Slide Technique on the Trombone

Chris Crenshaw and Elliot Mason discuss how you can improve your slide technique on the trombone!
Learn more at the Jazz Academy: academy.jazz.org
Elliot Mason - Trombone
Chris Crenshaw - Trombone
Eric Suquet - Director
Bill Thomas - Director of Photography
Aaron Chandler - Sound Engineer
Richard Emery - Production Assistant
Seton Hawkins - Producer
Recorded September 20, 2013

[@muskop42]

brave of you to assume I can find 5th position

[@danchase3333]

Willy Vernia very very accurate

[@jacklane734]

Me trying to play Bb in 5th

[@carboncortex3492]

This was a constant joke in my band to the point where we kept telling, "sign our petition to get rid of 5th position!"

[@KTJMProductions]

Wooooooooooow I feel this so hard

[@giancarlolando1494]

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[@aisuyukichan]

if only I can get a girl that looks at me like Elliot looks at Chris

[@MrYeet-ip4qj]

Bruh

[@subschool5]

LOL so true

[@subschool5]

musicians are strong listeners

[@dudeman3664]

If only any trombone player could get one person who cared 1/2 as much as Elliot about the trombone.

[@peterharrison5833]

Learn to play guitar....

[@giantsparkplug3462]

Those slide positions on A-Train alone are worth the price of admission.

[@Michael-Oh]

I play sax so every note corresponds to a unique fingering so I can't even image how to approach the trombone when one note can be played on multiple positions and you have to pick the best positions to suit the tune?! Mind blown.

[@steamfend333]

That's how it is with every brass instrument

[@qtip7697]

steamfend All brass instruments are difficult, but with valve or button instruments, the concern of quick movement in between notes isn’t nearly as prominent as it is on the trombone.

[@mikeyeyey8678]

Thats not true. There is many alternate fingerings on the sax

[@Michael-Oh]

@@mikeyeyey8678 Yeah there is but most of it is like the three ways to play Bb or F sharp and long fingerings for high notes or altissimo notes and that's really it. In fact, most players get by without playing alternate fingerings. Most notes on the sax are linked to one unique fingering. Imagine you can play a C,E,D with 5 different position combinations and you have to decide which one is best on the fly?! Brass players wtf stop trying so hard.

[@Michael-Oh]

@@qtip7697 WTF brass players stop trying so hard!

[@hunterwest9702]

I loved how the guy on the right was a little blown away when the guy on the left was explaining how to figure your positions out towards the end of the video.

[@robertharrison8762]

never thought this before while playing scales so I'll definitely implement it now I've got some tricky runs and licks for grade 8. thanks guys!

[@mariemccann5895]

Awesome skill. I had no idea the instrument was so complex to play.

[@AwayAwayandUp]

Thanks Chris and Elliot!

[@musicmanson]

Chris Crenshaw on trombone technique 🤌🏾🤌🏾🤌🏾

[@KevbSka]

Wow this are great techniques hoping I can make this on my playing.

[@BernhardMichaelPlos]

great video, thanks for sharing!

[@UnwrappingByMimiKoteng]

Amazing

[@hanfpeter4190]

6:06 so basicly this man just started to play wii music.

[@mikesosa1146]

Thank you!

[@steamfend333]

I don't even play trombone. Why am I here?

[@douglasdiggins8296]

Brass is great for that. I play trumpet but I love finding out stuff about Trombone, French Horn and Saxophone.

[@peng2816]

It probably was in your recommended list.

[@Slynell1]

Me either but you can learn from every situation

[@oliviapereira364]

I play violin. I'm here to learn Harmony. And it's working, brass instruments have a different approach to harmony due to coming from the harmonic series to filling the notes in between (violinists usually start from scales and then "jump notes" to intervals- I mean when playing, from a technical/practice approach, of course we take harmony classes, but it's not the same as when you need it as a first approach towards your instrument). Trying to find the same notes in different positions in a trombone works a bit like a quizz to me, since I don't know squat about trombones and sliding, so the only way I have a chance of trying to keep up is going along the harmonic series (in this case maybe a brass player can do the same I'm doing here and study harmony from the dividing of a string POV- 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, and so on). I think we should be less isolated in our bubbles, which is more easily said than done...

[@benjaminwilkin2960]

Thanks

[@a_literal_brick]

You can tell how expensive the trombone on the right is by the amount of metal filling the space in the back

[@paulbrewer2374]

On the other hand, Chris is playing a vintage King 3B. I have one and it's a gem - that trombonists would pay a lot for.

[@PumilateVFX]

@@paulbrewer2374 how does the tone compare to a student trombone

[@Philbatrom]

Brilliant

[@cheekywombat5910]

Does anyone know what mouthpieces Chris and Elliot use? Thanks

[@TheBoogie1127]

Chris Crenshaw uses a Bach Megatone. Maybe a 5G? Elliot Mason uses a Monet mouthpiece.

[@thomasweiland8157]

Adrian Braga that’s not a monette

[@counterfit5]

@@thomasweiland8157 you sure? It looks a hell of a lot like Wynton's Monette trumpet.

[@thomasweiland8157]

counterfit5 100% sure. The monette small bore mouthpieces are quite big yes, but not as huge as Elliot’s in this clip Looks like some heavy top mpc. From another manufacturer. Don’t no anything about the brand though.

[@tigere.3462]

Wow

[@thatrecord5313]

Can't really make wrist movements on my plastic trombone...

[@a_literal_brick]

Get a metal one

[@danchase3333]

B R I C K. obviously this person has a plastic one for a reason, i’m sure they’d had a real one if they could, I have both, you just need to practice, it can be done with the plastic.

[@a_literal_brick]

That Record in all seriousness, you’re gonna want to get a real trombone as soon as possible. I used to only have plastic in middle school, and they’re pretty much garbage for practice. A decent metal one will be more expensive, but even a terrible one in the same price range as a pBone would be better. If I were you, I would start saving up and asking around if anyone has an old horn that you can take/buy/borrow. It’s definitely worth getting metal. Hope that helps

[@yaboi-km2qn]

I had a plastic one so i could carry it to school (I had to walk for like 20 minutes) but then I spent £70 on a second hand one that turned out to be the slide of one model and the bell of another but even that was an improvement.

[@grifelad3933]

The A Train!!!

[@andrewnguyen6211]

What was the song they were playing thru at the end doe

[@benjamindady4366]

Andrew Nguyen take the a train, duke ellington

[@JazzFan76]

I'm guessing with valves trombones, you play like the trumpet..

[@Sphagetti__]

There is actually specific valve trombone technique. Basically what you do is you buy a normal trombone and then just follow this video! :)

[@heber991]

The valve trombone is like the trumpet but make sure you can handle the weight and do lots of stretching because I have one and play for hours at a time and my back starts to hurt. Overall it does the job and sounds amazing when someone knows how to play it

[@cicadaboi101]

@Julian Solano Pretty much.

[@lindabocskai5686]

I used to prefer keeping a handkerchief in my hand while I was playing on my exams.

[@shanefitzgerald517]

Chris Crenshaw can confirm... all Italians are art critics

[@recastle8051]

7:17 we played this song in jazz one day.

[@lotussibert6482]

Play like an Italian man angry at his family, I gotchu lmao

[@strutskirill]

Жаль, инструменты ободранные.

[@myseanmiller3186]

That boy is bad lol...

[@stan6721]

Dummy

[@PumilateVFX]

?

[@pipamusa]

So good. I’ve been going over these ideas with a beginner student so right from the start we are considering alternative positions where appropriate so it becomes habit