When he showed what a bad tune sounded like I was like 🤭...that’s me😭

He just listed everything that I've been doing wrong for the past 8 years of playing this instrument, I feel like I finally love my instrument again I feel so motivated (too bad it's 12:47 am)

This guy knows what he is talking about. I did the whole teeth thing and 2 weeks later (I only played for like 30 minutes a day at most) my tone was way better.

wish i had this man when i started off

For higher notes you will need to bring your lips closer together. High notes are achieved by moving the air faster to get your lips to buzz at a higher frequency. You will also need to arc the back of your tongue. This will force the air to move faster and increase the lip frequency of vibration. For high notes say "Tee" and low notes say "Taw." For high notes think of "compressing" the air stream in order to get a faster column of air moving.

I came here thinking it was my tone but my trombone actually just has an air leak

I love you so much. I am an 8th grader in band and I finally have found the source of my problems. For 2 years I’ve been mashing my lips together. Thank you so much I cannot tell you how much I love you. I was thinking of quitting band I was going to cry because I really loved it and wanted to go to marching band. Thank you god bless.

This man is the reason by tone improved by light years

John Wright--I loved this video! I started playing t-bone when I was twelve, then carried through college as a music major. Then I changed majors....didn't pick up the trombone again until I was 35 or 40. It really DOES all come back.

I haven't even started playing the trombone yet but this video has already given me a couple of basic tips to think about later and made me excited to start playing! Here's a man who very enthusiastically plays with his trombone.

John I just wanna say this video helped me tremendously. Everytime someone asks how I got good on my bone I tell them I came across this old white guy on KZfaq

Wow I been Playing the Trombone wrong the whole time. Playing the bad noise

Not even going to lie, this 100% helped me :))

You are a great teacher. I'm playing again after a 30 year hiatus (drafted into the orchestra for Christmas and Easter at church). Nobody ever explained these techniques to me in this way. I was pretty good back then (first chair, all city, etc.) but I guess I just tried to model the tone of my favorite players. Much better to understand what goes behind it. Thank you so much for this video!!

Wow, this helped me SO much. Really good mechanics of getting good tone. I've reeeeally been struggling with that. Thank you!!!

THANK YOU FOR THIS! I’m in the 7th grade and I have a playing test due in 3 days. I know all the notes but I could not stop sounding bubbly and off, until I found this. This helped me so much I’m ready for the test already 🙏

Thanks, I didn't realize how bad I sound... Man, I've got some serious work to do.

Thanks so much! Just by practicing your few steps my tone quality is 10x better!

This was very helpful. The points about tongue position and teeth spacing were especially helpful. Thank you!

Thank you so much, John! Your video was extremely helpful to me.

Great stuff, young fella! Love your tone! We need more brass teachers like you.

That was very helpful. Thanks for the time to make a great instructional video like this.

Super lesson, John. Good teaching.

Thanks for the advice! Helped my tone tremendously

This is amazing. Thanks, I needed this!!!

A good teacher, you know how to explain what i have been looking for.

thank u so much for this video i have been playing my trombone for three years and and this video was so helpful I SUBSCRIBED AND LIKED THIS VIDEO and again thank you so much you're awesome

Very good. Excellent demonstration and advice.

this was extremely helpful, thanks very much for the video!

I cant thank you enough. This video helped my tone so much. Thanks!

Great info that mirrors my much more limited experience (played in HS and college). I'd like to know who the people are giving you thumbs down. Probably technique know-it-all zealots who have their own rigid ideas about embouchure etc etc. Whatever.

I just got a trombone for marching band after two years of not having one, playing again for the first time was so fun but also surprising because I remembered a lot more than I thought I would. The one thing that didn’t stick with me was tone, though. I sound really bad and some of my notes are even kind of warbly, but this was a fantastic refresher on what makes a trombone sound as good as it can. Thanks!

This video was very informative. This is pretty cool, my first trombone was a King 3B, almost identical to the one you have behind you. That was a fantastic horn; it was really rugged, great for lessons, marching and jazz band. A few years ago, I changed to bass trombone exclusively, and it's surprising how hard it can be to get a quality sound on a small bore horn nowadays.

Great advice. He knows what he is talking about, and demonstrates it quite well. Pay attention. Direct other trombone players here. The hardest pitches to play well are low Bb down to low E. They often sound pinched.

