Re: Keeping a good beat


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Posted by Very common... on July 08, 2003 at 13:57:29:

In Reply to: Keeping a good beat posted by Not quite together on July 08, 2003 at 11:05:44:

I think a lot of amateur players attempt to listen for someone starting the beat and then fall in line behind him/her. Of course, this is doomed to failure, but it's very common. You can verify this by actively "pushing" the beat a bit (you may want to tell your director in advance that you want to try this). If the other horns speed up in response to you (but still lag), that's exactly what's happening.

While following a baton is the way to perform adjustments in tempo, the basic idea of a steady beat lies between the ears of the player. Perhaps you could get the other players to recite a mantra during warmup: "The metronome is my friend"... It's amazing how many amateurs don't even own a metronome, much less practice with one.


Good luck!




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