It is also based on good timing to play the note in a logical sequence after. It is only too simple to explain it in this way. Then you create a kind of feeling that there is a arch and arrow which directs to the ceiling. And has the power to overcome your fears by pulling you into the moment itself, a kind of brain switch from left (scatter talk) to right (hearing, feeling).
In the same time it is not only air you take in but also a kind of life energy source, which makes you more awake, more vital. The breathing he speaks of starts low but after continuing inhaling climbs up like filling a glass to higher regions, under the collar bones. Willem always got strong influences from eastern visions. As a posture model for the body, the head up and the rest follows. You lift it with your fingers in the middle and the rest follows. Willem used to show many times to pick up a handkerchief. Could be a thing that the air stays there, no upward direction. Willem saw that many books are about deep breathing, which is in the basis good (relaxation), but too deep can also make you a bit numb, too heavy in the bottom. What is the taste of a strawberry? A personal thing… It is eventually based on experiencing it en feeling/hearing it. Groenendijk: Speaking of method: one of the things that Willem emphasized was that a teacher can only show you the way to enter the door. As well the book from Bram Balfoort – Houding, Adem en Keel just for breathing and posture. I also start to use a bit of Vizzutti by then, Caruso, Stamp, Clarke and I practiced a lot from the book Training Coordination Program by trombonist Bart van Lier. And pieces of course, repertoire with piano.
Later on with Theo Mertens we always had to play his warm-up exercises without sheet music. Groenendijk: When I was younger I played from Clodomir, Sigmund Hering, parts of Arban and pieces like Rondo for Lifey – Bernstein. But after that I went on a regular basis to him and also to other teachers. Groenendijk: I studied for one year at the Conservatory Utrecht with Willem, season 1996-1997. Groenendijk: My current job is tutti trumpeter at the Royal Concertgebouworchestra in Amsterdam, since august 2015. Do you teach? If yes, do you teach this method, and how? How has it affected your playing and performance?ħ.
Do you still use it? How do you practice it?Ħ. Could you describe the breathing method you learnt from Willem?ĥ. What trumpet/brass methods or books did you use to learn to play the trumpet, apart from your lessons with Willem?Ĥ. When and for how long did you study with Willem?ģ. Danny is currently doing his master’s degree with Susan Williams in Koninklijk Conservatorium, with support from Adriana Jacoba Fonds.īreathtaking: An alternative approach to breathing for trumpeters -Ģ. He is intrigued by the limitless rhetorical possibilities of early music and enjoys the portrayal of a singing trumpet via variations in articulation and sound colour. I have used interviews, surveys, and investigated scientific and esoteric sources to attempt to explain the breathing mechanism and to understand how and why Willem’s approach to breathing works, and how it can be learnt.ĭanny started playing the natural trumpet since 2011, and has freelanced with early music groups in the Netherlands and Germany. This research attempts to explore the teachings of Willem van der Vliet, a retired trumpet teacher, who presents an alternative approach of including the nose in the inhalation process. Trumpet method books contain seemingly conflicting instructions, and breathing through the mouth and focusing on low abdomen breathing dominates conventional brass pedagogy. Research supervisors: Wouter Verschuren, Susan Williamsīreathtaking: An alternative approach to breathing for trumpetersīreathing simultaneously through the nose and mouth: What are the benefits for trumpet playing? How can this technique be learned?īreathing in trumpet pedagogy is a controversial area. Main Subject: Trumpet, Early Music Performance