I am delivering a course on Trombone Techniques at Wilfrid Laurier University and revisited some techniques on producing your first sound on the trombone. I referred to a great book by Scott Whitener called "A Complete Guide to Brass" and it recommended thinking about different syllables when tonguing and releasing the air and attempting those first sounds on the mouth piece. Brilliant. You never know what gem you will find in the literature so keep reading. Keep that thirst for knowledge. 

You can hear the mock-up by clicking here.

Hard to believe I took my first "swing" at arranging this piece in 2014. Well, the band has another Mardi Gras gig so it is the perfect time to brush the dust off this arrangement and breathe some new life into it. I think it will really swing now and if it is successful (and there is no reason why it should not be), I will post it with my other charts on this site. You can hear the mock-up by Sibelius here, at the bottom of the After Hours Band page. 

Man, I hate pride. The kind of pride that makes you check how many times people visited your website or the kind of pride that bugs you to check whether the basketball association posted the correct number of baskets you scored in the last game. I do these things but really, who cares? The important thing is that you are happy with the product you are putting out on the web and that you had enjoyable time at the last game, and maybe burned off a few calories. By writing this, I am hoping to reinforce this better man, as I know that I make greater progress when I do not give a damn, whether that is playing the trombone or shooting a jump-shot. Throw caution to the wind and see what happens. I think you (and I) will be happy with the results.