Horn Hacks, Episode 10: Clean & Clear Articulation

Horn Hacks, Episode 10: Clean and Clear Articulation
Hello and thanks for watching Horn Hacks! I am Jena Gardner and I teach horn at Western Illinois University. In this episode, we are going to talk about what causes fuzzy articulation and what you can practice to make it clean and clear!
Often times, I hear students who are accurately playing the pitch but the quality of the sound is not very nice. Most often, the problem is that the student is using the tongue to start the note, instead of the air.
It is important to remember that it is air and lip tension that create a buzz, and the resulting resonance of the horn - the tongue’s ONLY job is to provide clarity at the front of the note.
To improve the definition of your articulated notes try the following exercise on any comfortable note. Let’s start with first space F, or Concert Bb.
First, play the note with a “WHO” articulation - no tongue at all, only air.
Demo.
Second, Play the note with a “KOO” articulation - using the back of the tongue.
Demo.
Notice how your air must immediately follow the “K” in order to produce a sound.
Finally, play the same pitch with a “tOO” articulation. Make sure that the “t” is gentle, and that the tongue moves quickly out of the way so that the air may flow.
Demo.
Once you are happy with the clarity of your articulation on this pitch, try it on another. You can also experiment with various dynamics and registers!
Remember, the tongue does not create sound, it only serves to define the beginning of your air flow!
If you any questions or comments, post them here, or send an email to [e-mail]!
Thanks for watching and don't forget to subscribe to the WIU Horn Studio RUclips channel and like our Facebook page ( / wiuhorn ) for more videos in this series!
For more information on the Western Illinois University, Horn Studio visit www.wiu.edu/horn
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[@tomhughes122]

ok queen literally saving my bad articulation 🙏🙏🙏

[@evathreatte7863]

Great video! I'm wondering about a couple of things. 1) what is the position of the tongue in the mouth when doing breath attacks and 2) where does the tongue make contact during articulation (i.e. behind the teeth, between the teeth, etc)?

[@jenagardner1136]

Hi Eva! Great question.
1) I like to say or think “who” when doing breath starts, keeping the tongue mostly down. However, the arch of the tongue varies depending on the pitch (air speed). The front of the tongue should stay out of the way and down. 2) this is also varied based on the range. For me, I get the best articulation when the tip of my tongue hits the front of my hard palette, right above the teeth (as in saying To or Do). As I play into the lower range of the horn I get a clearer sound with the tongue hitting between the teeth.
Everyone is different and you should do some experimenting while listening to the impact on sound. I also recommend you check out the Sarah Willis MRI video for a great visual of what’s happening.

[@ojtrumpet]

Have you used the pOOO articulation? The whOO, kOO and tOO all starts with an open embouchure, while the pOO is closed.
(P.S. Håkan Hardenberger uses the pOO every day when starting his warm up.)

[@WIUHornStudio]

Yes, that is another great option! Thanks for mentioning it!

[@Deppey]

have you tried using the pEE articulation? i made middle school allstate with it!

[@ojtrumpet]

@@Deppey No - btw - poo & pee may be interpreted as something different :-)

[@Deppey]

@@ojtrumpet its a sarcastic joke