibly proud of these 2 young m...more

Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen! In this Episode, I’m pleased to introduce my friends from the US Air Force Reserve Band’s Brass Quintet. The players are: Michael Richter, trumpet Thomas Salyers, trumpet Michael Pekarek, horn John Caputo, trombone (and euphonium) Michael Andrew, tuba These guys are great! They have a new CD out, too. More info about the CD and the US Air Force Reserve Band can be found at their website: http://www.band.afrc.af.mil A career as a military musician c...more

This one picks up precisely where Part 1 (Episode 75) ends……….ENJOY!!!! Download Podcast Video

Wow, it’s been nearly 3 weeks since our last post……sorry to those of you suffering withdrawals:-) Things have been quite busy ’round here, so I apologize for the delay. But, I’ve got a good one for you this week: Through our friend, Dr. Robert Ambrose, the Atlanta Trombone Quartet (actually a quintet) was asked to record a newly published work by Andrew Rindfleisch. It is a beautiful quartet for trombones entitled “Chorale and Prayer”. In this episode,...more

This PDF can be downloaded by clicking the “eBook pdf” icon below. Thanks, Weston Sprott, for sharing this with the Podcast viewers! For those that teach or are sincere about winning an audition, this should be of tremendous value. We encourage you to read it, dwell upon it, put it into practice, and read it again. Then, email us when you win the gig! Download Ebook

This PDF can be downloaded by clicking the “eBook pdf” icon below. Thanks, Weston Sprott, for sharing this with the Podcast viewers! For those that teach or are sincere about winning an audition, this should be of tremendous value. We encourage you to read it, dwell upon it, put it into practice, and read it again. Then, email us when you win the gig! Download Ebook

Weston Sprott is the 2nd Trombonist in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. I had the pleasure of sitting with him on a recent excursion to New York City. His wisdom and poise bely his young age. I was completely blown away by him. I’m sure you will be, too. He’s possessed of a tireless work ethic, humility, great sense of humor, and MUSICALITY to spare. He was very kind in sharing with us all his guide to “Audition Preparation” (apparently, it works!) That PDF document will...more

I’ve been talking about it for some time, but at last it is here, my friends. The first part of my interview with Sam Pilafian. If you do not know Mr. Pilafian, I am really pleased to make the introduction. Once you meet him, you may never be the same kind of musician again, so be prepared. He has such powers:-) Most of us, of course, know and love Sam from his days with The Empire Brass. Some of us met him when we first encountered The Breathing Gym, the outstanding DVD/book he did in col...more

My friend Brian Miller is a wonderful trumpet player and teacher. He recently had an opportunity to teach in Oman, a beautiful peninsular country bordering Saudi Arabia and Yemen. I have never been to the Middle East and I was fascinated by Brian’s account of the place. I hope you enjoy meeting him! More info about Oman can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oman Brian was able take this journey because of an ad he saw at the website “Musical Chairs”, which has a treme...more

Snow day in Atlanta, so I invited some friends over to the house to try out the Griego Mouthpieces that were sent to me by Jeff Taylor. Thanks, Jeff! Man, we had fun and I really love the feel and sound of the Deco Silver 5. Bravo. I plan on trying them all and letting folks around here do the same. If you are going to be in the area (Atlanta, GA) and want to try them, contact me via email and LET’S PLAY: tom@trombonelessons.com I love trying new stuff, especially when it&...more

A while back, a very nice gentleman named Gary Garner contacted us about Episode 18, where we play and talk about the Bruckner Sym. No. 8. Gary is retired from West Texas A&M University, where he was the Director of Bands. He was invited to do a clinic at the Texas Bandmasters Convention on INTONATION. He asked if he could use our Bruckner 8 in his presentation. We were honored to abide, of course, but if you’ll recall the audio fidelity was not the greatest. In Episode 18, the audio f...more

This PDF file should be read by January 24, 2008. After that, it will be useless:-) Just click the PDF icon below please. Thanks everyone! Happy New Year. Download Ebook

“So these 4 trombone players walk into a hotel……..” Sounds like the beginning of a good joke. Well, just watch what happens! Spontaneous improvisation. Good for the chops, good for the ears, good for the mind, good for the ensemble, good for the soul. These are trained professionals (believe it or not), please do attempt this at home. Participating in this soiree are myself, Lee Watts, Wes, and a guy who asked that we never, EVER, show this publicly. (He’s our mus...more

