Active vs. Passive Playing

Learn to play together!

Are you an active musician or a passive one? Do you actively listen, count, think about your air or do you simply hope what comes out of your bell is fine?

Active players know their role in an ensemble and pay attention to filling that role.

Horn playing is so complex we have to count, listen, imagine and think about love, money and politics or whatever is on your mind at the same time. Fortunately our brains can handle it.

Indications you are an active player

• You think about the music before you play it
• You understand what a conductor does and are actively trying to fit in to it
• You listen carefully to the principal of your section, or if you are principal you listen to the other principals and you play in a way that helps your section follow you
• If something you play doesn’t sound good or you have trouble producing it you figure out why and work on it. Even if you don’t know why you work on it
• You count and subdivide and know where you are in the music at all times

To become an active player

• Practice playing and counting until it becomes second nature. Know what beat and what fraction of a beat you are playing at all times!
• Know how to conduct simple beat patterns and know how to do a preparation beat
• Listen listen listen! Listen to recordings, listen to your teachers and most of all listen to the people you are playing with

Wise leaders encourage active playing

• Instead of teaching by rote they insist that students sight read frequently
• They make sure that each player is taking the time to learn their individual parts
• They make sure the players know what the basic beat patterns are and know the basics of conducting
• They teach ensemble skills and insist the players learn them
  

Most sectional rehearsals as used to teach players the notes rather than on playing as a section. Pity.

If you are leading a rehearsal and you start off ‘one two three four’ then all the players will be passive unless they are counting with you and feeling your beat as you count - which they won't be doing. Counting out loud for them induces them to be passive.

Never sing a part to teach rhythm or pitch. Let them figure it out. Don't spoon feed! You can sing if you are demonstrating a style or technique but not to teach rhythm or pitch.

Sectional rehearsals should be done as much as possible without a conductor.  If you want to teach a section to play together they have to pay attention to each other, not the conductor. If you tell the ensemble that someone is too loud they will fix that particular problem but they won’t learn how to depend on themselves to play balanced.

Teach your principal player to start the section off by taking a breath for one beat before the music starts, just like a conductor gives a preparation beat. Have them practice starting together.

Encourage the section to play this way in the larger ensemble too. It's the only way to play together as a section!

When you tell them to fix a problem you are active and they are passive. If you tell them there is a problem then let them fix it, then they become active.