Dan Jacobs: Writings

QUOTE: ON PLAYING THE TRUMPET
Armando Ghitalla:

"Playing the trumpet is such an intangible experience. The player is compelled to start from the beginning and build anew each day. It isn't like building a house, where we can resume building where we left off the previous day's accomplishments."

"Each new day we must rebuild the foundation of our musical structure."

WHAT IS A GOOD EMBOUCHURE? by Carl Saunders

What is a good embouchure? Good question. Embouchures are like snow flakes, golf swings and finger prints. None are the same. I've seen many different approaches and positions that trumpet players use to place a trumpet on their face that work. Some have the horn pointed down or off to the side. These to me are unnatural positions, but have been made to work by a lot of very good players.

In my view, the reasons for these unnatural positions are:

1.Poor or no fundamental training when starting out
2. An unnatural bite
3. Uneven teeth.

I contend that people who fall in the categories of 2 and 3 should be discouraged from playing a brass instrument from the beginning.

So what is a natural embouchure?

To me a natural embouchure is placing your lower jaw out far enough so your lower teeth align evenly with your upper teeth to make a wall where the mouthpiece can comfortably rest without tilting up or down or to either side. 60% of the pressure should be on the lower jaw and 40 & on the upper. With this position achieved, the upper lip should be free to vibrate (of course your lower lip vibrates, too) and your horn should be pointing straight out (even with the ground.) More results with less effort should ensue.

On hard and long pounding gigs one should make sure that the pressure and abuse should be directed to the lower jaw and lip not the upper. The upper teeth can't move or do anything to help the positioning. The lower teeth (jaw) can move and must be set in a position to achieve proper alignment of the teeth and take responsibility to protect the upper lip.

With your lower teeth (jaw) dropped back and behind the line of your upper teeth, your horn will start pointing down, your upper lip will be taking most of the pressure, and proper vibration is stifled. Your lower jaw has got to take care of business and that is to take most of the stress off of the upper lip.

You'll know when you’re doing this properly when you develop a little callus on the inside of your lower lip and your upper lip isn't bashed and mangled from playing hard. Your range and endurance will improve.

A lot is said about blowing air. "Blow more air, more velocity, blow harder, louder". Most all trumpet players that I have observed in my career blow too much air or over blow. They're trying to overcome the physicality of the trumpet with force. I have found that when one blows too much air, their flexibility suffers. Light and tight swinging is near to impossible and your sound and ability to play clean and delicate is compromised.

If one uses the embouchure described above, the lips should be in a position to vibrate freely and effortlessly with less air. I'll leave you with an axiom from my personal approach to playing trumpet....

"Use the least amount of air to get the job done to its fullest"

Carl Saunders

CHOPS AND CHANGES (#5)
(Learning to Improvise on a new tune) by Bobby Shew

The following sequential process is something I've worked on and been using with some notable success in teaching about improvisation. Naturally, some of my students are beginning to intermediate with regard to their playing levels. Any decent jazz musician would probably tell you that it's impossible to "teach someone how to play jazz" and I would agree totally if we look at it in a literal manner especially with reference to the essence of the art form. However, I know there are many things that can be referred to with regard to this activity and this information just might open up some doors of perception for a student and get them headed down the "correct path" of self-learning and ear training which perhaps might enable them to learn to improvise well someday.

Most of the young players I've come in contact with are seemingly searching for some sort of short-cut or magic formula that will make them sound impressive and that will keep them from playing any "wrong notes". This is really a big problem with our educational sytem. I've spoken of it prior and will no doubt continue to speak of it until it goes away. For now, I'd like to submit the following process as a simple, yet sometimes tedious and demanding method of getting more deeply involved in the basic understanding of some of the academic materials used in learning to play jazz solos.

I think it's necessary, or at least helpful, to be able to understand music in all stages in order to fully master it. A chord is simply a static SOUND. It can have duration but it doesn't require motion or movement to satisfy its definition. The PRIMARY level of understanding must start with a VERTICAL, or up-and-down way of recognizing each chord. This chord has primary chordal tones, i.e., 1st (root), 3rd, 5th, and 7th. Even MORE primary to this is the TRIAD, i.e., root, 3rd, 5th with no 7th. In jazz, almost all chords have at least the basic four notes aforementioned. Moving onward, the chord then has extensions, i.e., 9th, 11th, and 13th, either in natural state or altered as lowered (flat) 9th or raised (sharp) 9th, raised (sharp) 11th, and lowered (flat) 13th.

