Brass Embouchure improvement in 3 lessons!
Monday, March 25, 2013
Sunday, December 25, 2011
NEW ONLINE LEAD TRUMPET PROGRAM!
New Lead Trumpet Program!
This program is designed for the non- lead trumpeter thinking of becoming a lead trumpet player AND The Professional Lead Trumpet Player wanting to move up to the final frontier of Lead Trumpet Playing: ROB MCCONNELL, MAYNARD FERGUSON, DUKE ELLINGTON'S HARDEST CHARTS, CAT ANDERSON, BUDDY RICH, BILL CHASE, BLOOD SWEAT AND TEARS, CHICAGO, MICHAEL JACKSON, AL JARREAU, EARTH WIND AND FIRE, MIAMI SOUND MACHINE!
This is not your Father's Leave It To Beaver WOODCHOPPER'S BALL kinda Lead Trumpet Playing! NOPE!
Please CLICK HERE for an hour tutorial in High Definition and overview of this 3 month long online trumpet program!
This program is designed for the non- lead trumpeter thinking of becoming a lead trumpet player AND The Professional Lead Trumpet Player wanting to move up to the final frontier of Lead Trumpet Playing: ROB MCCONNELL, MAYNARD FERGUSON, DUKE ELLINGTON'S HARDEST CHARTS, CAT ANDERSON, BUDDY RICH, BILL CHASE, BLOOD SWEAT AND TEARS, CHICAGO, MICHAEL JACKSON, AL JARREAU, EARTH WIND AND FIRE, MIAMI SOUND MACHINE!
This is not your Father's Leave It To Beaver WOODCHOPPER'S BALL kinda Lead Trumpet Playing! NOPE!
Please CLICK HERE for an hour tutorial in High Definition and overview of this 3 month long online trumpet program!
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Info direct from Jazz Trumpet Clinic Notes
Jazz Trumpet Clinic NotesBasic Trumpet Concepts
Strive to get the best possible sound at all times.Nobody cares how high or loud or fast you can play if your sound pinched. If you work to get a full sound at all volume levels and in all registers, your range and endurance will come along in good time.Pressure is your worst enemy.Play with as little pressure as you can while getting the best sound you can. Any benefit you get from applying any more pressure than that (usually some small increase in range) is offset by loss of endurance and damage to your embouchure! Learn now, you'll thank me later.Care for your instrument.Keep your instrument clean and properly lubricated. Clean your moutpiece regularly. Talk to your band director or a repair person if you have a dent in the shank of your mouthpiece and get it fixed (it adds resistance to the mouthpiece). Be careful to avoid getting dents in your horn, and have them removed by a repair person as soon as is practical (don't try and fix them yourself). Dents in the tubing of the trumpet add resistance and can affect intonation and tone. Dents in the bell inhibit good tone production.Don't play trumpet with your brain switched off.The trumpet is a tool of expression. Engage your brain the same way as you do when you're speaking. Concentrate on what's coming out of the other end of the horn, not what your lip is doing or you're going to eat for lunch.Don't wait until rehearsal to warm up and/or practice your parts.Try to arrive at rehearsal warmed up and ready to play. Rehearsal time is valuable, and is supposed to be used to fine-tune the ensemble. Don't waste the band's time trying to learn your part at the rehearsal if you've had time to work on it in the practice room!Arrive with all of your equipment and music, ready to play.You should have a complete set of mutes (cup, straight, harmon, and plunger are bare necessities in jazz music), your horn (clean, with valves oiled) and mouthpiece, valve oil, and a sharpened pencil.Playing in a Big Band
Lead Players
