CONSCIOUS MUSICAL MIND, Imagination

MOUTHPIECE, Lips function precisely like vocal cords that reflect musical awareness or speech. 

TUBE, Functions as receiver of vibrations that must be acoustically tune to the frequency response of the air column within. 

BELL, Amplifies and projects the vibrations within the tube to the...

AUDIENCE, The ultimate receiver of the auditory awareness of the conscious mind.

THE INSTRUMENT IN YOUR HANDS IS JUST A MINDLESS TUBE WITH PLEANTY OF AIR, BUT IT HAD NO SOUND OF ITS OWN. ONLY THE INSTRUMENT IN YOUR HEAD CAN TRANSFORM NOTHINGNESS INTO A MINDFUL MIRROR REFLECTING BEAUTIFUL MUSIC TO THE AUDIENCE.

The subconscious brain will respond faithfully and powerfully to the conscious awareness if the analytical mind does not interfere by reflecting self-awareness and mechanics instead of sound.

Sound motivates function. Function never motivates sound.

Their commitment to musical awareness is what allows Khatia and Sergio to achieve their great level of execution. The metal and wood in their hands mean very little.

We live in two different worlds.

The external universe outside our bodies and the internal universe within our bodies. We can have vivid mindful awareness of the external world, but the mind's awareness of the internal world is somewhat limited and vague. The powerful subconscious brain can have a vivid awareness of both worlds.

Sensory awareness is the input of information from the external world to the brain via the five senses: sight, sound, feel, smell, and taste. The information from the senses is prioritized by the brain in that order.

Unfortunately we all eventually learn that the information received from the senses diminishes with age and the brain's ability to process the information diminishes as well. SENSORY AWARENESS is both a function of conscious mindfulness and subconscious brain reactiveness. 

THE CONSCIOUS INTELLECTUAL MIND vs. THE SUBCONSCIOUS REACTIVE BRAIN

Human intellect is a powerful force in the universe, but it's weak and ineffective if there isn't a symbiotic relationship between the MIND and BRAIN. The vivid imagination of the Mind is a powerful gateway of influence for the reactive function of the Brain. A powerful reactive brain exists in all creatures of the animal world and insects. All brains maintains internal life function and motivate incredible levels of external motor skill. A flee can fly with almost no intellectual capacity whatsoever. Could it fly if a high level of conscious intellect was required to motivate the complex motor function required? Absolutely not! The insect's lack of intellectual capacity is what gives it the freedom to fly or live! The incredibly complex motor skills required for flight or life support are far beyond the intellectual capacity of any mind. 

THE MIND VISUALIZES A PICTURE OF AN ACCOMPLISHMENT BUT THE BRAIN PAINTS IT ON THE CANVAS. WE MUST NOT REVERSE THE ROLES BECAUSE THAT WILL CAUSE A PARALYZING AND UNCOMFORTABLE ANTAGONISTIC RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TWO.

The most important complex function of the brain is to maintain internal life support. The subconscious brain has a vivid powerful awareness and control of the internal universe of the body. The conscious mind has very little internal awareness unless something goes wrong resulting in physical pain, emotional discomfort or malfunction of motor skills (paralysis or involuntary). The mighty brain is in complete control of the internal function of the body even when the mind is sleeping or even under anesthesia. The intellectual mind can rest without any concern that the brain will take the day off from it's most important job of keeping the body alive. 

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE ATTEMPT TO REVERSE THE ROLES OF THE MIND AND BRAIN?  THE SUBSTITUTION OF WEAKNESS FOR STRENGTH ALWAYS RESULTS IN AN ANTAGONISTIC RELATIONSHIP MOTIVATING DISFUNTION, PARALYSIS AND FAILURE.

We must have the courage to create music the same way we do everything else in everyday life. The skill of walking or talking is not an intellectual endeavor. However, knowing where we want to walk and what we want to say is a requirement conscious intellect. We can walk and talk very effectively if we allow the power of the subconscious brain to motivate the extremely complex motor function required to function. 

WE LIVE IN TWO DIFFERENT WORLDS BUT THEY ARE JOINED BY A ONE WAY STREET.

