Getting back into Mariachi: Writing and Performing when the Family grows

Look out world, I am back on the Mariachi Scene!

It has been a couple of years since the last time I have written anything about music. I guess it was a sudden break that had to happen at the time. I needed the break but apparently music didn't want me to leave. 

To be clear, I speak about music in the most humblest terms because I understand that I don't know all and will never know all that there is about Mariachi music. In spite of knowing this, I need to continue my relationship with music and began again to contribute to the Mariachi community online.

Apparently, there are a lot of internet savvy Mariacheros now then there were 5 years ago (Thank you Technology, Internet, and Social Media). So now that I am back into gigging constantly, I feel that I need to reinforce my "Standard" repertoire or "Musica de Cajon" to become a better musician. 

Five years ago, I was spending more time on technique, now I feel that I am spending more time on style rather than routine endurance-building. This realization has been eye-opening and fun. I have to be more creative with my practice time, due to me being Captain Dad during the week and El Mariachi on the weekends. 

It was tough at first because I was used to a certain way of practicing, mainly practicing in complete silence and sans children. I now can slip in an hour during nap time, a half hour while they are eating, etc. The point is I am more flexible because I need the practice. 

Double Tonguing: Revisited

Hello Fellow Reading Mariacheros,

The mastery of double tonguing is essential for any Mariachi Trumpetero; without a solid foundation, of this technique, it may become difficult to replicate the aggressive, bright, and voluminous, trumpet sound (I speak briefly about double tonguing in my post regarding triple tongue--check post archive, for more info). 

My biggest goal, regarding double tonguing, is the eventual elimination of a muddy sounding execution of this technique; to be more specific, the first half of the double-tonguing, "tu," is great, but the "ku," or second half of my double-tonguing, is the main culprit of my current frustration. 

The 'Trail Solution:"

With the help of "Arbans," I am going to concentrate my studies on lesson numbers 91 through 99 of its method, in the Double-Tonguing section. 

Respecting the proper tempo signature, while utilizing a metronome, I am going to work toward the limit of the tempo. If I can get my double-tonguing to sound like a normal single-tongue attack, I'll be happy.

 

As Of Right Now, Only Nine (9) People Have Made Their Voice Heard: What Is Your Favorite Mariachi Group?

Greetings follow reading Mariacheros, 

I am a little sad to report that, so far, as of 9 a.m. pst, there have only been nine (9) Reading Mariacheros who have made their voice heard on the pole that is on this Blog. I am simply asking the question; 

What Mariachi is dominating you music playlist, right now?

Mariacheros: I know that we can do a better showing than just NINE votes. 

I am hoping that when this pole ends, roughly, in about 7 days, we can do something, or me--depending on what is going on , or rather, any comments that I receive via email or Blog comments--for the mariachi group that is named the winner of the pole. 

Currently in the process, I am thinking about possible 'prizes,' which are the following:

1. T-Shirts; I have been fiddling around with a motto, catchphrase, double entendre, or whatever else comes to mind--it would be great to hear suggestions from the Reading Mariacheros of this blog. 

2. Signed Memento Instrument; I have a couple of instruments--which are no longer being used--that I can modify to create a mariachi memento for the winning group. We can try to see how many people we can get to sign this thing.

3. "Wild Card;" I reserve this third prize for additional gift suggestions, exclusively, for my fellow Reading Mariacheros; give us your best idea, if you have any. There are no dumb suggestions.

Well, if you have anything else to add, please let me know. 

Until next time...

Running; A Trumpet Players Best Friend

I started running, for the first time since June of 2008. I knew that I wasn't going to have the proper endurance, in order to return to my old form. However, I am going to try to work on that. This being said, running had me thinking about its correlation with the Trumpet; more specifically, as it relates to el trompetero. 

I remember my time spent in Sacramento. I had a decent relationship with all of the Trumpet players in the area. Many of them had one thing in common; the apparent love of food--to a certain extent, cerveza, as well (however,  the former observation is merely anecdotal)--and their lack of interest in cardio exercises. I am not a physical fitness buff, by any means; nonetheless, I am willing to do anything that is going improve my performance, with minimal effort. Is that too much to ask? My father, also a trumpet player, never had, or has, time to go jogging or any other personal activity. Much like the majority of the mariachi trumpet players, making a living by gigging on the weekends, the Sacramento group of trumpet players simply didn't have time to work on the physical aspect of their craft; they are too busy trying to make ends meet, running is probably the last thing, presumably, on their minds. 

For the people who do have the privilege to continue working on their musicianship, it is imperative not to ignore one's physical aspects of one' s instrument. Without it, honestly, one is half a musician. Yesterday, I think I ran, or jogged, rather, for four miles. Today, I think I am going to repeat that feat, right after I gloss my poor legs over with Bengay.