Having dealt with the VERTICAL approach and information, the next possible approach is more HORIZONTAL. This would include the addition of the scales from the syllabus that apply to each chord. This horizontal approach eventually involves forward movement thru various chords, the scale changing to match each chord "change". This can possibly lead to more linear motion in your soloing. Once you feel more comfortable with the chord scales, then the REAL essence of improvising is moving into true LINEAR playing where you strive for melodies that fit in yet flow not only thru but almost above the harmonic structure of the tune. The real beauty of going thru this step-by-step process is its effect on your ability to "hear" the changes and THE TUNE. Ear training is probably the most vital (and overlooked) aspect of any musical training program from my point of view and it is with that point in mind that I've devised all of the routines & exercises. So much could be written here about all of this but for now, let's move on to the process. As you put it into practice, try to find your own personal needs and make your own decisions as to how to use it. The intent here is not a musical cloning. Learn to THINK and OBSERVE.

1) Learn the MELODY of the tune. Play it over and over until you can play it without reading it. If possible (and preferably), LISTEN to a recording of it hopefully by a GREAT PLAYER. Also if possible, seek out OTHER recordings of the same tune, even if in a different key and different style.

2) Get the correct chords for the tune. Fake books are not to be trusted so learn to develop your ear to check and eventually you should be able to transcribe the tune AND changes.

3) On a piece of music paper, vertically spell all of the chords. If you're new at this, start with triads only, then add the 7th after triads are done.

4) On your instrument, play these spellings , up and down. Keep repeating them until you are comfortable with them, i.e., 1-3-5, 5-3-1, then invert them in several ways, i.e., 3-1-5, 1-5-3,5-1-3 . The add the 7th and play them 1-3-5-7,7-5-3-1 up and down. When somewhat comfortable, do the inversions as above, i.e., 1-5-3-7,7-3-5-1, 1-7-3-5,5-1-3-7, etc. Take your time, play them slowly. Use a metronome to help develop rhythmic-"time" control as you develop harmonic skill. For playing triads, play quarter note and two eighth notes in each bar.

When there are two chords in a bar, then play two eighths and a quarter for each chord.
when you go to four-note chords, play four eighth notes on each.

An important point with this routine is to play them at first by looking at them but then look away from the page and play them by ear, remembering what you played when reading . This enables your "ear" to learn them, not only your eyes and fingers.

5) Using a play-along recording (or just a standard jazz recording if you don't have a play-along), play the spellings along with the recording. Repeat several choruses until you gain a degree of familiarity and comfort. Also play the melody several times thru.
It's a good idea to alternate a melody chorus and then a spelling chorus, back and forth. There is an old adage in music, "Melody dictates Harmony". They work together but melody always helps stabilize the harmonic movement thru the tune and helps you develop the "inner ear".

6) Get a copy of the Scale Syllabus and figure out from the chart which chord scale applies to each vertical chord. Write these out for each chord on a separate piece of music paper. Play thru them slowly, once again up-and-down and then reorganizing the position of the scale tones , i.e., play the notes in several different sequence alternating the intervals around and around. Extend past just one octave. Alternate & experiment with different rhythms, i.e., some sustained notes, some 8ths, some quarters, etc. Suggest you start with 1-2-3-5 of each scale as eighth notes.
Make them SWING!

7) Using the recording, play thru these scales, chorus after chorus being sure to alternate intervals so it doesn't sound like you're just playing scales. Experiment with rhythms, etc., as above. It's OK to leave space here and there... whatever you WANT. Remember, we're playing MUSIC here. Make things have FEELING.