Thanks John! I wish I'd been more attuned to tone when I was starting on any instrument. My son is starting trombone and his first comment was "I can't believe this will ever sound like music!" I guess that means he's listening.

I am, for the most part, a selftaught hobby,trombone player. I’ve a a few lessons over the years, and is the first time I heard to keep your teeth far apart. I just tried it, and although it’s a totally feeling, my tone was greatly improved. I was even able to double tongue a bit, something that I’ve never been able to do because there wasn’t enough room in my mouth. Many years ago, I auditioned fir the army band and was accepted into their OJT program as a trombone and trumpet player. Even the guy assigned to coach me didn’t teach me as much as I’ve learned from you tonight.

This video is really helpful! I watched this video first when i was a beginner and to this day (1 year later) i still find this helpful!

Hey man I hope to play like u one day thanks for the help ill remember it for shore😊

This is very helpful thank you sir.

thanks! this Really helped me in my middle school band.

Definitely a breakthrough thanks for your advice. 👍🤠

wowwy, thank you, I have found my problem, by teeth seperation, when I did your tips in class today, I sounded great

That's a really good video I learned a lot from it I've never had any lessons but over the years I have spoken to some really good players (including Bill Watrous) who have helped me tremendously and this video is a great help Thank you Mr. Wright When you truly love something in your life sharing and helping others to achieve comes naturally.

Thank You So Very Much. This has helped me so much

Thanks, Now I Know what i should sound like in Band Class Thank You So much!!

I’m probably late to the party but this is amazing I am a trumpet player moving to the Trombone I believe the open aperture is producing a better tone on both instruments. I don’t think I was able to do it years ago on my trumpet I needed to pinch my teeth but I was able to do it on the Trombone because as you mentioned moving to hirer ranges The aperture is formed automatically by your air this is amazing thank you. Once I discovered how to do it on the Trombone I was able to execute it on the trumpet.

Great points! Sometimes moving up to a larger mouthpiece helps also. I played a King 3B with an F attachment in HS and used a 6 1/2 AL mouthpiece. I understand that the 3B is a larger bore 'bone, which I think really helped with my tone-John in Texas (TMEA All-State-1978)

thank you very musch its realy helpful

You are spectacular sir!

Thank you so much!!!! This help a lot!!!!!!!

Thank you very much Ive blown w open lips since 1960s. Great to have space between teeth

Very interesting. I played trombone for a couple of years way back when I was at school. That would be about 1970. What a long time ago !. I'd really like to get another one and give it a go. This video has got my interest going.

Great explanation! Thank you! :)

Good discussion, understandable by students.

Thanks professor!

awesome..thank you!..

I once saw JJ Johnson at the Village Vanguard (or Villiage Gate?, anyway it was the one where you had to go down the stairs) in the early 90's. It was one those beautiful rainy but warm nights in NYC where the streets glisten in the reflected city lights. I was once quite serious about t-bone. I over-practiced and developed "leather lips", so I never really realized much success with the instrument, so as you can imagine, I was psyched to see JJ. Of course he had a beautiful tone, but there was one instance where he went totally transcendent: It was just one long tone played for 5 or 6 seconds, I think at the end of Autumn Leaves, somewhere in the mid B-flat partial of the horn. It not only filled the room but it was like he hit the resonant frequency of every single object in the room. The note had so many overtones that it felt like it emanated from everywhere. It took me quite by surprise, I wasn't sure what was happening. That guy was a trombone shaman. I didn't even consider trying to approach him later to ask. To me, a (then) young white geeky business type, he was way too cool. (He was also a bit grouchy a few times to the patrons up front that night. )

I'm just starting to learn trombone because I'm trying to switch into the bass trombone studio at my university (I'm a clarinet major)...and your "horrible tone" is still better than mine D:

Good advice. Thanks

I love your tone

Am I the only alto saxophonist watching this? lol. This is some great info. Keep it up, John.

Thank you I'm in 7th grade int band and last year you helped me get I'm my schools jazz band and symphony orcestra

very good video. thanks. i would like to see a video of you playing a song.

Thanks my friend had tone problems, ive always had good tone but this will definitely help me help him

thank you sir!

thanks for sharing.

THANK YOU

Mannn, this guys is really really good! I play his video right beside my tunner, and guess what guys... Ever time he goes F flat, the machine goes *beeppp(but-in-F-flat)* :v

That mouthpiece! I thought I was the only one.

