Reprinted with permission from Tempo, the official magazine of the New Jersey Music Educators Association.
Citation information:
Berz, William, "Band Tone: More on the Subject," Tempo, 53 no. 3 (March 1999): 44-45.
Band Tone: More on the Subject
by
William Berz
One of the band director's most important tasks in her/his role as conductor is to establish an excellent ensemble tone. In my January Tempo article, I discussed the balance principles of W. Francis McBeth. Tempo Editor Tom Mosher asked me to expand upon these ideas.
A good band sound is problematic to define and even more difficult to obtain. A number of factors contribute to formulating the band tone quality including, individual tone, instrumentation, balance, and blend. These concepts need to be covered in rehearsal in order for the band to learn how to produce the best sound. In addition, conductors need to listen to different bands, either live or on recording, to help develop a model sound that is to her/his own liking.
The Individual Student
Obviously, the tone quality of each individual student greatly influences the overall ensemble sound. Teaching students the fundamentals of playing is one of the most important tasks for any instructor, and tone production is surely a key area. Basic topics would include posture, holding position, embouchure, breath support, and the like. Also, students must have an aural model of a characteristic sound on their own instruments. (Probably, most students do not.) This might be done through taking students to concerts or providing recordings, so that students can begin to hear and formulate ideas about tone quality.
Choice of equipment is an issue as well. Even more important than students having the best instrument is their using an excellent mouthpiece and/or , certainly a more affordable choice. Many times, students can improve tremendously in a short period by using a more advanced mouthpiece.
Blend And Balance: Determining The Band Tone
One of the most significant factors determining band tone quality is blend and balance. Unlike the long range goal of improving individual tone production, it is possible for the conductor/teacher to achieve some degree of change in the bandÕs overall sound in short order. However, continual work in every rehearsal is the only way to have students truly understand how to make decisions on their own while performing.
Although related and usually considered as one idea, blend and balance are somewhat different from one another. Balance refers to the degree that some section dominates over another. For example, in a chord that is well balanced, all notes are heard equally. Blend refers to the quality of individuals and sections fitting together to form a unified whole; we do not necessarily hear individual flutes, clarinets, trumpets, and the like, but a composite band sound. Generally, individuals should not be heard in tutti passages.
In my last Tempo article, I discussed the balance principles of W. Francis McBeth, an approach that is widely accepted by band conductors. To briefly recap: the lower the tessitura of the instrument, the more present (louder) it needs to be. (The diagrams showing this theory were inadvertently left out of the January issue, so they will be included here.) By emphasizing the lower instruments, the ensemble will obtain a darker and more flattering sound (see below). This is particularly important in the band because a homogeneous sound is so desirable; it might be less true in an orchestra or chamber wind ensemble (one per part) where individual instruments need to be stressed. The band is similar to the organ, where sets of pipes possessing different qualities of sound are blended together to formulate the tone.
Putting the McBeth theory into practice: flutes, high clarinets and trumpets need to generally play softer, and the low woodwinds, tubas, euphoniums, and trombones must player louder. Of course, this assumes that the band has a complete instrumentation, an important goal to which to aspire.
The theory works within sections as well. For example, in the clarinet section, the thirds generally need to project more than do the firsts. (Some practical suggestions on assigning parts were provided in the January article.) The following diagram, an adaptation of McBeth's Christmas tree pyramid, illustrates the need to emphasize lower sounds within sections as well as within the entire band.
Conductors should devote a small part of every rehearsal to improving tone quality, intonation, blend, and balance. Given the pressures of preparing for concerts and festivals, it is sometimes tempting to omit this part of the rehearsal. However, devoting just a few minutes at every session to this will pay huge dividends.
Conductors might find the use of a method book helpful for developing better tone in the rehearsal setting. Some excellent exercises are found in the I Recommend book by James Ployhar. The drills found starting on page five include slow studies which begin with unison/octave pitches and build to simple chord progressions. Each progression is followed by a short chorale in the same key. These help to develop listening skills, improving both intonation and balance. One of the benefits in using the Ployhar book is that the exercises require very little rehearsal time.
Although students are reluctant to do so at first, singing is an excellent way to teaching listening skills because the technical demands of playing their instrument is removed. The Band Tune-Ups (published by Musigraph Publications, 12 Old Quarry Road, Cedar Grove, NJ 07009) by New Jersey's own Dr. Alyn J. Heim, can be a wonderful tool to teach balance and blend. The exercises can be played and/or sung.
There are many other exercises and studies available. Conductors might also use some of the many band arrangements of Bach chorales that are published either separately or in books. Careful playing of chorales is ideal for working on improving tone, balance, and blend.
Tonal Observations
I have found some common tendencies in bands possessing less than ideal tone quality. One of the most obvious is individuals overplaying. Overblowing leads to poor blend (and poor individual tone quality), because these individuals do not fit into the whole. These people (sometimes the best players) must be encouraged to play with restraint in order to make their sound fit in with the rest of the ensemble. Except in soloistic passages, individuals should not stick out.
Another tendency is for the entire group to play too loudly. A band will usually achieve a more flattering sound if the overall volume is reduced; a small reduction might achieve a significant improvement. The sound will be somewhat darker and a certain edge will be removed. While this is not difficult, some persistence is required as students will tend to return to old habits. This idea might be somewhat contrary to what is encouraged in private lessons where students are told to play out fully to improve breathing and projection. However, students need to understand that different settings require differing techniques and styles. It is not unlike the adjustment that is required when performing in either the marching band or jazz ensemble. Proper instrumentation is basic to achieving a good band sound. The absence of many key instruments will certainly make the goal of achieving a true band sound difficult. Conductors must use some judgment in re-writing parts to compensate for missing instruments. Ideally, we all need to work together on encouraging students to learn those instruments that are not always the most popular.
A sometimes overlooked solution to improving balance might be change the band's seating arrangement. Understanding the principle that many wind instruments are directional, the conductor can have weaker sections sit with their bells facing front, and the stronger ones directed sideways across the ensemble and away from the audience. One might consider other ideas such as seating an oboe that is too loud in the middle of the second row, rather than on the end of the first. In this way, the sound might be covered a bit. Music stands might be placed behind the horns as a sound reflector to project their sound. Placement of percussion is vital, and varies in different concert settings. Colwell and Goolsby (1992) provide many different seating diagrams in addition to an excellent discussion of blend and balance in instrumental ensembles.
Tonal Conclusions
As we enter the height of the concert band season, conductors need to diligently work on achieving the best sound possible with their ensembles. While it is understandable that the conductor might concentrate solving on technical problems in rehearsals, this temptation should be resisted. Too much emphasis on technical skill is limiting, since the band will never develop a mature sound. Its performance will not achieve the level of artistry that it should. By spending at least some time during every rehearsal on an element of tone production, students will develop better listening skills, understand the music more fully, and be able to contribute in more meaningful ways.
References
Colwell, Robert. J., & Goolsby, T. (1992). The teaching of instrumental music. Second edition. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
McBeth, W. Francis. (1972). Effective performance of band music. San Antonio, TX: Southern Music Company.