Triple Tonguing: My Achilles Heal

Do Mariachi trumpetistas really need to perfect their triple tonguing technique? To be honest, in my twenty-years of playing this instrument--15 of those years performing in a Mariachi ensemble--I have thoroughly neglected this study. This may be, in large part, because of a misguided assumption; I thought that a Mariachero only needed to master double-tonguing; which I spent countless hours trying to even my tone and striking ability. Also, trying to really over think my own mariachi technique, I would doubly practice double-tonguing with an emphasis on staccato; in later years, I would get into trouble with my University Jazz and Concert ensembles because I was attacking, very aggressively, even the most subtle phrasing. My professors later told that I had to tone down my 'mariachi sound.' What can I say, I was extremely naive and always followed a dicho, or saying, of the Mariachieros: "Aye que tocar fuerte y desafinado, al estilo de un piano del rancho." However, I was playing louder than I was playing out of tune. 

Now, as I am trying to fill in the gaps of my technique, I am returning to the triple tonguing exercises illustrated in the trumpet bible: Arbans: Complete Conservatory Method for Trumpet. Although for the last couple of weeks I have been extensively--currently, with limited results--practicing triple tonguing. At this moment, while I am writing this post, I am going over exercises 1 through 5 today; really trying to get the even tone out of my horn. 

Also, every since I started working on this technique, I really started to listen to some Mariachi standards to see if I can best utilize triple tonguing. The first song that comes to mind is "La Boda de Luis Alonzo;" the introduction, to be more specific. In the intro, the cluster of five notes--in concert pitch, it would be successive E's--is easier to perform when utilizing triple tonguing. If done correctly, the trumpet intro should sound clearer, with each note evenly spaced, as apposed to attacking it with one's double tonguing technique. 

I am still looking into more standards that would benefit triple tonguing. Any suggestions? 

Parduba Mouthpieces: To Be Or Not To Be? That Is The Mariachi Question.

This is a very dense topic for me; all throughout my life, a Parduba Trumpet mouthpiece--usually ranging from sizes 3 to 5, in cup size--has been a part of my mouthpiece rotation; largely, In the beginning my career as a trumpeter. I would relied on it more so then than in later years. Frankly, was a love-and-hate relationship with my Parduba (by the way, currently in my arsenal of mouthpieces, I have a Rudy Muck: Second Generation 19C--a subsidiary of the Parduba brand--but I am mainly using a Bach 3C). What is even more interesting is the fact that within the Mariachi Trumpet community, especially with the 'older generation' of Trumpeteros, the Parduba mouthpiece is the official mouthpiece of the Mariachi Trumpeter.

Now, I really have to preface my previous statement; the majority of mariachi trumpeters identify with the Parduba mouthpiece. I understand that many professional Mariachi Trumpeters--people who are part groups considered the 'Pillars of Mariachi'--usually have other mouthpieces they use rather than a Parduba. There decision may have multiple factors; however, I am going to my personal experience with this mouthpiece, since this is where I have more empirical evidence to discuss. 

I really believe that the Parduba works really well in disguising one's technical weaknesses, be it from total lack of practice or failure to practice properly. Two or three years ago, I stopped practicing my trumpet all together; at the time, I was using a Bach 1. However, in no time, I was unable to maintain my constancy after a couple of hours of gigging. In frustration, and the total unwillingness to practice, I chose to use my Parduba: RM (Rudy Muck) mouthpiece; it worked like a charm, clearing up my middle register, as well as improving my tonguing; I could play for hours and hours on end, without getting tired. I thought: 'who needed practice.' After a year and a half of not practicing, in combination with using my Parduba, I started to deteriorate, as a trumpet player; I was a shell of my former self. 

The great thing that Parduba's does--in large part, because of it's patented 'double cup'--for the mariachi player is fortify his / her middle register with the assistance of the double cup. This comes at steep price; one's lower register because extremely difficult to tune--requiring severe lip tuning, on the part of the trumpeter--and higher register because it’s too thin or too brassy because of over blowing. Sometimes, while using my Parduba, I would feel as if my lips were shackled onto the rim of the mouthpiece; allowing for less freedom for lip flexibility (a major concern of mine when I observe other trumpeters using similar mouthpieces). 

I am not advocating for the removal of Parduba mouthpieces from every mariachi trumpet player's inventory; I understand that many people don't have time to put in practice time for their instrument, needing to find a mouthpiece that would be able to take over some of the heavy lifting and not just augment one's skills. Currently, two of my family members, my father and sister, are using Parduba RM's; a 17c and 13c, respectfully. As I am writing this, I have officially placed my 'Mariachi' mouthpiece on early-retirement; I plan on keeping it as a nostalgic relic of my past struggles. 

(For more info on Parduba's, check out www.parduba.com)

An Introduction

I have been meaning to write about my experiences as a Mariachero, exclusively. This blog is more for my sake than any others; however, I am not going to shy away from any suggestions or criticism of my studies. I want to become a better trumpeter; there, I said it. Understanding that obtaining control and mastery over one's instrument is difficult, I know that I can do it. Therefore, let me, briefly, lay out the plan for this blog:

First, this blog is going to be used not only as a journal of my practice-habits but as a way to reflect on my studies, in real-time. This will give me an opportunity to chronicle my advancement, as well as, hear other suggestions to tighten-up my regime. 

Second, I want to be able to use this blog to connect with other Mariacheros in the blogging community, as well as others who might to work on a few things, musically speaking. 

Lastly, this blog is an experiment; I don't know how this is going to turn out. I am hopeful that this trail will not only help myself but also assist anyone who is struggling with any Maraichi-oriented questions. 

Until next time...