Apply phrasing and dynamics consistently.Give the other folks in the band a fighting chance to sound tight -- do your best to phrase things the same way from reading to reading, and let folks know if you've decided to change the way you're playing or releasing a note or section.Mark parts as necessary lightly, in pencil.It's a reminder to you, not to the next ten people that have to read your part. Give those that follow a fair chance to erase your notes.Schedule regular sectionals.Ideally, the band director shouldn't have to spend alot of time in a full band rehearsal helping a particular section get a figure right. Use regularly scheduled sectional rehearsals to tighten up parts and come to consensus on questions of style.Use vibrato sparingly.It's very difficult to get the section to match your vibrato speed. Use a slight crescendo, instead, to add "shimmer" to a note. An exception may be made when you are playing an exposed part in the upper register (i.e., a melody line in the lead part where the other trumpets are not playing the same figure harmonized), but again, use sparingly. You should almost never use vibrato when the section is in harmon mutes.Get your head out of the music as soon as you can.Do your best to dedicate your parts to memory as much as is possible. Use the music as a reference, but don't be so focused on it that you aren't watching the conductor or listening to the rest of the band.Don't play high notes that aren't written unless instructed to do so by the band director.Use your powers for good, not evil. The arranger usually has a particular chord voicing established in the chart. If you freelance, you're weakening one portion of the voicing in order to show off. Clear it with the conductor first.Don't hang high notes past the director's cutoff.If you have to hang over to be heard, it's not that impressive.The lead trumpet position is one of responsibility.As lead trumpet, you are in charge of managing not only the trumpet section, but also helping to establish good phrasing, articulation, dynamics, and so forth. Think of yourself as a manager, and accept input on issues of phrasing and style from members of your section. Remember, the more people that buy into a method of phrasing, the tighter and stronger the section and the band sound.Section Players
Follow the lead trumpet player for phrasing and dynamics at all times.Don't freelance, or try and lead the section from lower chairs.Support the lead trumpet voice.Do your best to play at a volume level that supports the lead trumpet voice without overpowering it or forcing the volume higher.Strive to make the whole section attack and release like a single instrument.Playing the 'Jazz' (Solo) Chair
Sight-reading a chart where you have a solo
Look for harmonic 'signposts' in the solo.Learn to recognize basic ii7-V7 progressions, they tell you where the chords sound like they're heading. Look for major seventh chords (or in the case of tunes that are in a minor key, try and find places where this chord occurs), these are often "landing spots".Improving your sense of how the solo fits into the chart
Understand the relationship of your solo sections to the melody ('head').More often than not, you can superimpose your solo over what's happening in the melody at the top of a chart (though you might play multiple choruses or come in at the middle of the form). Don't make your job more complicated than it already is, use your ears to hear what's going to be happening before it comes along!When playing along with a vocalist, don't create conflict with the vocalist -- fill in the holes.Check out the greats like Harry "Sweets" Edison, who never overpower the vocalist they're backing up, and pick their spots to compliment what's going on musically. "Sweets" was in demand by all the great studio singers for decades (Billy Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Joe Williams, etc.).Selected Jazz Recordings
Big Band
Miles Davis: The Birth of the CoolMiles Davis: Porgy and BessMiles Davis: Miles AheadCount Basie: Breakfast Dance and BarbequeGreat lead playing by Snooky Young, trumpet solos by Harry Edison et al., and vocals by Joe Williams.Bob Florence Limited Edition: All the Bells and WhistlesFantastic lead, section, and solo work by Carl Saunders, George Graham, Steve Hufstetter, et al.Small Group