The brain is very effective at sending and receiving information to and from the external and internal worlds. But it's somewhat ineffective doing both at the same time. Water flows freely in either direction through a garden hose but it cannot flow in two directions at the same time. 

WE CANNOT ATTEMPT TO SIMULTANEOUSLY THINK ABOUT WHAT WORDS TO SAY AND MECHANICALLY HOW TO SAY THEM OR WE WILL BE MUTE.

THE SUBCONSCIOUS FUNCTIONAL BRAIN WILL RESPOND FAITHFULLY AND POWERFULLY TO THE CONSCIOUS AWARENESS OF THE MUSICAL MIND. WHEN THE MUSICAL AWARENESS OF THE MIND IS VAGUE OR NONEXISTANT, THE RESPONSE OF THE BRAIN WILL BE MOTIVATED BY THE SENSE OF FEEL RATHER THAN SOUND.

FEEL AND FAIL ARE FOUR LETTER WORDS TO A BRASS PLAYER (MUSICIAN).

Attempting to motivate the complex motor skills required to create sound with the weak awareness of feel is like trying to drain the water out of a swimming pool with a straw.  

THE SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP OF THE MIND, BRAIN AND BODY 

The components of this formula cannot be rearranged!

MUSICAL AWARENESS (MIND) + 

MENTAL COMMITMENT (MIND) = 

PHYSICAL EXECUTION (BRAIN AND BODY)

ROGER ROCCO

Students practice, Professionals perform

Sound Motivates Function

Our motors operate on DIRECT CURRENT only.

There is no reason for your success or failure other than your State of Mind.

There is a thin line between SUCCESS AND FAILURE. 

SUCCESS=SINGING. Playing by Sound Awareness to motivate physical execution.

FAILURE=FEEL, Playing by weak ineffective sensory input that motivates paralysis.

We must be musicians first and instrumentalists second.

FOCAL DYSTONIA is a treatable symptom not an incurable disease.

It's Just The Singing!

HOW FORTUNATE WE ARE TO HAVE GREAT MUSIC IN OUR LIVES!

Feel and Fail are four letter words to a brass player.

SELF ANALYSIS, SELF AWARENESS AND THE MINDLESS TUBE

I frequently work with students away from their instrument to disengage its paralyzing influence.

Although Jake used devices and exercises to encourage the large inhalation of quick large breaths,

he also used them to distract from paralyzing self awareness. At times. he instructed a student to walk or march around the room, stand on one leg or squat. The disconnect from the paralyzing influence of instrument was always immediate and powerful, but it was always short lived. However, Jake had another form of distraction that was more effective and long lasting.

MUSICAL AWARENESS AND COMMITTMENT!

PICTURES OF THE MIND (Creative Visualization)

It's not what you sound like that matters. What matters is knowing what you want to sound like. If you want to become an accomplished musician, you should imagine yourself becoming so.

TRUMPETS AND TUBAS ARE JUST MINDLESS TUBES.

Jake liked to demonstrate that a mindless tube is not the real instrument. He imagined that he was playing a trumpet when he had his enormous 6/4 York tuba in his hands. Jake could play his tuba in the middle and upper registers of the trumpet with the same ease and character of sound. Although the mindless brass tube was pitched two octaves lower and three times the length!

We were warming up in the basement locker room of Orchestra Hall for a Friday afternoon performance of The Rite of Spring with Solti and the CSO. Jake sat in front of his locker and I sat about ten feet away facing him. I was stunned when he effortlessly began to play his tuba as if it was a trumpet. It sounded like a trumpet! As I watched and listened, a powerful auditory and visual impression of the experience was deeply implanted in my mind. The powerful picture remained in my conscious thoughts the rest of the afternoon.

Later, I returned to Orchestra Hall for a rehearsal of The Civic Orchestra. I decided to sit in the exact location where I had observed Jake earlier. In my mind, I could see and hear him exactly as I did earlier. Suddenly, I knew that I could reproduce what he demonstrated. It was an exciting but somewhat frightening experience. I didn't understand how my playing could be transformed to such a new level so quickly and powerfully.

I was never able to recreate that moment again. I didn't understand that the VISION was more important than playing the tuba.

