Practice Break Vol. 1 Issue 1 July 2010

Hello and welcome to the very first, newly revamped edition of the Practice Break Newsletter. We have had an exceptionally busy time here at HTP with all the activity surrounding the successful launch of our new website. It is still packed with all the good stuff that you are used to but now we have added a new bunch of goodies for your delectation!

What can you now expect as an HTP member? Well on top of the regular stuff we now have practice product reviews, email tips and articles, a repository of information all free and available on the website, our regular newsletter, interviews with professional musicians discussing their insights into the world of music practice, user forums and groups, our online shop stuffed with useful practice related kit and our practice clinics.

We are excited to announce that in the very near future HTP will be offering workshops where we will bring our expertise and ideas to your school or college. These will be either for students or teachers but we are also creating workshops for parents of students as well. If you wish to pre-register your interest in these workshops then please let us know via the HTP website.

We have also set up a free downloads section of the site full of useful stuff to help you practice. All you need to do is sign-up as an HTP user to get access.

We're very excited about our free book, the HTP Beginners Guide to Practice, which will be available from the end of July 2010 so make sure you come back regularly to download yourself a copy for free!

In order to make sure you don’t miss any important info from HTP in future why not to subscribe to our monthly newsletters and, very importantly, don’t forget to tell your friends!

So what do we have for you this month?

This month we are very pleased to have Mr. Rodney Mack discussing his views on practice with HTP.

A graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, Rodney Mack has worked under the guidance of world renowned conductors such as Leonard Bernstein, Michael Tilson Thomas, Gerard Schwarz, James DePreist, John Williams, Jesus Lopez- Cobos and Christopher Hogwood. He was awarded a fellowship at the Tanglewood Music Center where he was invited to return for a second summer during which he was awarded the Seiji Ozawa Award for outstanding musicianship.

Mr. Mack was born in New Orleans, Louisiana where he began his musical studies at the age of six. When he was eleven years of age, he began taking classical trumpet lessons with his cousin, Wynton Marsalis. Referred to as a "trumpet prodigy" Rodney Mack's solo debut was at the age of fifteen with the New Orleans Symphony. After having won various solo competitions, he received national attention at the age of nineteen performing as soloist with the Boston Pops Orchestra. He has also performed as soloist with the San Diego Symphony, the Tenerife Symphony, the Orquestra Sinfonica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia and many orchestras throughout the United States and Europe.

In the course of his more than twenty years as an orchestral musician, Mr. Mack was the winner of several national and international competitions for titled orchestral chairs including positions with The New Orleans Symphony, The Colorado Symphony Orchestra, The San Diego Symphony Orchestra, The Orquestra Sinfonica de Tenerife, The Barcelona Symphony, and The Richmond Symphony. After completing a one year trial period he was awarded the Principal Trumpet position with the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia. During his tenure as Principal Trumpet with the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra Mr. Mack was appointed head of the trumpet department at the Escuela Superior de Musica de Catalunya (ESMUC) Spain's leading music conservatory. He has recently been invited to give master-classes at the Julliard School, The North Carolina School for the Arts, the National Trumpet Competition and the International Trumpet Guild Conference. He has also been invited to teach at the Eastern Music Festival and the Interlochen Music Academy.

Rodney can be heard as Soloist and Principal Trumpet on more than thirty different recordings with labels such as Decca, Naxos, Koch International Classics, and Albany Records. His year is split between his duties as Principal Trumpet with Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia and various master classes and solo engagements in the United States and abroad including touring with the Rodney Mack Philadelphia Big Brass.

1. Hi Rodney and thanks for talking to us today. First question:What was your approach to music practice as a student?
As a student I had a basic routine that was given to me by my teacher. This routine covered all aspects of playing. Once I became an older student I realized how important it was to cover every basic aspect of trumpet playing every day.

2. How has your approach to practice changed over the years and how do you find the time to fit it around your schedule?
Over the years I have become much more efficient with my practice because I often do not have enough time in the day to practice as much as I did during my student days. I write my practice times into my schedule book each day. I also write down exactly what I will be covering for each session. I tend to do a total of at least four to five hours each day. I achieve this by waking up very early in the morning...usually around 5:30AM.