Clifford Brown & Max RoachClifford Brown is widely admired for his gorgeous sound, fluency in all registers of the horn, sparkling technique, and mature compositions. He died tragically at the age of 26, but left a great deal of recorded work. Every trumpet player should listen to Clifford.Art Blakey: A Night at Birdland, vol. 1 & 2Clifford Brown & Max Roach: Live at Basin StreetClifford Brown & Max Roach: JorduClifford Brown & Max Roach: Brown & Roach Inc.Clifford Brown: Clifford Brown with StringsSarah Vaughan: Sarah VaughanMiles DavisCannonball Adderley: Somethin' ElseMiles Davis: Workin' with the Miles Davis QuintetMiles Davis: Steamin' with the Miles Davis QuintetMiles Davis: Cookin' with the Miles Davis QuintetMiles Davis: Relaxin' with the Miles Davis QuintetMiles Davis: Round About MidnightMiles Davis: Miles in BerlinMiles Davis: Miles in TokyoMiles Davis: E.S.P.Miles Davis: Bitches BrewKenny DorhamArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Live at the Cafe BohemiaKenny Dorham: Quiet KennyKenny Dorham: ShowboatKenny Dorham: Una MasKenny Dorham: Whistle StopBenny Golson: The Modern TouchFreddie HubbardArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Three Blind MiceArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: UgetsuArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Free for AllArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: CaravanHerbie Hancock: Maiden VoyageHerbie Hancock: Empyrian IslesFreddie Hubbard: Goin' UpFreddie Hubbard: Ready for FreddieFreddie Hubbard: Here to StayFreddie Hubbard: Breaking PointFreddie Hubbard: Hub-TonesFreddie Hubbard: Red ClayBlue MitchellBlue Mitchell: Get Down With ItBlue Mitchell: Blue's MoodsBlue Mitchell: The Thing To DoLee MorganArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Moanin'Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: A Night in TunisiaArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Indestructible!Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Meet Me at the Jazz Corner of the WorldLee Morgan: CornbreadLee Morgan: CandyLee Morgan: Search for the New LandLee Morgan: The SidewinderWoody ShawKenny Garrett: Introducing Kenny GarrettDexter Gordon: HomecomingBobby Hutcherson: Live at MontreuxWoody Shaw: The MoontraneWoody Shaw: RosewoodWoody Shaw: Setting StandardsWoody Shaw: Little Red's FantasyWoody Shaw: UnitedHorace Silver: Cape Verdean BluesLarry Young: UnityClark TerryClark Terry, a mainstay on the jazz scene since the late 1940s, is a veteran of several of the great big bands, especially those of Count Basie and Duke Ellington. Clark also led his own big band during a period in the 1970s.Oscar Peterson: Oscar Peterson Trio + One featuring Clark TerryGerry Mulligan Concert Jazz Band: Live at the Village VanguardClark Terry: The Happy Horns of Clark TerryClark Terry/Bob Brookmeyer: The Power of Positive SwingingRay Brown: Some Of My Best Friends are...the Trumpet PlayersFeaturing Nicholas Peyton, Roy Hargrove, Terence Blanchard, James Morrison, and Clark Terry.Bobby Shew: Playing with FireWith Bobby Shew and Tom Harrell.Selected Resources for Jazz Trumpet Players
Resources on the Internet
Jamey Aebersold Jazz Handbookhttp://www.jajazz.com/jazzhandbook/Default.htmAll Music Guidehttp://www.allmusic.com/An excellent database interface for researching musicians and recordings of all types.Effective Solo Transcriptionhttp://www.shout.net/~jmh/articles/transcribe.htmlAn article I wrote several years ago on solo transcriptions and how to get better at doing them.Learning Jazz Trumpet from the Mastershttp://homepage.mac.com/tsosiek/index.htmlCool site, with some nice transcriptions and reviews of some classic trumpet albums. Highly recommened.Computer Software
Band-in-a-Boxhttp://www.bandinabox.com/bandbox.htmTalk to your band director about this one. Enter a set of chord changes, and the software plays it back to you like a rhythm section would. Great for working on new tunes!Finale Notepadhttp://www.codamusic.com/coda/np.aspA free software program (from the makers of Finale) for notating music. Simple, and fun!
