There was a certain day in January, 1973, when I was alone with my tuba in the tuning room just off of the Symphony Hall stage, in Boston, that I called out into the air, “Jesus! If you are real, will you let me know?! Immediately, He, his Presence, was felt by me, and I […]
“Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession…Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.” ― Dietrich Bonhoeffer
JESUS…Fire and Brimstone Preacher In the midst of preaching a very fiery and accusatory sermon to the Pharisees, Scribes and multitude, Jesus said this, “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will show […]
Remembering all of those who have fallen, upon whom our freedoms rest. In particular, the many great musicians of the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard who gave Inspiration to the soldiers, and to those at home. I am honored to have served with this magnificent band, during which time we helped […]
Here is a performance which I have never shared. It’s 1971, with the Boston Symphony, William Steinberg conducting, recorded live in Symphony Hall, Boston. I am playing the Ralph Vaughan Williams “Concerto for Tuba”, on my goldbrass 6-valve Alexander F tuba. Hope you enjoy this ‘look-back’ from 47 years ago……
Commit yourself to never, ever playing mf, and that should reduce doing so to about only 75% of the time.
If you want to inhale silently, take in a given amount of air more easily, and more quickly, engage the nasal passage (the nose) when inhaling. Doing this then makes it possible to set your emouchure, with playing pressure, before you breathe, top and bottom center on mouthpiece rim, so that you, after your breath, […]
For those of you, particularly tuba players, who drop your jaw and form your oral cavity so as to say, “hooooo,” or, “huuuuuu,” will find that when you inhale using your nose as well as your mouth, that it will be almost physically impossible to form those vowel sounds. This is OK. One should not drop […]
When preparing to play an instrument, if you are inhaling only through the mouth, you can add approximately 1/4 more quantity of air, and breath much more quickly and quietly, by adding an “open nose” to the process. Nose-breathing is also the way you breath — automatically — all day long…..to sustain your life.
The Second Coming of Jesus Christ “Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one […]