PDF file, ladies and gentlemen. Download Ebook

***PARENTAL WARNING: bad words, good whiskey*** My friend Chris is a real special “cat”. Real special. Real. Special. I am grateful for his friendship and I find him to be a wealth of inspiration. I am certainly not alone in that regard, am I? As he states in this video, he is quite at home in his skin. He knows he is exactly where he is supposed to be. Whether by divine destiny, fortunate fate, plain hard work, or a dose of each, Chris has found himself in the very highest of musica...more

***PARENTAL WARNING: in this Episode, I endorse the consumption of beer. “Sweetwater 420″, as a matter of fact, brewed right here in Atlanta.*** Download Podcast Video

In this episode, we bring you some Holiday Cheer from the Country Walk neighborhood in Powder Springs, Georgia, USA. When I was in the Navy Band, our drum major, Jeff Myers, had a wonderful tradition of marching ’round Capitol Hill in Washington, DC playing Christmas Carols with a brass group. It was always the highlight of everyone’s Holiday Season. When Katlyn and I moved to Atlanta, we decided to keep the tradition alive……this year was the 5th Annual Brass Caroling a...more

If my voice annoys you, you’re gonna hate this one. Sorry. One full hour of me blabbing about warming up and other esoteric concepts. My only regret on this episode is that the camera wasn’t zoomed in on the 12-year-old girl that raised her hand HIGH (and PROUD) when I asked “who considers their practice time the best time of the day?”. This one’s for you, my dear! You rock. Thanks to all the great people at Slippery Rock University! What a scene they’ve got g...more

If my voice annoys you, you’re gonna hate this one. Sorry. One full hour of me blabbing about warming up and other esoteric concepts. My only regret on this episode is that the camera wasn’t zoomed in on the 12-year-old girl that raised her hand HIGH (and PROUD) when I asked “who considers their practice time the best time of the day?”. This one’s for you, my dear! You rock. Thanks to all the great people at Slippery Rock University! What a scene they’ve got g...more

Wes Funderburk, of FUNDERBONE.COM fame, visited the other day. We decided to goof around on some duets, because I guess we’re geeks. We played from these 2 awesome books. Every ‘bone player should own them: Vaclav Nelhybel: Interplays Published by: J. Christopher Music Company Ten Duets For Tenor Trombone - Pederson Published by:Kendor Music (www.kendormusic.com) We hope you have half as much fun watching as we did playing:-) It’s the most stressful time of year for musicians,...more

It’s been my pleasure this week to work with the wonderful organist, Donald Sutherland. He is the Coordinator of the Organ Department at Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. He has many recordings to his credit and has enjoyed a celebrated career as a recitalist, church organist, and teacher. Please read more about him here: http://www.peabody.jhu.edu/484 Donald was invited to perform in recital at Morningside Presbyterian Church here in Atlanta. The churc...more

***PARENTAL WARNING: The “F” word makes an appearance in this episode. It is barely audible and flies by, but you should be aware that it’s here. No, it wasn’t from my lips*** In this Episode: 1) I send a big “THANK YOU!” to North Hills High School, my Alma Mater and still the best band in the land. THE BEST. David, thanks! Areta, I love you. On behalf of all present and former students, thanks for sticking it out for so many years and with such passion. We ho...more

Here is Part 1 of the “LIVE (almost) Recital” series that Colin and I will be doing over the next few weeks. Part 1 features the “Sonata for Trombone and Piano” by Misha Stefanuk (www.stefanuk.com) Mr. Stefanuk joins me on piano and gives a brief introduction of himself and his fascinating piece. We had only one hour to get something together for you, we really hope you like it. I had to make a few rough edits but this is essentially LIVE, as we just finished a couple ho...more

“Wow, Dr.Tom, two awesome Episodes posted within 3 days! You are too kind!” Well, it’s the least I could do……because it looks like the LIVE recital scheduled for Nov. 12 will necessarily be postponed. Sorry, but coordinating everybody’s busy schedule is proving most difficult. Besides, you know who’s too kind? Nick in Wisconsin is too kind. Your letter, Nick, was one of the nicest things I’ve ever read. We wish you the very, very best as you purs...more

Here are the Trios as referred to in our interview with Mark Williamson (Episode 59). We really hope you enjoy them! Download Ebook

Our friend Mark Williamson is the esteemed guest on this Episode. You hear him in the opening credits of every Episode playing on “Tom’s Bag O Bones” with me and Wes Funderburk. Mark is one talented fellow……a former Euphonium player with the US Air Force Band in Washington, DC, he is now a law partner at Alston&Bird here in Atlanta. He also makes great music on piano, trombone (all styles, including tasty jazz), and E-flat alto Horn. He is the Principal Horn ...more

