Tuning & Balance Exercises for Brass Band by Torbjörn Hultmark, publ. Composers Edition, video score

These exercises can be practised one instrument-group at a time - cornets, horns and low brass - before putting it together for the full band. Due to the doubling nature of the writing (octaves and unison) not all parts need to be filled for the exercises to be fully worthwhile. Within each exercise all players are given every note of every chord (except in chords of seven or more notes) so that the tuning-specifics of every chord-note is becoming familiar. The range of each exercise is mainly in the middle-low range. Transpose the score to all pitches/keys and transpose also individual parts 8ve higher or lower where preferred and as appropriate.
We all know that it is essential for any musician or ensemble to master the important skills of good tuning and balance. How to achieve this, however, is more often than not left to individuals to work out best they can with little more than the usual ‘listen and use your ears’ type of advice. Whereas this advice indeed is probably the single most useful instruction that any musician can be given, it is true to say also that there is a lot more to it than this, and for most of us it doesn’t go very far in helping to understand the mechanics or to acquire a deeper knowledge of tuning.

Tuning and Balance Warm-Up Exercises for Brass Band - also available in separate editions for quintet, dectet and symphonic brass - represent part of my approach to this area of musicianship, developed over many years through playing, teaching, coaching, and conducting. I hope you too will find them useful.

Special thanks to John Wallace CBE and John Miller (RNCM) for their invaluable and generous advice during the writing of these exercises.

The score and parts can be purchased through the publishers, link here: https://composersedition.com/torbjorn...

Torbjörn Hultmark, April 2020
www.composersedition.com
www.hultmark.me