8) Go back to your basic spellings of the 1-3-5-7 vertical chords. As you play the recording, you now need to learn to spot common tones and voice leadings in the chord progressions. Select any chordal tone from the first chord of the tune and sustain it as long as it applies as a PRIMARY (1-3-5-7) chordal tone as the chords go by. This is known as a common tone. If it does NOT apply, it is no longer a common tone but is now a VOICE LEADING. That means that if you do not move it to a chordal tone, you will be playing the "forbidden wrong note". Common tones and voice leadings will teach your ear the connections between the chords. Typically you will find simple things like if you pick a 3rd, it will likely become the 7th of the next chord without moving and sometimes the 7th will become the 3rd. It is always nice to sit back and take a look at these analytically just so you start to understand the inner workings of tune construction. During this exercise, you'll mostly be playing only whole notes and perhaps half notes. These are almost like sustained "string pads" under a melody. Each chorus start with a different chordal tone so you find several different "pathways" thru the tune.

9) Repeat this process with chordal extensions and alterations called for in each chord change. These are considered SECONDARY chordal tones. As you approach the extensions, it's OK to eliminate the lower basics of each chord in order to concentrate and facilitate dealing with the extensions. After some degree of comfort, try combining Primary and Secondary tones. Always remember THE MUSIC. Try to gain as much horizontal and linear movement as you gain but try as well to combine vertical with horizontal -linear lines . Don't forget the RHYTHMIC aspects. It's gotta feel good!

10) Sit down with some music paper and write several melodies that work with this chord structure. Try to write melodies as if you were planning on adding singable lyrics later.

11) Using your ear, play the tune in several other keys, starting with the melody and then learning to "hear the tune" as you improvise in different keys.

NEXT TUNE!!!!!! ENJOY and Good Luck! @ Bobby Shew, 2001

(Editors note: I read this interview with Marvin Stamm in ITG Journal recently. I was struck with how similar my own concepts about music, teaching and life are with what I read from master trumpeter and teacher, Marvin Stamm. So I'm including a few quotes that resonated with me to help spread the message even further.) - Dan Jacobs

"As a musician you never really reach your goals. Every time you approach that point, you find that your goals have changed, moved farther out, and expanded to something else.

A CD is, or should be, the musical documentation of where an artist is at a certain point in his or her musical growth. Many artists lose sight of this and view a CD as their path to stardom. Not only is this an erroneous concept, it will also lead to great disappointment in most cases.

The recording industry is, and has been, in great disarray for a number of years, especially regarding the jazz idiom. Be true to your music and let that lead you where it will. Don't ever sacrifice the integrity of your music.

After achieving a certain level of mastery, focus more on the making of music rather than that of focusing on just the trumpet. We have an enormous number of "super technical" players today, but a smaller number of true musicians. Maybe it is now considered an outdated concept, but the lesson as I learned it was - always - the music comes first.

I intend to maintain my honesty in the face of a world that seldom appreciates honesty, and to encourage others through my music and my writings to do the same. As long as this is what my life is all about, it will have deep meaning and much joy for me.

Expectations and responsibility - two very important words in my life - are words you don't hear much today - in society, in families or in school. But for me, they were a source from which so much emanated. If these words were again invoked into family life and into the schools of our great country - in fact all of society today - what could we not accomplish? And maybe solutions to so much that we find of great concern to all of us might appear."

- Marvin Stamm
Quotes from an interview in International Trumpet Guild Journal Vol.29, No. 4 June 2005
Website: www.trumpetguild.org

PLAY IN THE MOMENT
By Wallace Roney.

"When you get on that bandstand . . . you're playing in the moment. All that (prior study) preps you for that so you'll be right, (so) you can articulate what you're hearing. If you're in the moment, while you're playing, you don't think: "Oh, here's a C7 chord," . . . you're creating your story."

HOW TO FIND THE CENTER OF YOUR HORN'S PITCH:
By Mark Van Cleave

Pitch: While playing a long tone, bend the pitch up and notice the tonal change that occurs. Bend the pitch down and notice that the tonal change is not the same as when the pitch is bent up. A sharp note has a distinct tonal change that is different to the tonal change of a flat note. These tonal colorations are good to listen for when checking resonance. Even subtle changes in tone color can guide you back to the exact center of the pitch, and to greater resonance. Learn to hear pitch shifts by tonal colorations. 

