Review

Andreas Schickentanz
Flexibility for the Modern Trombone:

, Germany
Publisher: Self Published
Date of Publication: 2023
URL: http://www.andreasschickentanz.de
Language: English

e-book. 178 pages.

Primary Genre: Study Material - method
Secondary Genre: Study Material - etude

As becomes clear upon listening to the demonstration recordings, Andreas Schickentanz is a jazz trombonist with formidable control over flexibility. His playing at times reminds me of Bill Watrous’ technical finesse. This large book is primarily focused on techniques one might find useful in constructing improvised solos that rely heavily on a technique many refer to as ‘fretting’ - using patterns that cross the grain by moving through partials with natural slurs. 

The book, apparently available only as a PDF download, is in seven large sections: Basic information, Scales, Arpeggios, Patterns, Developing Patterns, Basic Exercises, and More Flexibilities. Many of the exercises have demonstration recordings on the bandcamp website (https://andreasschickentanz.bandcamp.com). 

When I look through any pedagogical book, I ask myself, “What is the ramp?” In other words, what kind of a ramp has the author constructed to help students progress. In this case, the ramp starts out requiring a fairly high level of proficiency. Chapter 6 (‘Basic Exercises’) starts with a mouthpiece buzzing exercise of slurs leaping from low F (F) up two octaves to f1. He then sequences these two-octave slurs until the exercise ends slurring up to high F (f2). On the trombone, the next page moves quickly into fast patterns ranging up to a1 by the end of the page. As ramps go, that is a pretty tough starting point.

The early chapters serve as a kind of syllabus for what can be achieved on the trombone. If one attempts to play through these, they should be mindful of the intonation corrections needed for their instrument as the author opts to omit these stating, “The best approach is to diligently work on your aural skills, in order to develop the necessary security and stability.” To me, these seem to be presented more as a reference than for actual playing. 

The 75-page chapter 4 (‘Patterns’) is broken down by chord symbols. For a given chord symbol (A7, for example) one can find two pages of across-the-grain patterns that work with the chord. I really like the 33-page chapter 5, (‘Developing Patterns’). Here the author has broken some complex licks into short fragments to be practiced individually and then assembled into the final lick. Once again, these are organized for the most part around a given chord symbol so students can use this material to build up their libraries of available licks. There is a progression of difficulty but I find the ramp starts fairly high and then proceeds steeply. This type of ramp might be well-suited for a highly-motivated student who wants to progress quickly. Many students might find this too much to handle.

Much of chapter 7 (‘More Flexibilities’) is devoted to improvisations. I strongly recommend that students listen to Schicketanz’s recordings and closely imitate his sound since the notation does not attempt to capture every stylistic nuance. 

The book does have some sloppy errors. Chapters 6 and 7 are labeled as 5 and 6 in the table of contents. On his table showing possible slide positions (p.6) he indicates positions 2, 4, 5, and 6 for high B (b1) but oddly leaves out 7th position. In fact, playing through some of the exercises, I'm surprised at how many little errors I'm discovering. It is a shame that the book didn't receive a more careful final proofreading before release. I don't think that invalidates the premise. Having written some books myself, I know how stubbornly those little mistakes can persist. 

This book can be a great fit with a wealth of suggestions for the right person. My warning: make sure solid fundamentals and a good command of the high range are already in place. This isn’t a traditional “start at the beginning and proceed through” method book. Nor is it intended to be one. It does serve to demonstrate many possible jazz figurations using natural slurs along with accompanying virtuoso recordings that are a good representation of style.