3. Describe your typical practice session/routine?
I have a pre practice routine that involves warming up my body with exercise like yoga. I then do breathing exercises and mouthpiece buzzing with a tuner or piano. Then I do my regular routine. I focus on keeping the sound soft and controlled for most of my warm up session. I tend to practice in forty five minute intervals and I constantly rest as much as I play. A few times a month I take a day off to allow my chops to recover.

4. What is the best advice regarding practice that you received and who was it from?
The best advice that I received about practice came from my cousin Wynton Marsalis. When I was a kid he noticed that I was getting a bit too contented with my progress and he let me know that if I wanted to make any further progress I would have to humbly admit to myself that I had a long way to go and begin practicing my butt off!

5. What advice would you give to a budding musician regarding the type of practice they do?
Young musicians need to get used to using a metronome and tuner when they practice to develop their sense of time and intonation. Also they should listen to great music performed by their favorite musicians. Lastly, they should simply observe the beauty all around them in the world and let that inspire them to play their hearts out.

6. If you had to pick a top practice tip what would it be and why?
My top practice tip is to be organized about one’s practice. Set small achievable goals for each session and get them done by slowly working on difficult passages.

7. Last but not least, do you have any final bits of advice to offer about Music Practice?
Be like a scientist when you practice. Do not judge yourself while you are practicing, simply set goals and observe how your practice is going as if you were an impartial scientist doing an experiment. Also, have fun while you are practicing and performing and never lose track of that original excitement that inspired you to be a musician in the first place!

Thank you very much Mr. Rodney Mack.

The HTP Music practice diary.

This is a new and exciting product designed to help instrumental music students get the most out of their tuition at the same time as helping instrumental music teachers manage their students progress and guide them through their practice time.

The diary has been designed through the collaborative input of the HTP teams many years of experience in delivering instrumental lessons and workshops. The diary is a very intuitive and easy to use method of keeping track of your practice progress and also keeping notes on what you are learning in your lessons each week.

This product is especially good for use within the school curriculum and in Universities for the more advanced music student. Packed full of helpful tips and tricks plus advice on different ways to approach your daily practice.

The diary includes:
Bright accessible design, colourful easy to use layout.
Two pages a day, 12 weeks per term, 3 terms a year
Clear advice on how to get the best from the diary
3 lines of manuscript for each lesson and an extensive note section at the back
Space for parent feedback for each lesson
27 pages of useful practice techniques
Practical advice on how on how to learn scales more efficiently
Fits in most instrument cases

For prices and ordering information please check out the shop on the HTP website.

Practice links – Here we will bring you the pick of the links we have found during our web travels. We are always looking to bring the brightest and best practice related info to our users. If you know of any we have missed then send us the details and we will post it up on the website for all to see.

This editions recommended link is the very useful and interactive Games page on the award winning Music Tech Teacher website

Book/ Product reviews – With hundreds of new books coming out regularly it can be tough keeping up with the latest information. HTP book reviews are here to provide you with the latest practice related publications through our independent review section. All of the reviewed products are available through the HTP site. Each edition of the HTP newsletter will feature the editors choice of recently reviewed Books.

This months review is on 101 More Music Games for Children By Jerry Storms: .
Competition results - Well done this months winner for the best practice tip sent in by a user. Emma-leigh Mackenzie from Newcastle upon Tyne in the UK. Your prize is winging it's way to you as we write!

Next months competition - If you have any original or unusual stories of practice techniques or tips that have been passed down to you over the years then share them with us here at the HTP office. The winning submission will be published in our next edition of the newsletter and HTP goodies sent out to the winner!

If you ever run out if inspiration with your practice then check out our Tips and Tricks section of the website. If you need some more personalised help then drop us a line here at HTP for some customised practice advice.

Just to remind those with short memories! Our free downloads section is now open for business. This has a whole bunch of great material for all of our users. Best bit is that it is all free as long as you are a signed up and registered member of the HTP community.

If you would like to place a sponsored advertisement in our regular newsletters or advertise your services, online lessons or products through the site then please drop us a line at the HTP offices.

We always appreciate any feedback you have for us and we look forward to hearing from you. Happy practicing and see you next time. The HTP Team.