Strive to get the best possible sound at all times.Nobody cares how high or loud or fast you can play if your sound pinched. If you work to get a full sound at all volume levels and in all registers, your range and endurance will come along in good time.Pressure is your worst enemy.Play with as little pressure as you can while getting the best sound you can. Any benefit you get from applying any more pressure than that (usually some small increase in range) is offset by loss of endurance and damage to your embouchure! Learn now, you'll thank me later.Care for your instrument.Keep your instrument clean and properly lubricated. Clean your moutpiece regularly. Talk to your band director or a repair person if you have a dent in the shank of your mouthpiece and get it fixed (it adds resistance to the mouthpiece). Be careful to avoid getting dents in your horn, and have them removed by a repair person as soon as is practical (don't try and fix them yourself). Dents in the tubing of the trumpet add resistance and can affect intonation and tone. Dents in the bell inhibit good tone production.Don't play trumpet with your brain switched off.The trumpet is a tool of expression. Engage your brain the same way as you do when you're speaking. Concentrate on what's coming out of the other end of the horn, not what your lip is doing or you're going to eat for lunch.Don't wait until rehearsal to warm up and/or practice your parts.Try to arrive at rehearsal warmed up and ready to play. Rehearsal time is valuable, and is supposed to be used to fine-tune the ensemble. Don't waste the band's time trying to learn your part at the rehearsal if you've had time to work on it in the practice room!Arrive with all of your equipment and music, ready to play.You should have a complete set of mutes (cup, straight, harmon, and plunger are bare necessities in jazz music), your horn (clean, with valves oiled) and mouthpiece, valve oil, and a sharpened pencil.Playing in a Big Band
Lead Players
Apply phrasing and dynamics consistently.Give the other folks in the band a fighting chance to sound tight -- do your best to phrase things the same way from reading to reading, and let folks know if you've decided to change the way you're playing or releasing a note or section.Mark parts as necessary lightly, in pencil.It's a reminder to you, not to the next ten people that have to read your part. Give those that follow a fair chance to erase your notes.Schedule regular sectionals.Ideally, the band director shouldn't have to spend alot of time in a full band rehearsal helping a particular section get a figure right. Use regularly scheduled sectional rehearsals to tighten up parts and come to consensus on questions of style.Use vibrato sparingly.It's very difficult to get the section to match your vibrato speed. Use a slight crescendo, instead, to add "shimmer" to a note. An exception may be made when you are playing an exposed part in the upper register (i.e., a melody line in the lead part where the other trumpets are not playing the same figure harmonized), but again, use sparingly. You should almost never use vibrato when the section is in harmon mutes.Get your head out of the music as soon as you can.Do your best to dedicate your parts to memory as much as is possible. Use the music as a reference, but don't be so focused on it that you aren't watching the conductor or listening to the rest of the band.Don't play high notes that aren't written unless instructed to do so by the band director.Use your powers for good, not evil. The arranger usually has a particular chord voicing established in the chart. If you freelance, you're weakening one portion of the voicing in order to show off. Clear it with the conductor first.Don't hang high notes past the director's cutoff.If you have to hang over to be heard, it's not that impressive.The lead trumpet position is one of responsibility.As lead trumpet, you are in charge of managing not only the trumpet section, but also helping to establish good phrasing, articulation, dynamics, and so forth. Think of yourself as a manager, and accept input on issues of phrasing and style from members of your section. Remember, the more people that buy into a method of phrasing, the tighter and stronger the section and the band sound.Section Players
Follow the lead trumpet player for phrasing and dynamics at all times.Don't freelance, or try and lead the section from lower chairs.Support the lead trumpet voice.Do your best to play at a volume level that supports the lead trumpet voice without overpowering it or forcing the volume higher.Strive to make the whole section attack and release like a single instrument.Playing the 'Jazz' (Solo) Chair
Sight-reading a chart where you have a solo
Look for harmonic 'signposts' in the solo.Learn to recognize basic ii7-V7 progressions, they tell you where the chords sound like they're heading. Look for major seventh chords (or in the case of tunes that are in a minor key, try and find places where this chord occurs), these are often "landing spots".Improving your sense of how the solo fits into the chart
