Keywords
Trombone, Brass Pedagogy, Florida Band, Trombone Pedagogy, Music, Education
Abstract
My experience as a low brass player trained in an FBA (Florida Bandmasters Association) program was well rounded. I attended a school with a rich history of continued excellence, taking part in various honor bands and preparing standard trombone repertoire for the Solo and Ensemble evaluations. Despite all of this, fundamental aspects of my trombone playing were lacking when I arrived at college, remaining unrectified until I started my master’s degree at UCF. I was a committed trombone player, regularly practicing multiple hours every day during my formative years. In retrospect, I realize that my performances suffered in fundamental areas. This was due to a lack of guidance in efficient tone production practices, correct slide technique; and a tradition of sound associated with classical trombone repertoire. I am not alone in this experience. As part of this document, I circulated a survey to various professional trombonists who came from Florida band programs. The survey results proved how multiple professional trombone players that emerged from FBA programs shared similar accounts.
It is my goal with this thesis to highlight and analyze the disparities in trombone training seen in the FBA band system through the experiences of myself and others. I will also provide implementable solutions that create an equitable and realistic opportunity for all trombonists to receive information that has been kept behind paywalls of private instruction and conservatory training.
It is also my goal to offer specific orchestral teaching strategies and pedagogical methods that can be easily implemented into the average middle or high school band curriculum. These strategies take the methods traditionally used to individually train professional trombonists and apply them to the band room warmup, and solo repertoire in a way that fosters self-assessment through well informed goal-oriented practice.
Completion Date
2025
Semester
Spring
Committee Chair
Fred, Luis
Degree
Master of Arts (M.A.)
College
College of Arts and Humanities
Department
Music
Identifier
DP0029330
Document Type
Dissertation/Thesis
Campus Location
Orlando (Main) Campus
STARS Citation
Jones, Simon, "Sliding Through The Cracks: An Evaluation of The FBA System and An Exploration of Traditional Trombone Training Practices" (2025). Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024. 162.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd2024/162