What kind of music do you prefer to play, and why?

[tbdana]

I've played a lot of different genres for fun and for money. Eventually, I settled on emphasizing commercial music, though I still do a little bit of everything.

One reason I gravitated away from classical music and toward commercial music is...the parts. Here is the part I played in a symphony orchestra, I believe it's Prokofiev. In the two movements on that page I got to play 7 notes, total.




And here is the trombone part in a big band. After playing 7 notes in that piece I'm not even out of the first measure.




I learned trombone in order to play music, not to be a professional rest counter.

Also, classical players seemed much judgier and musically more narrow-minded than commercial players. I did not like that the professionals in a pops orchestra I played in sneered derisively and looked down their noses with disdain at the music we were being paid well to play, and which also packed the Hollywood Bowl with audiences who loved it. That really turned me off. And I actually enjoyed the pops music. Also, the whole fiasco with Johnny Williams and the Boston Pops turned me off.

How about you? What's your musical preference? How did you fall into that? And why did you decide that's what you liked doing more than any other kind of music?

[TomInME]

Sometimes a low note-to-buck ratio is great - for your wallet.

Some of the stuffiness of classical playing is a direct result of that ratio: fewer, and more-exposed notes makes the stakes a lot higher, while chipping 1% of those sixteenths would be nearly impossible to notice even if you're listening closely.

But classical music does have some great moments for brass, that are sometimes worth the wait.

The solution is a brass (and percussion) ensemble. Great classical literature without all the waiting around.

[hyperbolica]

Classical music isn't limited to orchestral music. Lots of people seem to have this idea stuck in their head. Likewise, not all jazz music is big band.

My favorite "type" of music is acoustic chamber music - small groups. This usually means that you're playing transcriptions or arrangements, but not always. And it means that you can play any style.

It's a bad habit of mine to keep referring to my quintet and quartet, but that's my favorite kind of playing. We do everything from classical to rock and roll. We have arrangements of Carmina Burana, stuff from Elvis, Justin Bieber, Ozzy Osbourne, the Rolling Stones, Bach, Debussy, etc. Sometimes we make modern music sound old, and sometimes just the opposite. I like being able to pull up a Debussy art music piece right after a nice ballad from Ozzy, and follow that with a 16th century piece and then Misty. I guess I like individual styles, but mostly I like contrast and connections. Carmina Burana was written contemporarily to some jazz tunes. Same with say Copland and early rock and roll.

I used to play a lot of orchestral, and some of that is fun, but they don't let the trombone section choose the concert or even ask us about it usually. I wanted to spend more time playing, so we first formed a trombone quartet. Then I got sucked into bass bone because no one else could/would, so I started a quintet so I could play tenor. And of course now we can't find a tuba player....

[hugheddy]

If I were going to post an orchestral excerpt lacking notes for the trombones I probably wouldn't choose Prodigal Son.

[bus2]

My teacher used to have that first piece of music on his door with the quote "I love being an orchestral trombone player!"

It was funny to hear Jimmy Knepper's take on his 3 year run of Funny Girl--1341 performances. To him that was a dull day job he could do in his sleep. Not rewarding at all. It seems like players stuck in any one genre can get pretty jaded. I usually hear it from orchestral musicians trapped next to the same person for decades. Getting out of pops concerts seems to be a trend for some--loud, sometimes poorly written charts, and treated like throwaway concerts. But to a freelancer, 10-50 shows on one musical, pops concerts, and other orchestral work can be a blast. Never the same thing for too long.

[WilliamLang]

For me it's a mixture of music and audience - I like to remind myself that as much as I'm on stage to express myself, I'm also there to give a gift to the listener, and receive the gift of attention in return. So when I play new music, it feels best for new music crowds, same with classical, jazz, latin, commercial, or any other genre. I believe we exist as a community - whatever size that shape might take in a given moment - and that music feels best when the energy is shared and amplified.

[ghmerrill]

Big band music for me. I loved it when I first encountered it in 7th grade as an alto sax player, loved it through high school and college as a tenor sax player (doubling on the occasional flute part), and love it particularly now on bass trombone. Next to that, I'd have to list brass quintet (whatever genre) as a tuba player.

I've never really enjoyed orchestral playing, though I've done my time at different points in my life.

[MStarke]

Orchestral only if it's really high quality, an exceptionally nice group and/or really interesting music. And unfortunately this is too often not the case.

I really enjoy trombone ensemble and big band playing. Would love to play more wind orchestra and brass band.

[BGuttman]

I guess I was lucky in my choice of orchestra. Our conductor always wanted the trombones to have something to play in the concert. Agreed, we had a lot fewer notes than the string players, though. Still, when the trombones were called for it was usually glorious. I especially remember playing bass trombone in Borodin 2nd Symphony (2 bar bass trombone solo) and the overture to Verdi's "Nabucco" (glorious trombone chorale).