Resonant Oral Cavity: While playing the first note in the exercise below (G), open and close your teeth slightly. A "WA - WA" sound or movement. You will hear that as the teeth are closing, the sound changes to a tighter, pinched sound. As you open the teeth, the sound becomes thin. You will also notice that somewhere in the middle, the sound jumps out of the horn. You have just matched the resonant properties of your oral cavity with those of the horn. This is the point of greatest resonance.



Example:

Play the same G. Find the center of sound. Now lock your embouchure and do not let it move. While your embouchure setting is locked, slowly play down chromatically. Do not change anything (be honest) ... Jaw, air, mouthpiece pressure, horn angle, etc.. Listen to the tone quality as you go down. You will notice that by the time you have reached low C, the tone has thinned out as well as the volume of sound (resonance) has also been reduced. This is because your oral cavity is resonating a G and you are trying to play a low C. You have to adjust your oral cavity for every note. 

When making adjustments, you will want to match both the resonant setting of your oral cavity and the pitch you are producing with the horns tuned pitch in order to produce the maximum resonance. 

Long Tones: On each long tone, find the correct oral cavity setting by physically adjusting the opening between the teeth, as well as by the sound. Listen for the center of the sound. Memorize this sound (tone color). Once you have found the center of each long tone, hold this sound and memorize the setting. Repetition will turn these settings into reflexes.

EFFICIENCY THROUGH RESONATE INTONATION
By Mark Van Cleave
©1994 MVC
The Idea of playing efficiently is one of the most sought after skills that seems to elude brass players. The whole idea of not having to work hard to produce the results you want is pervasive in every part of our society. How can I get what I want without working for it! .....or at least working as little as possible. When it comes to playing a brass instrument, the idea of how to get the best sound per grunt ratio is very important, being able to play well without paying a high price physically.


So, back to the title: Efficiency through Resonant Intonation. What is Resonant Intonation?Intonation is the player's ability to match the pitch of his/her instrument to the pitch of the instruments around them. Resonance refers to the acoustical phenomenon that occurs when the resonant frequency of an object or space (in this case: the volume of air inside the instrument) is stimulated. Resonant Intonation refers to the act of playing in tune with your instruments resonant frequency. Matching the pitch you produce with the pitch that the instrument wants to produce (because of where you have it tuned.) I like to call this the Shower Effect.


The Shower Effect is what happens when you are singing in a shower stall. You happen to find one note that really jumps out at you. When this happens you have just matched your intonation (or pitch) to the resonant frequency of the shower stall (the resonant space.) The efficiency that I am talking about is the result of being in tune with the shower stall's resonant frequency or tuning. At this point, you are not only producing a sound as a result of singing, but you are also deriving benefits from the shower stall's enhancement or resonance.

HELPFUL TIPS I LEARNED FROM BOBBY SHEW

Below this message are the two Bobby Shew works on "Developing the Trumpet Section."
Enjoy.

BOBBY SHEW'S NOTES on
"Developing the Trumpet Section"

A Basics to a successful section
I. Ability to work as a team.
a. Ego-loss vs confidence.
b. Learning to listen with your soul.
c. Mental attitude re: learning.
d. Personal goals vs. the job.
e. Personal ethics vs. Group ethics.

B. Hats (individual specific duties)
I. Lead player
a. Disbursement of power
b. Relationship w/ sax, bone, rhy. sections.
c. Ability to communicate freely and honesty w/ section.
d. Quality of
1. Sound
2. Phrasing/Time feeel
3. Consistency
4. Flexibility
5. Taste
II. Support players .
a. Responsibility towards book.
b. Respect for:
1. Lead player
2. Other section players.
3. Leader
4. Self
c. Patience re: moving up/"big chance".
d. Complete understanding of lead players "hat".

C. Sectional developmental activities
I. Practicing
a. With the rhythm sect.
b. Playing the book w/out rhythm.
c. Recording sectionals for analysis.
d. Individual work on trouble areas (personal responsibility).

II. Rotation
a. Passing parts so that each member grows as a team.
b. Giving everyone some Jazz to play so' growth can occur.
c. Trying different styles.

