Kurt Eide | Trombone

🐻Trombonist and Teacher @chicago
I write about making practice more efficient, effortless, and enjoyable.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

You might be the best player in town.

But if people don’t know you, they can’t hire you.

- Go see shows
- Get coffee with other musicians
- Post your music online
- Play in public

All music careers are built on one relationship at a time.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

How to get performers to play your music:

- Engrave your parts clearly.
- Engrave your score clearly.
- Engrave your parts and your score clearly.

If your music doesn’t LOOK good, you’ll never know if it SOUNDS good.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

The metronome isn’t there to make you sound good.

YOU are there to make THE METRONOME sound good.

Grooving with the metronome is the fast track to infectious rhythm.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

Plenty of great musicians can play incredibly loud, fast and sophisticated.

Great for Instagram likes, but not for actually getting hired.

The most extraordinary players are just that: Extra-Ordinary

Don’t neglect your fundamentals!

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

4: The Bathroom

Yes, far from ideal, but it could still be helpful if necessary.

I don’t know why, but I’ve found that bathrooms offer more resonance than a similarly sized bedroom or closet.

Grab some Febreeze and give it a try!

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

At one time or another, we all fall victim to “practice room sound.”

When we play in a dry, cramped room all the time, our sound becomes:
- Tense
- Small
- Non-resonant

Here are a few places to practice to free your sound and your mind:

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

3: A Church

Churches (and other houses of worship) are built to maximize resonance.

This helps develop your
- Intonation
- Efficiency
- Confidence

Offer some free preludes for their services, and you might get a deal!

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

Musicians have a lot to stress about

- Practice Time
- Gigs
- Solo Performances
- Lessons
- Recordings
- Writing
- Outreach
- Marketing
- Auditions
- and more and more and more

Each of these are an opportunity to grow. Enjoy the ride!

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

Even for the best musicians, tuning is a lifelong project that needs daily attention.

As your ear improves, it might feel like your tuning is getting worse.

Have no fear, your standards are just rising.

Keep at it, and your playing will become unrecognizably sonorous.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

Tuning smells fear.

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Here’s four steps to develop impeccable, effortless intonation.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

4: Try a Just Intonation Tuner

The TonalEnergy app offers a tuner that utilizes Just Intonation for your specific key.

Use this tuner alongside your drone to provide some extra support in developing your ear.

This especially helps when frustration hits.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

Recording yourself is uncomfortable.

But it’s also one of the fastest ways to improve.

What you feel while playing and what listeners hear are often completely different.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

Too much mouthpiece pressure? Here’s 3 tips:

- Keep ample air support and flow to feed your chops
- Check your grip and posture, support the instrument with your body, not your face.
- Keep your embouchure supple, not thin or tight

These have helped my students immensely!

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

Don’t just open the case and start playing.

Ask yourself:

“What specifically should be better in 45 minutes than it is right now?”

Pick one goal for the session.
Direction beats randomness every time.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

5: Focusing on “Winning”

Auditions give you the opportunity to revolutionize your playing.

Winning isn’t totally in your control, but your growth as a musician is.

Put your all into your preparation, and it’s only a matter of time before it all pays off.

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

For every audition winner, there are (at least) 5 musicians who have the ability and the work ethic to win that fell short.

Most of them make (at least) one of these 5 mistakes:

[Kurt Eide | Trombone @kurteidemusic]

4: Not Taking Rest Days

Audition preparation is INTENSE

For some this is motivation, for others it’s crippling.
For most, it’s both.

Take a day each week to let your mind and body recover.

I bet you’ll play better when you return.