Why learn trumpet or trombone? The energy of metals
The trumpet and the trombone filled with energy a band, an orchestra of salsa or a big band. What they trained, where to play them in Colombia and what challenges they brought.
Because few instruments put you so quickly at the centre of group music. The trumpet and the trombone are the column of the wind bands, the glow of the salsa orchestras, the power of the big gangs and the most intense moments of the symphonic orchestra. Touch them trains the ear, air and lips control, and a very particular form of teamwork: the metal section.
The two share the essence: the sound comes from the lips that vibrate within a nozzle. Here we tell you what it's about to learn one of them, where you can play them in Colombia, who's good about them and what challenges to get to know before you start.
To sum up
- The trumpet and the trombone sound with the vibration of his lips at his nozzle and so they train a very fine inner ear.
- They are held in wind bands, salsa and tropical music orchestras, big gangs, symphony orchestras, metal quintes and ska or fusion groups.
- To play in a metal Section teaches how to breathe, attack and cut as a whole: teamwork is heard.
- Constancy weighs more than long sessions: lips are trained as a muscle and require rest.
- Real challenges: the volume in apartment, resistance at first and patience with acute registration.
What they have in common: lips, air and ear
At the trumpet and the trombone, your lips do the work of the cane. They live against the nozzle and that vibration, amplified by the tube, is the sound. The pistons of the trumpet and the rod of the trombone change the length of the tube but with the same position you can get several different notes by changing the tension of the lips and the velocity of the air.
That has an enormous result: you have to listen to the note inside before you touch itIf you don't figure it out, your lips don't know to which of the best note you can put. That's why the metals develop both the inner ear and the ability to mentally sing what you're about to play.
They also train air management (high air, well directed and without tension), face muscles and a precise interplay with the tongue.
Energy and teamwork: metal Section
A metal barely ever plays itself. In an orchestra of salsa, a band or a big band, trumpets and thrombones form a Section that works as a single instrument. Learning how to play as an instrument requires:
- Breathe together. The Section takes air at the same time so that the attack will be only one.
- Attack and cut alike. The duration of each note, the accent and the end are remembered. A tipsy cut can be noted at once.
- Following his first voice. The first trumpet or first trombone signifies the style, intensity and frambling and the other forms are attached.
- Filling up. Nobody stands out if they don't get his turn.
And there's energy. Few things feel as a mambo of metals in a salsa or an end of a joint in a full square. If you like to push a group up, the metals give them to you.
Where you can play trumpet or trombone in Colombia
Colombia has a tradition of bands and dance music that gives them a great deal of production. That table shows the typical role of each:
| Format | Trumpet | Trombone |
|---|---|---|
| Wind band (college, town or symphonic) | Melodies and pangs and glow passages. | Harmony, contracts and low in the midterm register. |
| Caribbean Bung and Fandanga Band | Melodies and strong responses with the clarinet. | Harmony and responses and its serious sound give weight to the band. |
| Orchestra of salsa and tropical music | Mambas, melodies in unison and glow in the chores. | Some orchestras build their sound about two or more thrombones. |
| Big band and jazz | It's usually four or five with his own and his own improvisation. | It's usually four with dense and lonely harmonies. |
| Symphony Orchestra | Fanpharras, alone and moments of high intensity. | Corals and climax, sometimes you wait for a lot of compas before you get in. |
| Metal quintet | Two trumpets have a good share of their melody. | A bad and half voice with the beret and the tuba. |
| Ska, reggae and fusion | A short and rhythmic line of metal. | Contracantos and Riffs with the trumpet and saxophone. |
For many children and youth, the town's high school or music school is the first door to metal. If you're interested in that path, read [tidal bands in Colombia: how to start]](/blog/bandas-de-viento-en-colombia-como-empezar).
What does each of them bring, soon?
You have to decide today but it helps to know that every instrument trains something a little different:
- The trumpet It challenges the monitoring of acute registration, precision of pistons and quick articulation. It has many moments of melodic starring.
- Thrombone He trains his ear very directly, as every note with his stick and fixes his listening. He calls for his arm, his tongue and his air to coordinate and his sound holds his harmony with his face.
Nozzle size, registration, weight and genres are compared with detail in [trumpet or thrombone]](/blog/trompeta-o-trombon). and on the pages of [trumpet classes]](/clases/trompeta) and thrombon classes you find an age and what you work with at first.
Who's good with metal?
- To whom they enjoy playing as a group more than playing by themselves.
- Those who love music with energy: salsa, pits, ska, jazz, marches.
- To constant people, they prefer to practice a little about every day and most of them from time to time, their lips thank them.
- To those who are not afraid that they will listen to him: a metal doesn't hide, and that also helps gain security little by little.
- To children and youth who wish to join the band of the school or town.
What makes a difference is air technique and patience to build an embocture.
Real challenges before we start
- The volume. A trumpet or a trombone in an apartment are heard and a lot. A practice satico, reasonable schedule and part of the studio with the nozzle alone help to live with the neighbours.
- The resistance. At first lips get tired quickly. Many metal teachers repeat a rule: they rest as much as they touch them. To force them when their lips are no longer responding only creates bad habits.
- Constancy isn't optional. A few untouched days are noticed at the mouth. Weekly and short sessions give up more than an hour at the weekend; we give you ideas at how many hours to practice a day.
- Orthodontics. It can be played with brackics, though at first uncomfortable, and discuss with your teacher and with your orthodontist.
- The reach of his arm, his trombone. It can take a while for children to get to the far-off positions of the stick and while the teacher adapts the repertoire.
Frequently asked questions
Can you learn an adult trumpet or trombone?
Yes. Many adults start a metal to play with a band or with a group of friends. The pursuit is built equal to any age: with short, frequent and well-guided practice. What best helps us to have a concrete goal, such as a repertoire or a group with which to play.
What's the bombard and looks like a trombone?
It's a piston metal with a record similar to that of tenor thrombone and a more round sound, very common in Colombian gangs. Those who play thrombon can get to the bombin with relative ease, because the nozzle and registration are similar.
To play salsa I need to know how to read score?
In many salsa orchestras the metal play with written arrangements, so reading is very useful. Still, the style (accents, how to cut, the taste of the mboth) is learned listening and playing with others.