by Christian Morabito
How did Arnold Jacobs influence my life, even without knowing him?
In December of 2018, I started to watch videos of maestro Charles Vernon (bass trombonist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra) on YouTube. I always liked his way of playing, his sound and his musicality. At that moment, it seemed to me that his pedagogical approach was very interesting, from his simple explanations and even his sense of humor. I was focused on his approach when I thought, “Why don't I subtitle his videos?” So I sent him an email since I needed permission to do the work, but I never got an answer. Of course I knew he was a very busy person. I started to search for additional information because I felt that my concepts of sound, respiration, and other aspects of playing which I had been learning from Jorge Ramirez Álvarez (former bass trombonist of Buenos Aires Philharmonic Orchestra, where I play as a low horn player) were similar.
One day, while searching for information similar to Mr. Vernon’s, I discovered an Arnold Jacobs page: TUBAPEOPLETV, hosted by a man named Michael Grose. Former students of Mr. Jacobs were talking about their private lesson experiences in the basement of his South Normal Street home (the famous basement!) or in the Fine Arts Building, both in Chicago. At that moment, I had the idea of sending an email directly to the Arnold Jacobs page, since I had not received an answer from Mr. Vernon and I didn't want to say something without first learning about it. I sent the email, asking for permission to write subtitles for these video interviews (all of which were so interesting!) in Spanish—my native language, by the way—and some minutes later I received an automatic answer saying something like: “Shortly we will answer your request,” and I thought, “Ufff, he is not going to answer me either!” To my delight, the next day I received a very nice and warm e-mail that said, “Dear Christian, please feel free to subtitle everything you want; if it is about sharing Mr. Jacobs’ teaching…just feel free to do it.” And it was signed by…Michael Grose! I was astonished! Immediately I asked, “Are you Michael Grose?” And when he replied, “Yes,” I at last thought: Wow! It's him!
Since that moment, we have started an amazing friendship even though we don't know each other in person yet. Now, after being in touch for three years, I consider him part of my life–and of my family too.
Until now, I have completed more than 160 videos about Mr. Jacobs, subtitled in Spanish, and together, Mike and I have created a web page www.arnoldjacobsenespanol.com where you can find information in video format as well as articles also translated into Spanish.
Mr. Jacobs' approach is the same I’d learned from Jorge! Jorge told me that in 1970, when he worked on a doctorate in music in the United States, “everyone” was studying with Arnold Jacobs. His approach is based on simplicity: work with nature and not against it.
Many people knew Mr. Jacobs as “the breathing guy,” but this phrase is too small to describe him! He based his approach on the phrase “Song and Wind,” focused always on 85% song and just 15% on wind. There is also a book titled Song and Wind, written by Brian Frederiksen, in which you can find historical, technical, and pedagogical information about Mr. Jacobs. This book recently arrived, and it is now translated into Spanish by Julio Briseño (a Mexican trombone player) and myself.
Mr. Jacobs was a person who had many physical and health issues. After being accepted into the Curtis Institute of Music as a tubist at age 15, he also received another scholarship to study voice. While taking voice lessons, Jacobs always ended up with throat pain. The pain caused him to wonder why he was made so uncomfortable while singing but not from playing the tuba. So he started to study the function and structure of the human body. It was a fascinating study that occupied him until his last breath. Jacobs brought this knowledge to music, tirelessly helping others, and demystifying concepts like “diaphragm support.” Many students came into his studio from all different parts of the globe asking for help…and he saved many musical careers.
I am a horn player and not a tubist, yet while I was moving deeper into his stories and teaching, I kept experiencing changes in my playing. As initially everything was focused on mechanics, physical strength, shallow breathing, and “muscle support,” I've discovered something I want to express in this article: When you know this approach and you experiment by yourself, you will never return to your prior approach. This happens because we start to play more freely, with bigger and better sound that is more resonant; and we learn to focus on the end product—obviously the music, the communication—rather than on the physical aspects of how to achieve it! It is a mental approach based on the final product.
In this way Mr. Jacobs influenced my life…and he is continuing to do so!
Thank you always, Mr. Jorge Ramirez, Mr. Michael Grose, and Mr. Arnold Jacobs!
