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This week in the pedagogy class we focused on warm-up routines. One old standard discussed was the “Heavy Routine” found in Embouchure Building for French Horn by Joseph Singer. A classic publication from 1956, when I was a student I recall some of the big players or at least wannabe big players used this routine. While I stuck with a version of the Farkas warm-up then, the Heavy Routine was presented as sort of a badge of honor, that if you were capable of playing this routine at all you were great.
Today I had a lesson cancel and it was a light day so I decided why not try the Heavy Routine? I had not done it in years.
It starts on page 31. The text begins,
This series of exercises has been devised to aid in the building up of (a) still greater stamina and endurance, [and] (b) increased security in the high register, particularly in regard to endurance.
Sounds good! We could all use both those things. It starts out with an exercise I would never have done first by choice, on high range attacks, but with the recommended five-minute rest afterwards it was OK. Then we come to page 32. It is a long tone study that is quite strenuous followed by this text.
MANDANTORY REST. 30 Minutes Minimum.
The 30-minute rest felt good about then!
The routine itself is sort of a cross between extreme Caruso and extreme Brass Gym. On page 40 he makes it clear how much rest is required after each routine. And you will need the rest I think.
I made it through but I have to say my chops have felt better at the end of a warm-up. Which is probably why after the last exercise it says “then 30 Minutes Rest before any further playing!” I think I will stick for now with a somewhat lighter Caruso and Brass Gym inspired routine I have been doing since the summer. But it was an interesting experiment.