III. Precision
a. Marking parts properly.
b. Pacing of lead player.
c. Blend
1. Pitch
2. Levels of intensity
3. Mutes
4. Flugels
d. Selecting the right guy for the job.

IV. Learning/Experience
a. Listening to live bands.
b. listening to records.
c. Private study
d. Practical experience.



BOBBY SHEW'S NOTES on
"Further Notes on Developing the Trumpet Section"

Considering that quite alot of good material has been written on this subject, I'm not certain whether or not I'll be able to add much new data, but hopefully another point of view might be of some interest and hopefully can be used as a rough guide line to building a musical section. There are probably as many methods as there are teachers or trumpeters, but all trill be found to contain much of the same material and concepts or it just won't happen. Any attempts to be more contemporary still require a strong foundation built on roots that are no different than those established by Louis Armstrong and many others of that era of jazz.

TEAMWORK
The section id only a part of the whole, and must not lose sight of this basic function. All efforts should be directed toward contributing to making the BAND sound good, not to show off one's own talents such as playing louder than the others, screaming out tons of high notes, looking good for the chicks in the front row, etc.. True acknowledgement will come for being a part of such a good team, and will come to the individual in a manner that he can take pride in. Each guy in the section has specific duties just as if he were a member of a football team; he has his own "hat" to wear, and it doesn't say "HERO" on it:
It takes a great deal of hard work on each section member's part to have e really exceptional team and if you don't expect it to be exceptional, you maybe shouldn't be doing it. So first approach it with the intention of your section being GREAT and then proceed with that attitude. This will help keep everyone thinking that way.Any wise lead player knows that his section can make him sound good or bad. Even if he is very strong and stable, a poor.section can turn a pleasant experience into alot of brutal work for thdt player. I have the greatest love and appreciation for those guys that have made me sound worthy all of these years. In addition, an exceptional lead player can and often must make a lousy section sound better than it is . Just realize that it will always work better if everyone in the group jumps in and helps get the job done as musically as possible, as easily as possible, and as much fun for all concerned as is possible. Therefore, one must learn to do this without being on a big ego trip. Admit to your weaknesses so that you can handle them and grow out of them, rather than hiding them so that you never confront improving them. Much confidence can grow out of honesty, and for sure musical integrity will come from it.

MENTAL ATTITUDE
As with most people, you will probably experience times of positive thoughts and times of negative ones. Ideally, it 'would be nice to have only the positive ones but I wonder if the game would be quite as interesting or as much a challenge. So Just accept the game and play it without taking it so seriously as to get up tight about yourself. If you resist the negative thoughts or try to fight them, you'll find, I think, that they'll only get bigger and harder to handle. You've gotta learn to deal with them without shifting the majority of your attention to them. I suppose one gray to do it is to not try to handle your fears in the middle of playing a chart; best to wait until after the gig:
Your personal involvement with your horn and with music in general is of tremendous importance to your success and your happiness. I have often felt as if I were married to music; I am committed to it, and try to work with it and make it work for me, all the while keeping my level of affinity high by not blaming my failures Problems on the Art or the instrument.This kind of emotional involvement has taught me much about myself as a person. I believe that this kind of love for music will enable you to accomplish much in a shorter period of time, and will bring you a great deal of happiness.



p. 2
You must, above all, maintain your belief in your potential, and never minimize your abilities at all. Don't get to the point of tolerating ceilings or limitations aS to how far you can go. Your own thoughts will be the only thing that can and will hang you up. As you develop and reach goals (and you've gotta learn to recognize WHEN you do reach them), you'll have to put new goals out in front of you or the game is over. Keep looking forward to these new and bigger goals and ...AVOID GETTING HUNG UP ON YOUR PAST ACHIEVEMENTS. Once they're done, they're over with. It's OK to recall them for lots of good reasons, but if you get hung up, you'll find yourself sticking your abilities at that level and your outward growth will slow down. Surely you've seen or met guys who are musically stuck in a given era or style of music.
The average person it seems, spends quite alot of his time minimizing his strength and abilities. Therein lie about 90% of your problems with your horn. So, the sooner you can become aware of this, the sooner you'll be able to eliminate it,. and therefore succeed in accomplishing everything you set out for. HOWEVER, there are a few sand traps along the road that will try to keep you from knowing, but these have no real power unless you give it to them as in the earlier mentioned case of resisting negative thoughts. One of the traps in setting goals is that you can skip a gradient approach to success and find yourself in over your head. If you set such an extremely high goal and standard for yourself that it keeps you frantically racing as if to put out a fire, you'll miss alot of the fun of being a musician, and can prevent you from being objective about your growth and from enjoying your PRESENT TIME abilities. More simply, if ALL you see is your "ultimate" goal, you'll be constantly putting yourself down as you play in present time because it'll always be compared to the ULTIMATE goal rather than to how you're actually playing at that moment. The ultimate hopefully trill always be changing anyway and I dream sometimes about becoming a "perfect" player, but as long as I keep creating new levels to climb to, I'll never be perfect and will therefore have plenty of good reasons to keep playing and studying.

