Review

Ed Neumeister
Creative Practicing:

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Publisher: Meistero Music Productions
Date of Publication: 2008
Language: English

DVD or Digital File

Primary Genre: Study Material - book

Ed Neumeister’s Creative Practicing is a collection of instructional videos that can be purchased in physical form or as a digital download by linking through his website. I did not have the physical copy and thus cannot comment on that aspect of the product. These videos, with a total run time of roughly 3.5 hours include a sequence of lessons and additional unaccompanied improvisations. 

In Part 1, “Getting in the ‘Zone’ for Practicing,” Neumeister stresses the importance of posture and body awareness, stipulating a minimum of 12 minutes of awareness meditation, observing your breath. He demonstrates some of this on the video, although black clothing on a black background makes it somewhat difficult to observe his posture.  His advice, gathered from diverse sources such as the teachings of Arnold Jacobs and disciplines such as tai chi is generally quite good. I do have two concerns. First, when demonstrating a deep breath, what he refers to as “The Breath,” he opens his mouth fairly wide into an exaggerated “O” shape. Although he appears to be taking a deep breath, I’m not sure shaping the mouth like this is really necessary or helpful. Second, after devoting so much time to posture, I expected to see the same posture while he was playing.  Instead, he spends much of his time with his head tilted forward and down. While there is no doubt that Neumeister is clearly a gifted musician, it is important that his posture instructions and demonstrations not contradict each other.

In Part 2, “In the Zone, Preparing to Practice – Warm Up Etude,” Neumeister asserts that our first notes of the day should be music. To that end, he suggests that we should begin our day with improvisation. Even classical musicians should also begin the day with improvisation as a way to get deeper in the music. He uses the term “etude” to describe improvisations intended to focus on a specific aspect of one’s playing. For example, he recommends spending time improvising on a single major scale until that scale becomes comfortable. He then demonstrates with a nearly 8-minute improvisation sticking to the notes of the C major scale. In fact, throughout these videos, he often includes solo improvisations ranging mostly from 4 to 8 minutes. These improvisations, which often build out from a limited framework such as a single key or selection of just two slide positions, reveal the depth of his creative abilities. I was particularly impressed with what he was able to do with one “half step” etude limited only to the notes in 3rd and 4th positions. Classical musicians who may be intimidated by the harmonic language and notation of jazz may find this “limited set” approach freeing. Younger players, when presented with Neumeister’s advanced abilities may either be inspired or intimidated. I would have liked to have seen a little more educational focus in his improvised sections.  At times I felt like I was watching him practice in front of me without a clear idea of the point he was trying to make. Perhaps we should worry less about the “educational point” and just be inspired by his creativity and technique. After all, there are great musical ideas in these improvisations that an aspiring player can assimilate.

While the labeling of earlier sections is clear, later sections are not as clearly delineated.  This does not mean the advice is weaker, but it may contribute to a feeling that the compilation wanders from topic to topic. Another odd aspect of these videos is the degree of editing in the spoken sections. At times, it appears that a single sentence is compiled from three or four different takes. I found this a little disconcerting. Neumeister’s manner of presentation will click with some viewers but may be off-putting to others.

Some of the topics in these other sections include: slide technique, cleaning your instrument, the importance of recording yourself, developing articulation, using the metronome and tuner and maintaining mental focus while playing. Sprinkled throughout these presentations is solid advice born from years of experience. I particularly liked his comments on recording yourself regularly and holding off on self-critiques until you are listening to the recording. Neumeister suggests, “There should be no judgment in the moment you’re performing, just flow.” He also advises against reacting too negatively to a “wrong” note, saying, “The only note that’s wrong is the note when we cringe and stop playing and start criticizing ourselves.” Instead he advises that we should treat a “wrong” note as an unexpected gift and work with it.

One interesting aspect of his discussion on slide technique is the notion that the arm can anticipate an upcoming slide movement. In other words, the arm placement for a given position will vary based upon what’s coming next. I feel there is a small contradiction between the looseness of his wrist in his demonstrations and that of his solo improvisations. This isn’t a major problem but, once again, any educational product should strive for the highest consistency between descriptions and demonstrations. He also introduces the notion that 4th position, not 1st, is the best starting point in choosing slide positions since it is in a neutral middle location. He even refers to this as the “ubiq” position, short for “ubiquitous.” 

Trombonists should be grateful whenever a player as advanced as Ed Neumeister invests so much time and energy into creating an educational product. While I have small concerns about details of structural clarity, a slightly quirky presentation and consistency between description and demonstration, I still think we need more of this kind of material that embraces the real power of audio/video presentation. If you choose to purchase this collection of videos you will not only get demonstrations of terrific playing (I especially liked “Ja Ja See You Later”), you will also get heartfelt advice from one of our country’s premiere jazz musicians. 

-Brad Edwards
University of South Carolina