I'm a high school trombone and u r amazing

Thank you :)

Great!

Thanks

Ah ok got you. Sorry for my snotty attitude. It was knee jerk reaction. I hear so often that a professional large bore is the "step up" horn and I think it misleads students sometimes. Once again I apologize for the attitude your info on tone quality will help me greatly with a student I have. I have told those things before but I think hearing it from another source in a different way will be the breakthrough. Thank you so much for putting up with jerks like me. 👍🤠

Nice

I have the same trombone!

Make sure that you are practicing every day in order to build the muscles necessary to hold a good embouchure.

This video just made me discover I’ve been playing wrong since the 6th grade and not once did one of my teachers say anything.

I have the same conn 3 mouthpiece

its helpful

Also I use different size mouthpieces depending on the sound I am after 6.5 al is a good all round mouthpiece but some times I us a 5G on my 42 for an even softer sound if needed and sometimes I use an 11 on my model 12 for a stronger brass sound and then I will use a 7c on my 36 for rock or jazz.

oh my god thank you so much

I'm a junior in high school but I learned this in like 8th grade, my middle school band director was smart!

Nice video John. After years, I discovered I tongue incorrectly through my teeth. Unfortunately when I've tried to tongue at the bottom of the gum-line, the tone between notes is very smeared and light; very difficult to get an articulated staccato. Also, the higher the notes, the worse the articulation. Is there any hope and exercises you can suggest? Even though I can multiple tongue without the instrument, I can't imagine it will ever be clean until I learn to single tongue properly. Thx

Thanks man didn't realize I had I my teeth so close

If your lips are so far apart how do you play the higher notes? (When I play with my lips as far apart as you say to I cant reach double Bb anymore, but when my lips are closer I can plat up to the D above that [I'm a High school freshman but the only trombone in most of the bands so I tend to play trombone 1] I practice about 3 or 4 hours a day (about half an hour on high range warm ups) so I think if it was just practice I'd be used to it by now. Any advice on what I can do?

My son's been playing on a school loaner for 2 yrs, and we are considering getting him a used Getzen 725F , which is a dual-bore instrument. He seems to sound much better on it, but I wonder if the larger mouthpiece that came with this instrument (the guy threw in a Bach mouthpiece) is forcing him to have a better mouth position. Could the mouthpiece have a bigger influence on tone than the instrument itself? And how do u like dual bore 4 this age/experience?

I tend to squeeze my lips very much, especially during the high notes. It would then prevent me to last all the way to the end of the song that I am playing (mostly for songs which lasts over 100+ bars), the area above my lips are always red and painful after I play. My instructor told me to not squeeze my lips and blow faster air into the instrument. I've tried but I never seem to be able to reach the high notes. My sound isn't very good either. Any advice on my query?

i play with first trombone and i worked about 1 years to got sound actually is :)

Is your first a Conn 6H? I got mine in 1966 and I am still playing it. I only had to have the slide realigned two years ago.

The advice in this video is great! I noticed when I recorded myself my tone didn't sound great. I found this video and now my tone is much better. The recordings are actually starting to sound good! Thanks! I do have one question though. How do retain the relaxed throat and spread mouth when I go high? It's really hard to hit high notes without squeezing things up.

How much time of practice does all of this require to achieve good tone? I have been working on this for about a week. Having seen much improvement. I dont like this bad tone I'm releasing and want to change it. I have tried to my best ability to do what you said.

Man.. I wish youtube existed when I was in school! Thanks so much!

Okay thanks I thought by moving my lips closer together I was going against what you had said. I can play the G above double Bb now, but that may be partially because I got my braces off

John . You are a good teacher. I am interested to start trombone in a small classic orchestra. Could you recomend ML bore instrument for classic? (Large bore ,I am afraid,willbe difficult to me now. As i am a beginner of trombone.

This guy is my trombone sound dad

i use a small tenor trombone but i noticed i sound a lot better with one of those bigger trombones with the trigger cause my lips are really big and I am able to articulate easier with the bigger mouth piece. Do you think if I permanently switch to a big trombone I will sound crappy on the other one over time?

I can not thank you enough. What john jazz said. Peace!

Yup

Hai John i have one question i play trumpet end my sound is like the bad tone you demostrated vs the corect one.According to the book is all right but the sound is bad hope you can help thanks anyway