Understand the relationship of your solo sections to the melody ('head').More often than not, you can superimpose your solo over what's happening in the melody at the top of a chart (though you might play multiple choruses or come in at the middle of the form). Don't make your job more complicated than it already is, use your ears to hear what's going to be happening before it comes along!When playing along with a vocalist, don't create conflict with the vocalist -- fill in the holes.Check out the greats like Harry "Sweets" Edison, who never overpower the vocalist they're backing up, and pick their spots to compliment what's going on musically. "Sweets" was in demand by all the great studio singers for decades (Billy Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Joe Williams, etc.).Selected Jazz Recordings
Big Band
Miles Davis: The Birth of the CoolMiles Davis: Porgy and BessMiles Davis: Miles AheadCount Basie: Breakfast Dance and BarbequeGreat lead playing by Snooky Young, trumpet solos by Harry Edison et al., and vocals by Joe Williams.Bob Florence Limited Edition: All the Bells and WhistlesFantastic lead, section, and solo work by Carl Saunders, George Graham, Steve Hufstetter, et al.Small Group
Clifford Brown & Max RoachClifford Brown is widely admired for his gorgeous sound, fluency in all registers of the horn, sparkling technique, and mature compositions. He died tragically at the age of 26, but left a great deal of recorded work. Every trumpet player should listen to Clifford.Art Blakey: A Night at Birdland, vol. 1 & 2Clifford Brown & Max Roach: Live at Basin StreetClifford Brown & Max Roach: JorduClifford Brown & Max Roach: Brown & Roach Inc.Clifford Brown: Clifford Brown with StringsSarah Vaughan: Sarah VaughanMiles DavisCannonball Adderley: Somethin' ElseMiles Davis: Workin' with the Miles Davis QuintetMiles Davis: Steamin' with the Miles Davis QuintetMiles Davis: Cookin' with the Miles Davis QuintetMiles Davis: Relaxin' with the Miles Davis QuintetMiles Davis: Round About MidnightMiles Davis: Miles in BerlinMiles Davis: Miles in TokyoMiles Davis: E.S.P.Miles Davis: Bitches BrewKenny DorhamArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Live at the Cafe BohemiaKenny Dorham: Quiet KennyKenny Dorham: ShowboatKenny Dorham: Una MasKenny Dorham: Whistle StopBenny Golson: The Modern TouchFreddie HubbardArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Three Blind MiceArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: UgetsuArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Free for AllArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: CaravanHerbie Hancock: Maiden VoyageHerbie Hancock: Empyrian IslesFreddie Hubbard: Goin' UpFreddie Hubbard: Ready for FreddieFreddie Hubbard: Here to StayFreddie Hubbard: Breaking PointFreddie Hubbard: Hub-TonesFreddie Hubbard: Red ClayBlue MitchellBlue Mitchell: Get Down With ItBlue Mitchell: Blue's MoodsBlue Mitchell: The Thing To DoLee MorganArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Moanin'Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: A Night in TunisiaArt Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Indestructible!Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Meet Me at the Jazz Corner of the WorldLee Morgan: CornbreadLee Morgan: CandyLee Morgan: Search for the New LandLee Morgan: The SidewinderWoody ShawKenny Garrett: Introducing Kenny GarrettDexter Gordon: HomecomingBobby Hutcherson: Live at MontreuxWoody Shaw: The MoontraneWoody Shaw: RosewoodWoody Shaw: Setting StandardsWoody Shaw: Little Red's FantasyWoody Shaw: UnitedHorace Silver: Cape Verdean BluesLarry Young: UnityClark TerryClark Terry, a mainstay on the jazz scene since the late 1940s, is a veteran of several of the great big bands, especially those of Count Basie and Duke Ellington. Clark also led his own big band during a period in the 1970s.Oscar Peterson: Oscar Peterson Trio + One featuring Clark TerryGerry Mulligan Concert Jazz Band: Live at the Village VanguardClark Terry: The Happy Horns of Clark TerryClark Terry/Bob Brookmeyer: The Power of Positive SwingingRay Brown: Some Of My Best Friends are...the Trumpet PlayersFeaturing Nicholas Peyton, Roy Hargrove, Terence Blanchard, James Morrison, and Clark Terry.Bobby Shew: Playing with FireWith Bobby Shew and Tom Harrell.Selected Resources for Jazz Trumpet Players
Resources on the Internet
Jamey Aebersold Jazz Handbookhttp://www.jajazz.com/jazzhandbook/Default.htmAll Music Guidehttp://www.allmusic.com/An excellent database interface for researching musicians and recordings of all types.Effective Solo Transcriptionhttp://www.shout.net/~jmh/articles/transcribe.htmlAn article I wrote several years ago on solo transcriptions and how to get better at doing them.Learning Jazz Trumpet from the Mastershttp://homepage.mac.com/tsosiek/index.htmlCool site, with some nice transcriptions and reviews of some classic trumpet albums. Highly recommened.Computer Software
Band-in-a-Boxhttp://www.bandinabox.com/bandbox.htmTalk to your band director about this one. Enter a set of chord changes, and the software plays it back to you like a rhythm section would. Great for working on new tunes!Finale Notepadhttp://www.codamusic.com/coda/np.aspA free software program (from the makers of Finale) for notating music. Simple, and fun!
