Schuller: Legato

from Gunther Schuller: Horn Technique

The single most important factor in legato playing (slurring from one note to another) is "breath support".  It is the air column that largely controls the vibration of the lips. The secret of good slurring is to keep this vibrating of the lips constant and controlled between slurred notes. Otherwise the beauty of the legato will be impaired or, worse yet, the player may find that the second note, to which he is attempting to slur, will not speak at all. It therefore stands to reason that extremely sensitive control of the air column is the key to a smooth, perfectly controlled legato.

The most common fault among students is that they generally give insufficient breath support in slurring. This is due primarily to the fact that there is in a proper legato a discrepancy between what one puts into the horn and what one gets out of it. That is to say, the internal approach to legato is seemingly out of proportion to the external result. It seems to be difficult for beginners and students (even many professionals) to reconcile these differences. In order to get a smooth legato between two notes, in which both notes shall be equal dynamically and qualitatively, a "breath crescendo" must be made internally. This is especially true of any upward slur, and becomes more critical the larger the skip or the higher the register involved in the slur.

Now the secret of this "breath crescendo" is in its timing. Let us call our two notes A and B. B must be prepared during A, to be exact during the last quarter or third of note A. If at this point a slight breath crescendo (controlled by the diaphragm) is made, the theoretical gap between A and B can be bridged in such a way as to make it inaudible. Incidentally, when I say "breath crescendo'" I do not mean a sudden huff of air on note B, but a smoothly accelerated increase of air prior to note B. The principle I am advocating works somewhat like a canal and its chain of locks. As in a canal in which the water floats a ship, the air carries or "floats" the note. Before being able to reach the higher water level, the ship has to be lifted to that level. Similarly, before being able to attain a higher pitch level, the note has to be gently 'lifted' to that level. In this 'lifting' process, the embouchure and valve action, if any is involved, also play an important role. I will discuss these points subsequently. As the ship reaches the upper level, the lock is opened, and the ship is able to float out effortlessly into the main stream. Likewise, once the air pressure has been built up to give sufficient "floating" support for the upper note, the tone will continue effortlessly at the new pitch level. The curious thing—and this is the point many students fail at first to comprehend—is that the breath crescendo, which is needed to lift pitch A to pitch B, gets absorbed in the lifting process, and does not show as an actual dynamic crescendo. Or if it does, it does so so slightly that it adds to the musicality of the slur, especially if it is an upward slur. Incidentally it is a fallacy to think that the above suggestions apply only to upward slurs. They do apply basically to downward slurs, the only difference being that the breath crescendo is a little more restrained. It feels more like constant rather than increased air supply. Indeed, on large-interval downward slurs, say of a tenth or a twelfth, the breath crescendo may have to be as much as on an upward slur.

As I have indicated, breath support is only one factor (albeit the most crucial one) in the production of a fine legato. The other two are the size of the embouchure opening, as controlled by the teeth, and the jaw and the timing and smooth operation of the fingers of the left hand. In slurring, the teeth must move from one position to another— up or down depending on the direction of the slur, quickly and smoothly,  "clicking" into place almost like
the gears on an automobile.

The fingering problems are less problematic, but are, precisely for that reason, often neglected. Many a slur has been missed solely through careless fingering. There are actually three aspects of fingering that are critical. One is the speed with which the key turns the valve, the other the impact with which the finger "hits" the key, and finally the timing of this operation in relation to the movement of the teeth and the flow of air. Ideally speaking, the player's fingertips should never leave the fingering keys. Beginners would do well to watch this, as I have already warned. If, however, through habit patterns already established, the fingertips leave the key when in open (upward) position, care must at least be taken to return to the key, when next used, with a moderately gentle movement. This is necessary because the key puts the valve in rotation. If this turning of the valve is too abrupt, it will automatically have a jarring effect on the air column and impair the slur, which is so dependent upon a smooth uninterrupted flow of air. By the same token, the turning of the valve must occur quickly, though smoothly. The end of the turning process must coincide with both the end of the lower teeth movement and the fully increased flow of air. The different timing of these three operations, which should work smoothly as a single unit, can be achieved only through diligent and extremely self-critical practice.

Before I leave the subject of legato playing, I must speak of one other related problem—in my opinion one of the most widespread bad habits of horn playing. It is what I call the "wah-wah" style of playing, in which each note is pushed and bent in a way that disrupts the easy musical flow of a legato or semi-legato passage. The solo from the Tchaikovsky Fifth Symphony is perhaps the most maligned solo in this respect . An analysis of the nature of the "wah-wah" discloses that, whether tongued or slurred, the beginning of each note starts with a not quite centred tone and a correspondingly lower dynamic level. During the course of the note, both tone and dynamic level are expanded and heightened. Towards the end of the note, the original level is restored. At this low point, the connection is made to the next note. It is evident that there is a certain security—a feeling of taking no chances in this "sneaking-in" approach, and this indeed is the primary reason, I think, for the prevalence of this bad habit. It gives the player a chance to "test" the note, to sort of feel his way into the note before playing it at full level. This is convenient but most unmusical.

An idea of the degree of distortion involved can perhaps be gained by comparing the the ideal of tone production, i.e. a chain, not of sausage-like shapes, but of equally matched and fully sustained block-like notes. This is, of course, much more difficult. I come back to my point about the internal versus the external crescendi. If a player is careful, the internal process need
never show externally, at least not in any excessive fashion. For let us be clear about it: the wah-wah represents a lack of musical refinement, and indicates that the player has never worked out technically the final and musically most important stage of phrasing.

The most fundamental remedy for this malpractice is the practice of long tones. If practised correctly, the player will develop a healthy feeling for the pure shape of individual notes—a shape that is best characterized as a "block of sound", i.e. a sound with a definite beginning (by which I do not mean an accented beginning), followed by the body of the note, no wider, no fatter and no denser than the beginning, and an equally full and definite ending. If, in addition, the wah-wah addicted player will for a time concentrate on approaching the beginning of each note—whether tongued or slurred-with a conscious effort at a direct full sound, he can in a short time eliminate this blight from his playing. Needless to say, proper breath support is a prerequisite to musical phrasing. For without it, neither complete control of each tone or graceful, seemingly effortless movement from one pitch to another is possible.