SILENCE INTO SOUND

Don't overlook the first note of passage because the notes that follow will be played at the same level of awareness and commitment.

SINGING AND BUZZING

I NEVER EVEN CONSIDERED THE EMBOUCHURE.

We don't need to study vocal chords or lips to produce a beautiful sound. We only need to study the sound.

Paralysis by Analysis

Sound motivates function.

THE BEAUTIFUL SINGER

Jake had a beautiful singing voice and was also a master of solfeggio, which he developed at Curtis. Frequently, he added unrelated words to musical phrases. Vocalists have an great advantage because awareness of words and pitch originate from the same area of the brain.

MOUTHPIECE PLAYING

As an adolescent, Jake was hospitalized for extended periods to treat his asthma. He had no instrument but he always had a mouthpiece. He remarked that he always played better when he left the hospital than before he went in. He also noticed that playing the mouthpiece and tuba was an effective therapeutic treatment for his asthma. Jake always felt better after a concert than before.

Adolph Herseth, myself, and many others enthusiastically encourage mouthpiece playing to “sing from the lips”. Mouthpiece playing (buzzing) is also a powerful tool to disengage from the paralyzing influence of an instrument. For amplification, Jake sometimes played his mouthpiece inserted into a short plastic tube with a funnel. The British hornist, Dennis Brain, recorded and performed the Horn Concertos of Mozart with his mouthpiece placed in a garden hose with a funnel at the end.

Jake also practiced with a mouthpiece that had most of the bowl removed. There was just enough metal remaining to connect the rim to the stem which went into the leadpipe of his tuba. He also buzzed with just the mouthpiece rim that he conveniently kept in his shirt pocket. In clinics he enjoyed demonstrating the beautiful sound he could produce by just playing on the mouthpiece rim.

Mouthpiece buzzing is also a powerful tool that encourages a more resonant tone. The subconscious mind (reactive) will motivate the body to compensate for the reduced amplification of playing without the instrument, however, the producer must always be highly aware of the sound in his or her mind before it can be realized mechanically by the body for an audience to hear. The BERP and it's knockoffs (buzz aid, etc.) are useful devices that allow a brass player to play their mouthpiece and finger or move a slide simultaneously

Jake never prioritized physical execution over musical awareness and mental commitment. He always transcended playing the instrument itself which he considered to be of lessor importance than what it should sound like. Jake was always motivated to influence the instrument with sound rather than allow the instrument to distract him from the sound.

He always enjoyed playing fine instruments, such as his great York tuba, like everyone else. But Jake sounded the same playing any instrument. Jake was the real instrument, not the mindless brass tube in his hands.

I fill the instrument with sound because it has none of its own.

Jake and I were warming up in the basement locker room of Orchestra Hall prior to performing Also sprach Zarathustra by Richard Strauss. Jake asked, “Do you want to play the York tuba?” Unfortunately, I was only allowed to play it for a few seconds. Too bad because it was a joy ride!

Give it back because I don't want you to get used to it!

EVOLUTION

I knew Jake for almost four decades. Only his personal lawyer studied with him for a longer time. As his assistant in the CSO and colleague teaching at Northwestern University, we worked together on the stage and in a studio. In later years, many of his former students and I noticed a gradual evolution in the emphasis of his teaching.

SONG vs WIND

Jake's teaching was somewhat analytical at times as he evaluated what a student was doing correctly or incorrectly mechanically, however, he always stressed the importance of having a musical mind that is powerfully committed to sound and communicating it to an audience. He was never an analytical teacher when an instrument was in his hands. He also cautioned his students to avoid paralyzing self analysis and awareness while playing.

When you are on the stage, always be a musician. Never be a teacher listening in the audience.

You really don't need to know much about anatomy to play an instrument. But you do need to know a lot about the music you want your audience to hear. You can be as intellectual about your understanding of the music as you want, but you must not be intellectual about how to produce it.

I don't care if everything you are doing is wrong (mechanically) if it sounds good.

(It can't be wrong if it sounds good!)

Go for the product (musical sound).