COMMUNICATION
Communication is the key ingredient in music of ANY type. It really doesn't seem sane to play to oneself of to the music stand or wall. So the person(s) at the receipt point is as important to the experience as you are. It's the emotional reaction to your creation that completes the action. The emotional communication takes precedence over style and technique. You need plenty of technique, but only enough to execute what you hear and feel. S0, study emotions ; it'll intensify your playing.

Another area of communication that's very important is in your ability to communicate with the other guys in the band. In fact, if you have trouble with this, it'll show up in your playing. You're in a sense "rapping" with people when you play. If the entire band maintains a high level of communication, the affinity will be high for each other, the "vibes" will be right, and the band will swing: It might be worth mentioning here that lots of people apparently misunderstand communication in thinking that they must just talk, talk, talk, when in reality, the art of listening is super important and can help to smooth out your relationships with other people. This then will increase your ability to listen in the section to your lead player of the rhythm section or Whatever. Do you see the point? It all fits in together and the picture starts to clear up end make sense.



p. 3
WEAR YOUR OWN HAT
As mentioned earlier, each team member has his own specific role, job, or "hat" to wear in the section and/or band. It's easy to say teamwork, but very seldom does one see a truly great trumpet team. The following are a mild., first attempt at clarifying these hats in a basic manner.

LEAD PLAYER
The World Book Dictionary,in part, defines lead as: 1. a. to guide; to show the way by going along with or in front of: b. to serve to guide 4. to be a way or means of bringing something to a particular condition or result.

Clearly it can be seen that a lead player has a big "hat" to wear. It consists of
a). being able to interpret the music in the correct style;
b). communicating openly with respect and affinity for the other members of his section;
c). being consistent enough to provide predictability for the rest of the band, especially phrasing and style;
d). being strong enough to "crack the whip" to get the band off of the ground and poppin' rather than merely playing the notes, but being sensitive enough to play gently when called for especially being able to tell the two apart);
e). being a good jazz player because the most musical tiny to play a lead part is as if it were a jazz solo in ensemble form. This is how to make it swing.
f). delegation of power.

Regarding a), this is just versatility and experience. An important point, though, is that if at arty time the lead player has difficulty with the style he must freely admit it and proceed to find out how it should be done even asking other guys in the section. It might be that another player could do a more stylistically effective job and it would be wise of the lead player to pass the part so the whole section and band sound better on the chart. Think of the right guy for the job.

On c), this comes through alot of experience and lots of listening to other than the "Top Ten" current bands. Try to get around to lots of rehearsals and concerts to hear live music and dig how the pros pull it off. Ask them if you can do it without being a pest. Alot of it is gaining the confidence and the horn/mouthpiece thing off of your mind so that you can play without being mentally distracted by your own thoughts.

As far as b), it's a common sense thing BUT takes alot of work on your part to pull it off. Avoid "games", jealousies, etc.; if they show up, don't wait for the other guy to straighten it out. All of this Junk can really spoil a dynamite band, and prevent you all from having one of life's greater pleasures playing good music pith some good friends.