This is NOT a video, ladies and gentlemen. It’s our 2nd Newsletter, in PDF format. It can be printed and makes for some nice bathroom reading, if nothing else:-) Download Ebook

Hollie Lawing, Tim Redman, and myself took a road trip to South Carolina this week to visit with Scott Hartman! Scott has long been one of our favorite trombonists. His career has primarily involved chamber music: Empire Brass, Four of a Kind, and now Proteus 7. He is presently the Trombone Professor at Yale University. He was in Spartanburg, SC, for a performance with Proteus 7. See them on the Web at: www.proteus7.com This amazing septet was premiering a Halloween Show with the Spartanburg Ph...more

It is my extreme pleasure to introduce my friend Newell Sheridan, of www.sheridanbrass.com Newell is a purveyor of some very high quality trombones and equipment. Here, he talks about the Shires Trombones and the process of finding the horn that’s JUST right for you. I hope you enjoy meeting him! You can contact him by visiting his website, sheridanbrass.com, or: E-mail: nsherida@bellsouth.net Phone: 205-978-3773 Download Podcast Video

Well, ladies and gentlemen, if you’ve seen Episode 49, you’ll know what this is all about. Today, Colin came to “the lair” and we did a drawing for the upcoming “Viewer’s Choice Recital”. It was one of the most suspenseful and stressful moments of my life:-) Wait until you see how it all played out…………..enjoy! I talk about a review of Colin playing the Creston a few years ago with the Atlanta Symphony. Here’s the review:...more

GYSO is the Georgia Youth Symphony Orchestra. It is the youth-affiliate of the Cobb Symphony Orchestra. It consists of a number of musical ensembles: 2 full orchestras, woodwind chamber groups, percussion ensemble, and…….a REAL Brass Band (directed by yours truly and employing the British-style instrumentation with cornets, E-flat horns, baritones, euphoniums, trombones, E-flat and B-flat tubas, plus percussion). The GYSO Brass Band is open, by audition, to any players aged 21-unde...more

Yamaha Euphonium Artist Adam Frey might very well be the hardest working musician I know. He performs, he commisssions new works, he records, he publishes, he teaches, and he hosts one of the best music conferences around: The International Euphonium Institute. For aspiring pros, especially but not exclusively euphonium players, he is a terrific role model. He has created opportunities for himself and has sought musical challenges to keep himself fully engaged. He developed a passion at an early...more

Hello friends! Welcome back for more Trombone Love. We have some timely announcements and Trombone News items in this Episode, then a visit from Scott Leoman, manufacturer’s rep. for Eastman Trombones. Scott’s email address: SLeamon@eastmanstrings.com He was kind enough to bring 3 Eastman trombones to “the lair” where Wes Funderburk, Hollie Lawing, and myself put them to the test. We were impressed! It was a very enjoyable and informative afternoon. We hope you enjoy it. ...more

Dr. Irv Wagner has been a practitioner of “Trombone Love” for longer than most of us have known about the trombone. A globe-trotting ambassador for the trombone, spending just a few moments in his presence can have a profound effect. Playing duets with him can be some of the most enjoyable music-making one will ever do. Here is Part 2 of our interview, including some duets. Once again, I must thank him for taking the time to share. Thanks to all of you that have contributed to our m...more

50 Episodes! Hard to believe…… That calls for some celebration, I think, don’t you agree? We’ve had some serious fun already and much, much more is in store. To celebrate our 50th, we present Dr. Irv Wagner. I was most fortunate to meet up with Dr. Wagner recently. I had an amazing few hours with him and he was most kind in taking the time to share his wisdom with all of us. I know you’ll find his enthusiasm and spirit to be infectious. You can learn more about Dr...more

(Thanks for Opening me so quickly. This is time sensitive material.) Please note the date of this post before responding. Colin and I would very much like to present for you a “Viewer’s Choice” recital. It’s a good project to keep us highly motivated and a good chance for all of us to hear something new, or rare, or common, or whatever. Please send your requests to: tom@trombonelessons.com Students, this might be a good chance to hear a piece you’re working on? Com...more

A follow-up to Episode 47, hear comments and helpful tips from the committee. Here are just a few bits of great advice: -establish the “groove” before playing -play through passages in your head, connect your BODY to the music. I might add….KNOW what you intend to say musically -”process cues” written in your music -practice just starting passages There’s much more in this video. If you are preparing an audition, we hope you’ll view this one carefully a...more