THE MAGICIAN

Jake was a master illusionist who fooled audiences into thinking that it took great strength to play his enormous tuba. It took great strength to carry and hold but not to play. His great strength was in his mind. It was not necessary to have great physical strength in his body.

Strength is your enemy, weakness is your friend.

Jake's sound was so powerful that at times it seemed to lift the entire Chicago Symphony Orchestra off the stage. Because of his reduced lung capacity, he couldn't sustain a loud or low frequency sound very long. His inhalations were always perfectly disguised by masterful phrasing. He was aware that the strong brass players around him would help create an illusion of immense sustaining power. Jake knew precisely when to contribute his sound to achieve maximum impact.

It was brilliance not deception!

I have spent my entire career comprehending and developing the musical mind of Arnold Jacobs. Every day I encourage others to also achieve his extraordinary level of imaginative musical awareness, commitment, and execution.

WE MUST GIVE DOMINANCE TO THE MUSIC, NOT THE INSTRUMENT. AN INSTRUMENT GIVES A READOUT OF THE THOUGHTS.

THERE ARE TWO INSTRUMENTS. ONE IN THE HANDS AND ONE IN THE HEAD. THE INSTRUMENT IN THE HANDS IS A MIRROR REFLECTING THE ONE IN THE HEAD.

I SING THE NOTES IN MY HEAD AS I PLAY THEM. IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW MY LIP FEELS OR HOW I FEEL.

LESSONS FROM THE STAGE

Transcending the instrument.

I played the second tuba part when the CSO performed the Berlioz, Symphonie Fantastique on an Eastern tour in 1971. At The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., Jake was very ill with a severe cold and fever. He didn't have the strength to carry his tuba to the stage so I brought it to his chair. The low brass tacit the first three movements so we always enjoy listening. While the orchestra was performing the first three movements, I noticed Jake coughing, perspiring, wheezing, and inhaling his asthma medication deeply. As the time came to play the fourth movement, I I prepared to play the first part, which enters at the beginning of the movement.

I was ready to play but my assistance was not required!

Jake played so powerfully and accurately that he sounded like Arnold Jacobs when he was 25 years old! Neither his illness, weakened body or the mindless tube in his hands prevented him from communicating a powerful story to the audience. I was stunned but I was also amused. How could I doubt that he would be able to do it?

There was never any doubt in his mind!

Singing and playing.

There was another amazing experience playing the second tuba part to Deserts by Edgar Varese. This story became an urban legend after I first wrote about it in the book, SONG and WIND. I have heard many different versions buzzing around, but this is the authentic legendary tale.

The first tuba part has a treacherous single note that has caused great embarrassment and frustration for many fine tuba players and everyone else who has had the misfortune to hear it. The single note is a very exposed Gb above high C that must be played alone, very softly, and after a long pause..

I was glad it was in the first part rather than mine. When it doesn't go well for the first player (often!), conductors may ask the second tuba to play it. Unfortunately, that option is rarely successful unless they get lucky. The great fortune never extends to the concert!

Erich Leinsdorf was the guest conductor when an extraordinary event occurred during the first rehearsal. As the time approached to play the high Gb, I could hear Jake softly singing it vocally in falsetto into his mouthpiece. At the moment when it occurs in the score, he sang the note a little louder as he pressed the appropriate valve on his tuba. It sounded perfect! The orchestra thunderously pounded the floor with their feet and applauded. Leinsdorf immediately stopped the rehearsal and shouted, “Bravo Mr. Jacobs!”. Jake and I were the only two people on the stage who knew he sang the note with his vocal chords rather than playing it with his lips! With his familiar smile and a twinkle in his eye, he turned to me and said...

My personal integrity will not allow me to do that in performance.

We rehearsed several more times and there were six public performances. He played the note perfectly each time, but I always first heard him softly singing the note vocally just before playing it with his lips.

MORE PRICELESS LESSONS FROM THE MASTER!

Thank you again Arnold from all of us whose lives have changed immeasurably because of your profound influence. And thank you to every musician and teacher who has shared your joy of music with others.

In August, 1998, my final words spoken to Jake were a promise.

“Your work will live on through your students.”

IT'S JUST THE SINGING!

Roger Rocco April 30, 2021