PERCUSSION
Dan McCarthy is a professional vibraphonist, composer, and strength and conditioning coach. After 15 years of living
in Brooklyn, NY, Dan, along with his wife and son, relocated back home to Toronto, where he is an active member on
the Toronto jazz scene. www.vibraphonedan.com.
By Dan McCarthy
The Warmup
Ex. 1
“Geez man, you sure play fast!”
Ah, the double-edged sword of compliments. On one hand,
it’s great to hear that my playing speed is impressive. But on the
flip side, I would rather people be impressed by the content of
my playing than the technicality. Still, it’s nice to have the abil-
ity to play those fast runs when necessary, and while there are
many facets that go into the ability to play fast, I believe one of
the most important is a proper warmup.
The question, then, is how do we warm up? Considering that
my background lies in being both a professional jazz vibraphonist
and a professional strength and conditioning coach, I have a very
specific approach to answering this question. The vibraphone is
a very physical instrument! We have to stand at all times, there
is a fair amount of core rotation, and posture is paramount in
maintaining a comfortable level of endurance during an hour
(or more) of playing. Not to mention the hands and fingers are
in constant motion.
Any athlete will tell you that before they take the field, they go
through a very specific warmup routine. Why should we look at
what we do any differently? Science has shown again and again
that muscles fire better when they have been properly prepared.
The Regimen
One of the first things I do before practice is some basic stretch-
ing throughout my upper body. I’ll start by focusing on both
extension and flexion of the wrists and fingers. I’ll work up to my
shoulders, rolling them forwards and backwards. I’ll also work on
my neck, stretching it to both sides and holding for 30 seconds
per side.
Once this general warmup is complete, I’ll move on to the
instrument itself (or, to the athletes out there, the sport-specific
warm-up). Considering that I hold four mallets when I play, I’ll
start off by working on each mallet strike individually first. Mallet
four will be on the low F, mallet three on C, mallet two on the
28 CANADIAN MUSICIAN
next F, and mallet one on the following C.
At this point, I’ll start working my way up and down the instru-
ment chromatically, using its full range, first with mallets three
and one, then mallets four and two. I make sure to work through
this starting with both the left and right hands with each mallet.
The goal here is not to be musical (there’s nothing really musical
in a straight-up chromatic scale), but to simply improve accuracy
and develop a certain amount of dexterity on the instrument.
From here, I will go in any number of directions. It will generally
involve some type of arpeggio, like Ex. 1 (above).
This is simply a major 7 th arpeggio, and I’ll work it this way through
all 12 keys, either chromatically or through the circle of fifths.
This can be done with any number of chords: major 6 ths , minor
7 ths , half-diminished, minor-major 7 th … the list really is endless.
I’ll generally only do one per day, but I’ll switch it up from one
day to the next.
Once I’ve gone through this warmup, which only takes five
minutes or so, the last exercise that I’ll work through before begin-
ning my actual practicing is to play through a standard. I’ll pick
one tune that I’m comfortable playing and I’ll play the melody
with some chords, and then improvise over the changes for a
few choruses. When I feel good about that, I’ll switch the key
to something that I’m not very comfortable playing in, maybe
taking it from B to B Major, and then I’ll work my way through
the tune in the same way. The goal here is to get your brain
working, figuring out the changes, transposing as you go. After
taking that for a few choruses, I’ll start on whatever work I have
planned for that given day.
A routine like this is not very time-consuming and will help
you feel a little more prepared for your practice session – es-
pecially those fast runs that you want to play on “Giant Steps.”
Give it a shot, and next time someone compliments you on
how fast you can play, just say thanks and enjoy it!