Trombone Tips & Tricks

The trombone was one of my easier instruments.  It may not look like it, but the size of the mouthpiece made it very user friendly for me.  This makes me understand why some beginning middle- or high school band students are put on baritone.  It has the big mouthpiece, but being in tune is easier because it has valves, not a slide.

Assembling and Holding the Instrument
Insert the end of the slide (the opposite side of the mouthpiece) into the slot in the body of the trombone.  Line up so it's at a 90-degree angle, with the mouthpiece slot to the right of the trombone.  Bring the tightening mechanism (not sure of the official term) up and repeatedly spin counterclockwise to tighten.

The main body of the trombone rests on your left shoulder.  The slide should be to the right, close to parallel to the ground.  With your left hand in the shape of an "L", put your thumb on the trigger with your pointer finger on the metal bar closest to the trigger (assuming that your trombone has one.)  You can also hook your finger around the second metal bar to hold up the slide.  (I learned the hard way that this is necessary - everyone loses control of the slide at some point in time!)  Your right hand holds the metal bar

Slide Positions

• 1st - slide all the way in - main tuning note
• 2nd - in between 1st and 3rd
• 3rd - hand touching the bell
• 4th - metal part of trombone even with bell
• 5th - a little farther
• 6th - arm comfortably extended



Click to zoom

• 7th - really reaching out

There can be multiple slide positions for each note, in the same way there are multiple fingerings for some notes on the trumpet.  Also, the number of slide positions used decreases as you go higher.  For example, the low end of my range uses 7th to 1st position.  Then I run out of ways to make the slide shorter, so I have to go up a partial and start at the lower positions again.  Only this time, I don't start at 7th.  I start at 5th.  This continues as I get higher and higher; soon, I would only use 1st through 3rd position.  Here's a diagram to further explain what I mean.

Intonation

Intonation can be tricky on the trombone because there aren't valves or keys.  Therefore, it's important to have a good ear and always be listening to everyone around you.  Mr. Klepacki puts our trombone next to the baritones because they have valves and are more likely to be in tune, so the trombones can listen to them.  Their sound is also similar, which helps.

Some slide positions are more stable than others.  1st position is stable because it's as short as the instrument can go.  It provides the most reliable tuning notes.  Also, intonation tends to be off (particularly flat) in the higher positions.  This is because students don't do as good a job as estimating where the slide should be.

Trigger
Some trombones come with a trigger which allows access to extra tubing.  This extends the range and allows for more flexibility.  (A trigger becomes necessary for advanced players.)  At first, my finger hurt from holding up the trombone at the trigger.  I'm not sure if this happens to many players.  Maybe I was putting too much weight on it.  It stopped hurting eventually, so I must have gotten used to it or stopped doing it.

Instrument Size
Elementary school students often have a hard time playing the longer slide positions, such as 6th and 7th.  It's important not to let them get discouraged because of this.  Make sure they know those slide positions exist and are comfortable with the others so they can start playing 6th and 7th position when they grow and their arms get longer.

History of trombone

My tenor trombone

The history of the trombone is unclear, but it's agreed upon that its immediate precursor was the sackbut, a term which refers to any brass instrument with a slide.  The earliest trombone was in 1551, and was closer to contemporary trumpets than modern trombones.  Its melancholy timbre in the 17th century meant it was associated with death and the underworld.  However, it almost disappeared in the 18th century due to a lack of interest.

In the 18th century, the trombone began to reappear, mainly in Mozart pieces and military bands.  Several changes were made to the instrument after this time.  In the late 1700s, the Bb trombone with 7 slide positions (vs. the previous 4) was developed.  In the early 19th century, the bell was widened and the bore (interior chamber) was enlarged by 20 - 30%.  By the middle of the century, it was common to have two tenor trombones and one bass trombone in an orchestra.  By the 20th century, it was also popular in jazz and swing bands.

Trombones with triggers include
the tubing highlighted in blue.

A trombone has seven slide positions; 1st position is when the slide isn't extended at all.  Some trombones also include an additional set of tubing, accessible by a trigger, which drops the pitch a fourth.  This extends the compass of the instrument and allows the player to play certain notes in more than one slide position (more so than you could with a trombone without a trigger.)

The trombone family consists of the alto, tenor, and bass trombones.  The alto trombone has a compass of A to e'', and the tenor and bass trombones have a compass of E to f'''.  The tenor trombone sounds an octave below the Bb trumpet and an octave above the tuba.  The alto trombone sounds a fourth or fifth (depending on the key of the instrument) above the tenor.

The compass of the tenor
and bass trombones