TPTV - Manny Laureano
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- Опубліковано 18 вер 2024
- Manny Laureano, fabled Minnesota Orchestra principal trumpeter, was convinced by his then-Seattle Symphony section-mate, Jeff Cole to begin listening to recordings of the Chicago Symphony. Being a New Yorker and Juilliard School graduate his focus up to that point had been on the New York Philharmonic, but after studying many CSO recordings he decided to take a trip to Chicago to take some lessons with Adolph Herseth, Vincent Cichowicz, and Arnold Jacobs. He described his first lesson with CSO Jacobs as one with information coming from Jacobs but for which he wasn’t in a position to receive, there wasn’t the need. It wasn’t meaningful to him at that point in his career. Fast-forward ten years and the “need” arose because problems were beginning to creep into his playing. So Laureano scheduled another lesson with Jacobs. Within twenty minutes of that lesson those issues had dissipated and he was back to playing with freedom and confidence. The aging process was catching up to Laureano and that second lesson with Jacobs helped to compensate and correct poor breathing habit and stiffness in the gut that Laureano had developed. Breathing is like a bellows. You must allow the body to expand and contract - change shape. Let the good notes teach the bad notes. Jacobs’s teaching appealed to Laureano because of Jacobs’s logically pedagogical approach. “End of the breath is the beginning of the note.” Jacobs helped Laureano’s playing AND thinking. Jacobs’s approach is bio-physically correct. Wear the hat of the performer while playing, not the hat of the investigator. Make the second note the first note. Be completely engaged in the singing of the note as you are playing the instrument. Make the instrument a mirror of your thoughts. Brass playing is not that hard if you listen to the pitches in your mind just as you are about to play. Jacobs was the first person to help him understand that the mouthpiece is the instrument, and that the trumpet is the amplifier. Laureano returned for subsequent lessons not because he had any particular problems but because he wanted to be in his sphere for an exchange of ideas and philosophies. He also enjoyed the several phone consultations with Jacobs. Jacobs was a guest speaker at a conference held in Minneapolis - “Playing Less Hurt.” Laureano was extremely impressed by an exchange Jacobs had with a bass trombonist at the conference where Jacobs took the student’s instrument and played a clear, clean, resonant note, after talking all day and with NO warm-up or prior playing that day. Play by results, don’t play by the rules. Be willing to break the rules in order to achieve excellent results. The double breath: a large slow initial breath followed by a completing prep breath in the style of the music. Laureano discusses how Jacobs described how his own teaching changed over time - technical language initially, and then progressing toward simpler message distillations.
Thanks for keeping Jacobs' ideas alive. As time goes on, it seems that brass-wind players are forgetting his focus on music and song, along with breath, and are retreating to a less-musical and more-technical approach to music making. I'm a former student of Luther and Vince as well as Jake from my days at N.U., and Jacobs' approach is timeless and needs to be kept alive as much as we are able. Thank you for this discussion.
So much good to say about this! Wonderful to hear and see you Manny! One thing I'd like to respond to- the joy we- brass players of the past...the joy of the "marathon" listening sessions! On a great stereo, focusing on the music...I hope that doesn't become a thing of the past. Thanks Mike and Manny! (Jeff Taylor)
Thanks Jeff!
If you are in Minneapolis, see if you can get David Herring to do an interview as well
Do you have contact info for Mr. Herring?
No, I don't. I think he is on Facebook. He actually switched careers I believe. I just know he and Manny both went down to Chicago to take lessons when they started in the Minnesota Orchestra.