Good A-R-T-I-C-U-L-A-T-I-O-N Exercises

[Dean]

Are we talking about speed?

[Ed Jones]

A-R-B-A-N

[Ryan_Beucke]

The key is to listen to yourself, and record yourself. Then get down to basics and play lots of notes throughout the range, repeated. Do a basic scale, playing each note 4 time at quarter note = 60, and really listen to it. Then you do arpeggios and all types of excercises (like in the Arbans), all the while listening to yourself. Beyond that, you really need a teacher to listen to you.

[Tubadork]

Here is a bunch of free stuff that is real good:
http://www.tuba101.net/dl.htm
Bill

[winston]

.

[Dean]

Ya, gotta go for the ARBAN vote as well.


The obscene amount of scale exercises will help a ton. You will also get more than enough of each key to become proficient in all keys. Each key in Arbans has a half dozen or so exercises in 16th note patterns. These are good to develop a nice light articulation that you can then work up for speed. You will notice that the exercises in each key are near identical. Pick one of each and do the following:

Choose one for LOUD playing and articulation. Keep this one SLOW and STEADY, but obscenely LOUD. This will help your loud playing in general, and your loud articulation as well.

Choose another for extremely soft playing. Keep this one also very slow. Play this one in two styles--soft and pizzicato-type staccatto, and soft and sustained.

Choose a third for the pure purpose of articulation speed. Dont start too fast. Make sure that you can play each note perfectly. Then slowly increase the speed on the metronome. Keep this one at a comfy mezzo-forte.

Its also a good idea to work on the relevant arpeggio exercises that are a bit ahead in the book--play the same keys as the scales you are working on.

[Dean]

One more note... I forget which keys, but the Arban book has very few exercises in the "extreme" keys (like B major, E major). Just look at the Bb and Eb exercises, and play them as if they were in B and E respectively.



The Arban book will get you a long way for general articulation. Later, if you find you have a specific artiulation issue, other books may serve you well. (For me, I had poor-speaking notes in my low register... I forget the title of the book that helped me with that--but it helped me a ton!!)

[Bob Sadler]

There's a good exercise in "the art of brass playing" by Phil Farkas (once you get past the tin can and tiretube thing) where he recommends slow scales with only a breath articulation - no tongue. Try setting your metronome to 60bpm, then do whole note scales taking a breath between EVERY measure and starting the note with air only. (it may help to say the word "hope" as you breathe in) Take your time, breathe deeply, relax and imagine you're playing a chorale with the world's best on every note. The point of the exercise is to clearly establish in your own mind the importance of air relative to tongue. A few weeks of this every day then the excellent articulation exercises already mentioned will add a nice sparkle. (also the breath articulation itself may be useful in certain situations)

Bob Sadler

[Chuck(G)]

I'd also add

K O P P R A S C H

(use the horn version with trumpet fingerings)

[tubeast]

To get slightly off a beaten track:
I think it could be a good idea to learn diverse articulation patterns (even those that are not that relevant in tuba playing).
That would make you mor aware of what you can do about certain effects.
To that end some lessons wit a classical singer or trained stage actor might work, maybe they cold recommend easy-to-do pronounciation studies.
I bought a funk bass method ("Funk Bass" by Jon Liebman, I can recommend it) and tried to imitate their articulations.
(Slap, pop, hammer-on, pull-off, skip, ghost-skip, bend, slide... there´s tons of them).
Again, in "normal" playing situations, I rarely need those, but I got more aware of what one could do about articulation. This effect wears off, by the way, so actually I should go and get this book out of the shelf once again.

[Leland]

There's a good exercise in "the art of brass playing" by Phil Farkas (once you get past the tin can and tiretube thing) where he recommends slow scales with only a breath articulation - no tongue.

Ah, there we go...

The idea is to coordinate the embouchure and windstream, ideally avoiding either a "ff-aaaa" or "p-ftha" sound. Set the lips too early or for the wrong pitch, and you'll get the "pth-" mess. Set the embouchure late, and you'll get the fuzzy entrance.

Once those two things are coordinated, start adding the tongue, and use it to shape the front of the note. You should not have to rely on the tongue to begin the note; it should instead become a style tool.

[Leland]

While I'm thinking about it...

If you're looking for clarity in fast passages, start practicing them slow. SLOW. Like, as-slow-as-the-metronome-will-go slow. Forty beats per minute.

Play it, with the same articulation as the intended finished version, and play it perfectly a few times in a row. Then, bump up the metronome about three or four bpm, and play it perfectly again.

Keep doing this until you get to the performance tempo, and maybe go a bit beyond. Don't skip the tempos in between, either. You'll be training your wind, lips, fingers, tongue, and BRAIN to play each note with proper clarity, style, and tempo.

If it's a short lick, just repeat; if it's a longer phrase, break it down into smaller chunks.

[Dean]

"ideally avoiding either a "ff-aaaa" or "p-ftha" sound."


This is a common issue--one that too many players ignore for far too long.

I find it more prevalent on THE FIRST NOTE that someone plays. Its easier to articulate a note well within a passage. But, the very first note (say, after a breath) requires a re-setting of the embouchure, along with the coordination of the release of air and the dropping of the tounge....

When I have these issues I force myself to play simple artiulation exercises--where I practice over and over--beginning a note. I play a note, take my face off the horn, breathe, re-apply the horn, and begin again. Do this until you feel you made a satisfactory "attack."


There are tons of exercises that can be done to help subtle articulation issues. Some of them are "made-up" like the one I mentioned above (which I, of course, STOLE from a teacher . Chris didnt mention any specific weaknesses--just articulation in general.


Just goes to show that even concepts which initially appear simple are indeed full of nuances.