5 Reasons Why Long Tone Practice is Important

You’ve all heard it.  Practice those long tones, but the question is why should you?

Well you’re in luck.  Today I have 5 reasons why you should practice long tones.

People only cheer for those who sound good

Let’s face it; no one wants to listen to a musician that sounds bad.

You may have the coolest, most burning saxophone solo ever, but if your tone is bad you just won’t be convincing.  Believe it or not, people can tell if you have worked on your sound or not.

Besides, the best way to sound like a professional is to do what they did, and guess what they practiced their long tones.

Everyone needs a warm-up

Long tones are a great warm-up. They prepare you both mentally and physically.

When practiced properly long tones get you in the right state of mind to have a successful and productive practice session.

Don’t forget that long tones are simple. This makes it so you can really pay attention to little nuances.  This will make all the difference in the world.

Believe it or not daily long tone practice will do wonders to the way you sound, practice and progress musically.

Trust me when I say long tone practice makes your practice sessions better.

Gain complete control

Who doesn’t want to master their horn?

To gain mastery over you instrument, whether it’s a flute, saxophone, or even a trumpet, focusing on your sound is important.

Complete control comes from spending time mastering the little things.

Really you want your instrument to become an extension of yourself.  This only happens when you become intimate with your horn.

Long tones might not seem like much, but they really are the key to unlocking a professional mature sound.

By practicing long tones you develop your embouchure, lungs and your ear.  It also gives you the control necessary to being expressive on your instrument.

Instead of just having notes come out, you will have shades of colors in your tone.

Develops your own personal sound

This is my favorite.  We all have an idea of what we want to sound like, but the question is do you do something about it.

I know I sure do.  That’s practice long tones.

Practicing long tones on your instrument gives you the opportunity to turn your conceptualized sound into a reality.

It won’t happen by accident.  You have to take time working on developing your own personal sound.

Long tone practice does this by allowing you to experiment and figure out what you need to do with your throat, larynx and oral cavity to get the sound you personally desire.

Foundation for success

Everything you practice will benefit from the work you do on your sound.

Long tones really are the foundation of your success.

With long tones you learn how to blow, and I mean really blow.  You gain balance throughout all ranges of your instrument, and you understand what needs to be done with your whole body to handle your instrument.

High, low, middle it won’t matter long tone practice gives you what you need to play consistently everywhere on your horn.

Then don’t forget that with a stronger embouchure and greater lung strength comes a smoother airstream.  Something important for those really fast passages you play.

You can’t become a monster player without that smooth and steady airstream.

Putting it all together

Well there you have it, five great reasons why you should make practicing long tones a part of your daily practice.

It makes you sound better.  Gives you complete control, and don’t forget it is a great warm up that helps you develop your own personal sound.  All this while being a great foundation that all you’re musical endeavors can rest upon.

Need I say more? Yes I do.

Practicing long tones is the simplest and most beneficial thing you can do to improve your playing dramatically. 

I hope that’s not too much.  I just want to make my point clear.  Just do it. 

Well I would have to say that is all.

Until Next Time

Caruso

PS. Feel free to share how practicing long tones has helped you.