The remainder (d) are mostly a matter of experience where you develop them, and require much space to go into further here but, I would like to express a point of view : I Would hope that anyone trying to become a lead trpt. player should hope to be able to string or cook ( mostly a tray of saying good time and relaxed way of executing the part )j, and not concentrate so much on just the high register. There are many kids waning up today that have lots of high chops but I rarely hear a student who can "lay it down". So there's work to be done, for sure!



p . 4
SUPPORT PLAYER
As was stated earlier, a smart lead player knows the true value of having an exceptional section in 1) making his job easier, 2) making him sound better, and 3) having a good time with the music. So a good support must learn to be totally unselfish towards the overall team effort and must develop a terrific set of ears. You must learn to get "inside the head " of your lead player and play right along with him, but,just under; never blow so hard that you can't hear everything your lead player does, even those little turns and things that are on the lighter side. Playing up to your lead player doesn't mean blasting as hard or harder.., the lead player will naturally be working a bit harder because of being the higher voice. As a section player you'll eventually find the "slot" where it feels comfortable. If the whole section is overblowing, the band will sound rotten, the pitch will make your spine rattle, and this is a perfect occasion to start having chop troubles. When in doubt, lighten up a bit until you can really hear everything and then play there : You must have personal and professional respect for your lead player and be willing for him to be right. He'll have to make the decisions and keep some degree of order in the section, come up with riffs,etc., and he'll need every bit of help you can give him Anyway way that's your gig : You have a big responsibility toward the band to see to it that you play the book the very best that you possibly can and you have a big responsibility towards your own personal integrity as a musician. One last thing on this..; without a doubt I it's understandable that every section player would like to have the lead chair, but when it's your time it will come . The message is : be patient, be prepared and be cool ! Just go ahead and have a good time, take your life with some leisure, and enjoy it as a musician.

On the subject of pitch, there are more frequent problems with pitch in jazz/pop/rock than with more classical forms, many of which are due to the excess volume that is required and the addition of electronics in the rhythm section. I think that the acoustic bass is easier to tune with because of it's sound quality ; the electronic bass (or fender) doesn't center as well. There are plenty of exceptions and if you're fortunate enough to work with a fender bass player that does it really well, savor every moment. Alot of it is just the overall volume of the rhythm section. It can make you pump your brains out. Thru a much trial and error you'll find your own easy of dealing with it. Just be aware that's it's possibly there, and remember to avoid blasting just to hear yourself. It makes the problems worse. Also realize that possibly all of the horn players will be is the same stew, so just back off and try to get thru it.

Another area that really needs more development is the area of alternate fingerings. One needs to master the science of acoustics to get the job done right however, here are a few things that might get you started. These also ray not necessarily apply to each person or situation,, but worth checkin' out. When you play a high D in an Eb key, it resonates or vibrates differently than the sane high D in a D chord or any other chord for that matter. In one key you night want to play it open (o) While it could work better with 1st valve in another key. With this we have the difference in intervals between the 1st part and the other voices in the chord. A high D played over an A should work better if played open because the A tends to be sharp and by playing the D open (also sharp) the intonation will line up better within the band. Also if the 2nd voice is voiced too close to the lead the vibrations are too close to each other and tend to eradicate at least in part, the tonal center of the horn.


p. 5

Just as important is the fact that the A can also be played with alternate fingerings all of which do similar types of things to the intervals, which incidentally, is what you're doing when you tune up ....listening for the intervals of the voices around you. The lead player, surprisingly enough to zany beginners, gets the strength of his intonation help from the bass player. And it does well for the rest of the section to listen not only to their lead player, but to the bass as well. First policy, however, is go with the lead player. As you expand your ability to hear more things going on at the same time, you'll start to notice that the baritone sax and bass trombone will be further support for the pitch if they've tuned well to the BASS, (in addition to their section leader. Most people run off to a piano to tune up, but in most clubs the pianos won't be consistent and besides, the band will tend to scttle into it's own Pitca, mostly based on the bass. Believe me, there's alot more to working in a big band than meets the eye. It's not all shuckin' an' jivin' ham in' around busy being hip, etc.; it takes alot of responsibility to the job and yourself, so things like the above are worthy of your attention. Eventually you'll get to the point of being able to hear any one or all of the parts in the entire band while you're playing, and being able to control what you want to hear within reason.
Suggest that each make up a chart of alternate fingerings. Figure the= out or, your ova if you rust, but at least explore the other areas of the horn. I've thought several ties ....wouldn't it be ridiculous if at some time in the past, someone,at random, came up with the set of fingerings that are "accepted by the very finest" and these having been carried on for ages being the only ones taught, and then discovering that the original chart had been his translated and we've been using the wrong set all these years : Aside from that, there are many more sounds to be developed on the horn and all seem to me to be a part of playing it COMPLETELY. Many jazz players use numerous alternate fingerings in their solos for added ease in executing certain licks or whatever. The quickest way to start figuring them out is using the harmonic series of any valve combination ,(all of them, in fact); don't forget to use 3rd by itself. After you've figured them out a bit, test them at a rehearsal, but keep quiet about at first; don't get into a group discussion and get other guys in the section favoring you or whatever. You just want to try them in a natural way to see if they really help. If they do, then let the other guars know what you've discovered; they'll hopefully be happy to receive it. Some will, others won't at first (or ever), but go straight ahead and do your job.

