TromboneChat

It would be interesting to hear the Rochut/Bordogni vocalises sung by a vocalist. But I don't see any recording like that. I have many recordings of cellists playing the Bach suites, and that really illustrates what is lacking in even the best trombone performance. Might a vocalized vocalise be similarly enlightening?

Bordogni are used not only by trombonists, but by all brass players, and have penetrated the woodwind world as well. You'd think some singer looking for a project would be interested in an established market. Or would have been, back when CDs were sold...

From what I've heard, vocalists see that kind of thing as not especially useful.

AtomicClock wrote: ↑Sat Nov 18, 2023 5:30 pm It would be interesting to hear the Rochut/Bordogni vocalises sung by a vocalist.

Hmmm, interesting...

marco bordogni's vocalise nr. 1

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The following is the editor's note on how to use F. Sieber's Thirty-Six Eight-Measure Vocalises:
(The syllables in Italian are: da, me, ni, po, tu, la, be...then repeat) [/img]

My teacher in college co-produced a Rochut/Bordogni music minus one with Dorothy Ziegler, principal trombonist with the St. Louis Symphony in 1962. Interesting, that the same instructions can be applied to the trombone...it works!

I find it interesting that Bordogni has become what the vast majority of trombone players think off when they think "vocal", to the point where if I were to instruct a trombonist to play "more vocal" they would default to full-on Rochut-style legato. However, as much as these vocalises are of course a great tool for developing and practicing good legato, and that's good, I would question whether there's anything inherently and specifically vocal about legato. If anything I would argue the opposite is true. Singing is for the most part, not at all about this ultra legato articulation, and all about text and a gigantic diversity of articulations (a much more diverse palette of articulations than any instrument can ever reproduce). So, I would argue, the most important things we can learn from singers are precisely not to be found in how they would sing vocalise exercises, but rather in how they sing actual vocal, texted music.