This is the first of 2 parts. A mock audition starring Phil Looney. Also, meet James and Loudon, 2 special guests from Texas. If you are preparing an audition, there are some good tips and things to be learned here……..we hope it helps win you the gig! Our thanks to Phil for being such a willing participant. That took guts, Phil, and we appreciate it. Download Podcast Video

The trombone community of Atlanta, GA, mourns the passing of Milt Stevens and we celebrate the life he shared with us. Our hearts are with you, Priscilla, and all who loved Milt. May these sounds bring comfort and the knowledge that our teacher, our friend, is in a better place. Peace to him and to us all. We invite you to read and share memories of Milt at: www.miltstevens.com Download Podcast Video

Milt Stevens was a wonderful man and a world-class trombonist. He passed away on July 30, 2007, and we will miss him. For those that knew him, you can attest to his warmth of spirit and passion for teaching. Here is an hour-long Master Class on Intonation that Milt gave at this year’s Georgia Music Educators Conference in Savannah, GA. It’s a fantastic class and I was going to post it here in any case. It’s great stuff, as everything Milt did was prone to be. It really breaks m...more

2200 miles round-trip. To Oklahoma and back via Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Arkansas, and Tennessee. All on 2 wheels…..whew. What a wild ride and a great trip to the Quartz Mountain Music Festival: http://www.quartzmountainmusicfestival.org/ Hope you enjoy meeting Jim Cumiskey and Jamie Koon, 2 very nice guys and amazing trombonists! There will be more episodes from Quartz Mountain coming soon. Download Podcast Video

Hello, again, everyone. This episode is a pdf file, not a video, sorry. It’s our first newsletter. I wanted to try my hand at this technology because I foresee great applications for it. We’ll be able to distribute nice hand-outs for you teachers, musical examples that we can demonstrate on the videos, newsletters to keep you up to date, announcements from around the trombone world…..VIEWER submissions? Hmmmm….. The awesome photos in this newsletter were taken by the fa...more

A “Viewer Appreciation” episode in which I try to convey my gratitude to all of you. The success of these Podcasts has already exceeded my wildest expectations and we have MUCH more in store. So……thanks. Please don’t forget to visit the companion page to these Podcasts: www.trombonelessons.com/trombonepodcasts.html We disable comments here, but if you would like to comment on these episodes, please feel free to do so at our iTunes site. You can copy this address i...more

Quickly on the heels of Episode 40, here is our first-ever Viewer Mail episode, ladies and gents! Colin and George are back! Special guests Charlie Reneau and Jason Koi join us as we try to shed light on a few topics, including: vibrato, moving teeth, motivation to practice, slurring. Thanks for the letters. We’ll try to do this type of Episode regularly, so that we can try to help out our fellow trombonists:-) So, welcome back to Colin and George……..and we know you’ll...more

Quickly on the heels of Episode 40, here is our first-ever Viewer Mail episode, ladies and gents! Colin and George are back! Special guests Charlie Reneau and Jason Koi join us as we try to shed light on a few topics, including: vibrato, moving teeth, motivation to practice, slurring. Thanks for the letters. We’ll try to do this type of Episode regularly, so that we can try to help out our fellow trombonists. Believe me, I learn us much as y’all do when conducting these Q&A sess...more

David is the son of Robert, the nephew of Nicholas, and the grandson of John Childs. That’s the royal family of euphonium! 3 generations that have inspired all of us. As you hear in this episode, David has picked up the torch and continues his family’s legacy in grand fashion. I really enjoyed sitting down with this remarkable young man. I hope you enjoy meeting him. You can learn more about David at: www.davechilds.com Thanks for watching, everybody. Hope the music-making is going w...more

David is the son of Robert, the nephew of Nicholas, and the grandson of John Childs. That’s the royal family of euphonium! 3 generations that have inspired all of us. As you hear in this episode, David has picked up the torch and continues his family’s legacy in grand fashion. I really enjoyed sitting down with this remarkable young man. I hope you enjoy meeting him. You can learn more about David at: www.davechilds.com Thanks for watching, everybody. Hope the music-making is going w...more

David is the son of Robert, the nephew of Nicholas, and the grandson of John Childs. That’s the royal family of euphonium! 3 generations that have inspired all of us. As you hear in this episode, David has picked up the torch and continues his family’s legacy in grand fashion. I really enjoyed sitting down with this remarkable young man. I hope you enjoy meeting him. You can learn more about David at: www.davechilds.com Thanks for watching, everybody. Hope the music-making is going w...more