BRASS
The Busty and the Bass horns are Scott Bevins ( trumpet ), Christopher Vincent ( trombone ), and Mike McCann ( trumpet ). They are founding members of electro-soul / hip-hop collective Busty and the Bass and also are developing solo careers playing and recording alongside Canadian groups such as
Arkells , The Souljazz Orchestra , Nomadic Massive , and Kalmunity .
By Scott Bevins , Christopher Vincent & Mike McCann
A Collective Sound
How does a horn section find its sound ? To us , the answer begins at what our ears gravitate towards , what we think sounds cool , and want to go figure out .
Setting A Course One of the most important musicians to influence our generation of brass players is trumpeter Roy Hargrove , who is known for providing horns for D ’ Angelo ’ s Voodoo . For great horn section playing , we ’ ve learned a lot from Earth , Wind , and Fire , as well as Tower of Power , the Horny Horns , and any of the sections led by Jerry Hey . We also love younger trumpeter / producers such as Donnie Trumpet and Brasstracks , who are currently making great music and exploring how the trumpet fits into modern electronic contexts .
These artists inspire us to push our technical and artistic limits while still making grooving , accessible music . When writing , we compose our parts by ear , always working as a team . We put a lot of care and attention towards the phrasing , articulation , and time feel of our lines . This is figured out mainly through practicing the lines together and hearing what we like . We ’ ve all worked on this skill playing in jazz big bands , where group phrasing is an art and science . While a tight section sound is very important to us , we also like to have some room in our arrangements for improvisation .
Gearing Up Brass players love talking gear and we ’ re no exception . Having a set-up that feels comfortable and suits your current playing
30 • CANADIAN MUSICIAN situation will always make life easier on the gig . Our lead trumpeter , Scott , uses a Bach 180S37 bell with a GR 66Z Mouthpiece . This gives him the full sound of a mediumsized horn while the lead-style mouthpiece helps the upper register project and feel easier . At live shows , he uses the Apex 565 clip mic .
Mike uses the same model trumpet with a Bach 1C mouthpiece , which helps him make the inner harmony parts sound full and rich . For his live set-up , Mike uses a Beta 98H / C , which he runs into an Alva Nanoface interface . From there , he uses Ableton Live coupled with a Novation Launchpad to apply effects to his horn .
Chris plays a Rath R10 trombone , with a nickel bell , and uses a Schilke 50 mouthpiece . Live , he uses a Beta 98H / C microphone into an effects pedal board with a US600 Ultra Harmonist , Ultra Harmonix Freeze , Carbon Copy Delay , and the Line 6 M13 .
Sound On Stage When playing live shows , it ’ s very important to be comfortable on stage and able to hear yourself . For brass players , it has a direct impact on our ability to play accurately . This is no easy task in a band as large and as loud as Busty . Every room and stage will sound different , so we have to be able to easily adjust to every situation .
This becomes really apparent when touring . We could play in a tiny living room one night , a club with an incredibly noisy stage the next , and a big open church after that . For each one of these situations , we would need a very different solution for amplifying and monitoring . It might mean not using microphones at all .
The best way to learn is through trial and error , and praying there will be a professional sound tech with enough equipment . For a stage mix , we ’ ve found what typically works for us is to have a single monitor with only our own sounds coming out . If we need to hear anything else , we keep it very minimal . The quieter and cleaner the mix onstage , the easier it is to hear yourself .
Being technically consistent can be a very mysterious and frustrating task for a brass player , and it is doubly difficult when playing on tour . We ’ ve found that there ’ s just no way around it : the only way to stay consistent is to have a good warm-up , and to play it every single day . There ’ s plenty of literature in the brass world on what constitutes a good warm-up and which exercises to use . We ’ d always recommend going to an experienced teacher to know what to focus on . It should be tailored to one ’ s personal limitations and needs , not be too long or exhausting , and serve as a barometer for how your chops are feeling on any particular day .
In our warm-ups , we focus on long tones , connecting different registers , extending the high register , and accurate articulation . It ’ s important to note most people are not brass players , don ’ t know or care about this , and just find the sound annoying . It ’ s also pretty rare to have a quiet , isolated area to warm up , but that ’ s no reason not to . We ’ ve warmed up in parking lots , the van , bus stops , janitor ’ s closets , bathrooms , and anywhere else we could find . The hassle is always worth it when you can still play your parts at the end of a long night .