I also enjoyed Swing Band (Big Band without Bop and later), concert band, brass quintet (playing 3rd, 4th, or 5th voice), trombone quartet, Dixieland (but not as a soloist -- I just did my best to muddle through my solos), and small (theater) orchestra.

[BrassSection]

Contemporary Christian is what I play every week. I like the freedom of being the “Orchestrator and arranger” for the brass section…myself usually. I decide what horn and what to play working from the guitar work sheet. It can be challenging to blend right and add some tasteful stuff with guitars and the occasional keyboard.

Ensembles for special occasions are also nice. Real music, basically senior high level for a mix of pros and rusty former players that practice a couple of times and pull it off. My horn choice is based on what musicians are available. I’ve covered 1st trumpet to tuba.

Community Christmas band. Very challenging music, but on my favorite horn, my euphonium. 92 piece band last year, outstanding concert. Almost made me join summer community band…not enough free time to do,it right.

[Finetales]

I prefer every gig to be different. Every day is a fresh experience, and it lets me appreciate each style of music more. A mix of genres, instruments, musical situations, and live/studio is what I prefer to play.

Playing in an orchestra is so incredibly rewarding. Not having a lot of notes means you get paid to listen to great music, and you're getting paid the same as the violinists toiling away. How could that possibly be a bad thing? Not to mention that when you DO play, the notes are often very impactful. I wish I got to play in orchestras more often, but I cherish the times I do.

Big band music is probably what I get called to play the most of these days, and that's just fun. Also very rewarding when the whole band is locked in with their section, the rhythm section, and the lead players and swinging hard. Bass trombone in a big band is an absolute riot. That'll never got old.

Salsa music might be the most fun I have per note, if we're keeping score. But it's certainly not an easy ride!

And there are many more genres I play regularly. It's all fun, it's all memorable, and I don't really try to rank which ones I like the best. Music is music. The only thing that can get me down on a gig is if the other musicians aren't listening and/or just don't play well, or if the arrangements are badly written. With a crew of people who know what they're doing, just about anything is fun and rewarding to play.

[JTeagarden]

Big band on bass trombone with a good soloist in every section! There's a kind of "anything might happen, most of it good" feeling to it with the gigs, and your job is important, constantly changing, and fairly unambiguous.

After that, playing in an orchestra, then in a wind ensemble...

Least favorite is brass quintet, a complete minefield, and correspondingly nerve-wracking, more about what can go wrong than what might go right, utterly thankless.

[VJOFan]

I just try to give a s**t about whatever I’m playing. When it gets hard like the time I was subbing in a group and the guys on either side of me were randomly taking entire charts up an octave whenever they got a little bored, I’ll try to focus on my own thing. In that case I moved to the third chair saying I was more comfortable playing that book, and enjoyed the rest of the rehearsal tuning out the section and helping the singer find his lyrics. As alluded to several times above, musical preferences are mutable and more or less a decision to like or not like something.

However, having said all that, I’d take a call to play Tchaikovsky 4 or the Nutcracker any time. Both are just so fun for the bits you play and the stuff you get to listen to while resting.

[Doug Elliott]

What I have always liked is the variety of freelancing. I enjoy all of it.

What I do most now is Sinatra gigs playing 3 horn charts that I wrote - so I enjoy them because I wrote the charts to be fun and challenging, and the other horn players appreciate that too.

I also do occasionally:
Big band rehearsals (pretty much no gigs)
Combo jazz
Small big band with singers
5 horns with rhythm
5 trombone group with rhythm
Salsa
German band - trombone, euph, or tuba
Orthodox Jewish weddings
Indian weddings, Bollywood music
Church brass quartet
Musical theater shows
Orchestra

[tbdana]

Playing in an orchestra is so incredibly rewarding. Not having a lot of notes means you get paid to listen to great music, and you're getting paid the same as the violinists toiling away. How could that possibly be a bad thing?

Lots of symphony players look at it this way, and I respect it and wish I could resonate with that sentiment, but I just don't.

I don't care to be paid to listen, I'd rather play. I also never resonated with the "dollar per note played" perspective. By that metric, the musicians hired to fill union seats in NYC musicals who never show up to the gig except on paydays is the best gig in town. And to me, while that money may be nice, not getting to play sucks.

And I especially don't see it as great that I sit there counting measures or not even playing at all for entire movements while the violists are "toiling away." I don't see them as "toiling away," like workers in a coal mine. I see it as the violinists get to play, while I'm stuck there counting 175 bars of rest at a time (and in rehearsal, invariably the conductor stops the orchestra just as the trombones are about to play their two or three measures). Like the violinists get to go on all the rides at Disneyland, while I'm stuck sitting on a bench watching them. I want to play! As much as possible. I'd play every measure of every piece, if I could. That's why I do this. I don't see value in being paid the same and not getting to play. To me, it feels like I'm getting cheated, or punished. They get to play, and I don't. I suppose if I didn't like playing, I'd think it was awesome that I didn't have to, and I'd truly see the violinists as "toiling away."

