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Topic: Horn Lines |
James Inkster
From:
Ukee, BC
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Posted 10 Aug 2009 9:02 pm |
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Forgive my ignorance... but, i've been playing along with some calexico and thought it would be fun to play some of the horn lines... tex-mex style stuff. I'm having some troubles!
What's the trick to getting a hornesque sound? I know my lap steel will never sound like a horn, but i'm clearly missing something and can't put my finger on it. I'm playing the notes...
Is it a volume swell i need? ie., guitar volume is loudest on attack, then decays, horn is the opposite? If so, i guess i need a volume pedal? (i don't think the volume pot on my rick b6 is smooth enough...)
tips? |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 10 Aug 2009 9:07 pm
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Are you talking brass (trumpet, trombone) or woodwind (sax, clarinet)? The electric steel guitar seems to me to be closest in timbre to a trombone. Try listening to what the trombone player does in an R&B band, and imitate that.
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
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Ryan Barwin
From:
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
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Posted 10 Aug 2009 10:21 pm
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Probably keep the tone pot almost all the way off (or at least halfway) so when you play with horns, it'll blend in better. Don't use reverb or delay, and definitely use a volume pedal. Avoid playing too many violin-like volume swells, and use it primarily to control sustain.
Playing without fingerpicks (just a thumbpick) might help as well.
What tuning are you using? Some tunings seem to have more of a horn-like sound to them than others. |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 11 Aug 2009 10:31 am
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| I don't think two of the greatest horn emulators, Joaquin Murphy (clarinet) or Bob Dunn (trombone) used a volume pedal for their efforts. So a pedal may not be essential. But go for whatever you hear in your head and let us hear it sometime. |
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James Inkster
From:
Ukee, BC
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Posted 11 Aug 2009 11:25 am
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Heya guys...
Thanks for the replies.
I was actually referring to trumpet lines (doubled, i think)... but trombone is a good place to start.
Now listening to some Bob Dunn... and Jack Teagarden!
Thanks for the tips. |
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Chris Walke
From:
St Charles, IL
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Posted 11 Aug 2009 1:02 pm
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don't really have an answer as far as technique, but just to clarify for those who are answering - Calexico uses mariachi style horn arrangements. Excellently, by the way.
Perhaps part of the technique involves a boldness in playing. Mariachi trumpet is very in-your-face and brash, but also dynamic, with big crescendos and staccato lines. |
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James Inkster
From:
Ukee, BC
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Posted 11 Aug 2009 1:12 pm
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Ahh, yes, Mariachi... that's the word i was looking for when i described it as Tex-Mex... thanks.
For reference, if anyone cares, I'm talking about the kind of horns heard on their 'Frank's Tavern' or maybe 'Crumble' (a bit jazzier, less Mariachi)
thanks again. |
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