Friday, October 14, 2011
TRUMPET CLINICS
TRUMPET RESOURCE LINKS
Top 20 Trumpet Websites, Best Trumpet Sites, and Trumpet Tips!
www.billchase.net
www.bbtrumpets.blogspot.com
www.besttrumpetplayers.blogspot.com
www.improvetrumpetplaying.blogspot.com
www.increasetrumpetrange.blogspot.com
www.jazztrumpetlessons.blogspot.com
www.lessonprivate.blogspot.com
www.lessonsprivate.blogspot.com
www.lessonstrumpet.blogspot.com
www.onlinetrumpetlessons.blogspot.com
www.playinghighnotes.blogspot.com
www.trumpetclinics.blogspot.com
www.trumpethighnote.blogspot.com
www.trumpethighrange.blogspot.com
www.trumpet-lesson.blogspot.com
www.trumpetlessonblog.blogspot.com
www.trumpetmasterclass.blogspot.com
www.trumpetresource.blogspot.com
www.trumpetsites.blogspot.com
www.trumpetsizzle.blogspot.com
www.trumpetwebsites.blogspot.com
www.youtubetrumpet.blogspot.com
www.jameslast.us
www.maynardferguson.net
www.onlinetrumpet.net
www.thetrumpet.ws
www.toplaytrumpet.com
www.trumpet.name
www.trumpeter.us
www.trumpets.ws
www.trumpetsizzle.com
www.atjameslast.wordpress.com
www.billchase.wordpress.com
www.chasegetiton.wordpress.com
www.jazztrumpets.wordpress.com
www.onlinetrumpet.wordpress.com
www.playtrumpet.wordpress.com
www.thetrumpetlesson.wordpress.com
www.thetrumpets.wordpress.com
www.trumpetembouchure.wordpress.com
www.trumpetnote.wordpress.com
www.trumpetsolos.wordpress.com
www.trumpetsongs.wordpress.com
www.trumpetteachers.wordpress.com
www.trumpettutors.wordpress.com
www.yourbrassinstructor.wordpress.com
www.trumpet-lesson.blogspot.com
www.articlesbase.com/music-articles/trumpet-lessons-to-master-the-trumpet-upper-register-and-high-range-5199248.html
www.articlesbase.com/music-articles/report-reveals-trumpet-lessons-are-becoming-a-main-source-of-learning-as-band-programs-are-slashed-5230853.html
www.trumpet-lesson.blogspot.com/2011/04/smarter-you-are-odds-become-greater-you.html
www.trumpet-lesson.blogspot.com/2011/04/what-is-compression-and-why-is-it.html
www.trumpet-lesson.blogspot.com/2011/03/i-am-skeptical-that-anyone-can-actually.html
www.myspace.com/bossnouveau
www.youtube.com/yourbrassinstructor
The Trumpet is a great instrument whether jazz trumpet or solo trumpet, but requires a very strong embouchure. What kind of trumpet notes require this type of strong embouchure? High C, Double C, and Triple C all would require a strong embouchure to play these high trumpet notes. A trumpeter must take trumpet lessons to increase skill level. Trumpeters like Maynard Ferguson playing the trumpet solo, Give It One, and Bill Chase playing the trumpet solo, Get It On, had a very strong trumpet embouchure. Trumpets are made out of brass and make a beautiful sound when used in trumpet songs. James Last Orchestra also featured many fine trumpet players. The above site has trumpet tips, trumpet websites, sites, and trumpet lessons.
Monday, September 12, 2011
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