But different strokes for different folks. That's what makes the world go 'round. Thank goodness we're not all the same. Variety truly is the spice of life. And thank goodness for the perspective you articulated, otherwise, if everyone was like me, all trombone players would hate symphony work. (I don't "hate" that work, I often quite enjoy it. I just wish it had more of what I like about music to offer me.)

[AtomicClock]

Playing in an orchestra is so incredibly rewarding. Not having a lot of notes means you get paid to listen to great music

Of course, this presupposes you're in a good orchestra.
Sigh.

[BGuttman]

One of the orchestras I regularly played with had to do a concert in a hospital and for some reason none of the cellos could attend. So I played the cello parts on my trombone. The music was not high, or fast, or "notey". But since cellos don't have to stop to take a breath I was exhausted half way thorough. There was no place to breathe! I managed to get through the whole concert and the conductor thanked me. Certainly earned my keep that day!

[AndrewMeronek]

For me, what I prefer to play is a moving target and obviously (like all of us) depends on how many musicians I'm playing with who are better than I am - which is usually a lot. Over the past year, I've had some really nice experiences with musical theater. But in general, I think my answer has to be this band:

https://www.rhythmsociety.net/

which I've been a member of (with one major off-time due to Army) since it's inception. We got a recording from a couple of weeks ago:



but the audio quality is pretty bad. (Not our decision, they insisted on using their own sound guy instead of ours. Understandable, with their equipment, but awkward if they aren't as familiar with the band as our regular sound engineer.) Even still, I think you can hear it's a pretty good band.

[robcat2075]

• Renaissance "canzonas" and "sonatas" in trombone choirs.

• Orchestral transcriptions in wind bands.

It's a short list.

[blast]

I started out loving big band playing. I was a member of the National Youth Jazz Orchestra GB and enjoyed every second of it. As a London freelancer, I was mostly involved in commercial work, then I won the job at Scottish Opera. I didn't particularly like Opera at the time, but after more than 40 years, I am really into Opera. You learn. Some of the greatest music for trombone is found in Opera. It does no harm to listen to great singers.

[Fidbone]

What kind of music do I prefer to play?

Anything that has a decent trombone part.

What kind of music do I prefer to listen to?

Anything that touches my soul.

[stewbones43]

I started off in British Brass Bands and, after 25 years playing and 15 years conducting, I decided that that was more than enough for one lifetime.

I still love playing in classical orchestras, whether symphonic, choral or operatic. I enjoy the precision and control needed. I try to avoid the cock-up which elicits a frown, followed by "What were you doing there?" from nearby members.

I love playing in Big Bands, especially on bass trombone. I love the more relaxed atmosphere in the big band, where a criticism usually takes the form of "What were you trying to do there?" said with a laugh.

I have recently started a trombone quartet, where the 3 tenor trombones share the 3 parts. I love the challenge of having too many notes to play and not enough time to play them and also the control needed to play something which sounds so simple, but requires so much musical communication and restraint, such as a Bach Chorale or music by either of the Gabrielis.

Cheers

Stewbones43

[BrassSection]

And for the opposite, the kind I least comfortable playing is an old hymn in a trumpet duet. Some way out there keys and time signatures in the old hymns. There’s the basic 4/4 time along with 2/4, 3/4, 6/4, 9/4, 2/2, 3/2, 3/8, 6/8, 9/8, and 12/8. And that's just a quick skim of the 500. And keys from 5 sharps to 3 flats. Mostly sharps.

Did it a few weeks ago, I must be a glutton for punishment, agreed to do it again in 2 weeks. Real music. Treble clef for Bb trumpet. Pro trumpet player beside me. Never had a trumpet lesson in my life. Worked out well last time, nerve factor will be slightly lower this time. And the gray haired members loved the hymn vs the normal contemporary song service. Bad news is, the book has 500 hymns in it.

Would I prefer a lesser talent beside me? Self conscious wise, yes. Musically, no. It makes me buckle down and kick it up a few notches when I’m playing with a superior musician…Why don’t I do that all the time??

[BrianJohnston]

Orchestra. I love the sitting and waiting around, it’s just as much of a skill as playing. How are you talking to yourself during those rests: “oh man I hope I don’t miscount, I hope I don’t f**k up” vs “oh man I love this soft entrance coming up, I can’t wait”. It’s a lot of mental strategy to thrive as a higher end orchestra player.