JOLIVET, André
Concertino for trumpet, piano, and strings (reduction for trumpet and piano)
Mark David, guest professor
Óscar Julián Tapie Ibarra, student
Marharyta Kozlovska, piano accompanist
After the student’s performance, Mark David congratulates him and makes several recommendations regarding the “Più mosso” sections towards the end: energy should not be generated by increasing volume and forcing with the embouchure, but rather through correct articulation. He then asks the student to review it at a slightly faster tempo. It is the audience who should be moved, not the performer while playing, as it is better to keep a cool head upon reaching this point. They resolve a question about how to articulate a specific final note, and the professor then asks him to try a different phrasing in a certain high passage, which, although more difficult, he believes the student can achieve.
The professor mentions the prominent trumpeter Adolph “Bud” Herseth and his views on articulation: it is 95% vocal and 5% consonant, and it is not necessary to use the tongue any more than in normal speech. It is recommended that the student articulate with less “consonant” and by using the tongue less. Then, David asks him to play with triple staccato articulation as fast as possible; if he can achieve that speed with his tongue, he should not decrease that speed when playing slower. He demonstrates this by playing an example and asks the student to apply it to a specific section of the Concertino.
For the slow section, they discuss the mute and how to prevent the tone color from changing or fading away when the dynamics decrease. To achieve this, it helps to imagine projecting the sound into the small circle of the mute. Additionally, he suggests feeling it in a habanera rhythm. For this section, they also work on phrasing, expressiveness, dynamics, etc.
Returning to matters of articulation, David proposes an exercise to practice triple staccato. He instructs him to perform it with less rigidity in the tongue, as if it were a snake.
They continue working on the articulation of certain fast passages, and the professor reiterates the importance of balancing the use of the tongue with different dynamics to avoid rigidity.
Language: English