DEVELOPMENT
Practicing has had a bad reputation with many young players (old ones,too) for as long as there was something to learn, and it's worth trying to figure out exactly why, because I've never been one for practicing at least in the conventional ways that we pick up from God knows where. I realized one day that we are never really taught how to practice or for that matter, how to even sit down and learn anything at alb.. Somewhere in the basics of education, probably in pre-school, children should be taught how to study so that the doors will always be open for them. As far as practicing an instrument, it all ties in with one's ability to study.
When you sit down to put together a trumpet section, you had better plan on a considerable bit of sectional rehearsing, naturally depending on what level you're working with, but even at a professional level, lack of it can make or 'break your section. There are many things about ear training and just


P.6

playing in general that can possibly be learned only here. You wouldn't believe the difference in a section that has suddenly had a sectional after having been together for awhile without one. They shouldn't be a regimented experience. I don't believe in having the leader there or anyone as far as that goes. It should be a private meeting of the minds of the section and should be attentive, purposeful, and loose. NO conductor is best. In some cases, especially in lower levels of schools, it's cool, but as soon as you've got them going, get out of their way and let the kids take their own responsibility for themselves and their section. They'll possibly goof off a bit, but they'll get into it at their own natural speed and they'll end up being much stronger in the long run. A couple of embar concerts will do wonders for getting some sectionals going. At the higher levels, the familial relationship is vital in executing some of the professional level music, so it's good to start building the foundation for this kind of communication at an early age.
As far as more technical things, a guy playing an inside part may never have the joy of knowing what it sounds like or what it has to do with the arrangement until he gets to play it in a sectional. It'll help each person learn to play better pitch, time, phrasing, all of it in fact. Also a good idea in school situations is to let everyone get a chance to play a lead chart and a jazz solo. Learning is EVERYONE'S right.
If you're able, occasionally record the section and all sit down and listen to it; you'll find some interesting things, I'm sure. Just avoid getting too particular about yourself, or rather, whatever you dos avoid getting into a self put down trip. Nobody' s (fortunately) perfect but it's OK to try to be as long as you know that if you ever achieve it, the game's over. I prefer to play the game. I hope you do too!

Thank you.

Bobby Shew
1/21/76 NAJE
www.bobbyshew.com

DESCRIPTION OF BOBBY SHEW'S BREATHING METHOD
By Professor John Daniel, Penn State.

Generally speaking, the system Mr. Shew showed me involved breathing for those high compression situations that come up so often with trumpet playing. In other words, this system is designed to encourage easy access to a fast air stream. I know how weird this must sound to some of you already.

As we begin the inhalation, the belly button area expands a bit (not nearly as much as singers and most brass players encourage.) This step is only responsible for about 5% of the air intake according to Mr. Shew.

As we continue to inhale, the chest expands dramatically. This is step two. Also during step two, the chest might rise and the belly button area returns to its original position. This step is responsible for about 75-80% of the air intake. On a side note, I reread Rafael Mendez's "A Prelude To Brass Playing" the other day and his description of the proper inhalation was very similar to Mr. Shew's up to this point. The next step, however, is where this method is pretty unique.

Step three involves raising the shoulders!!! Apparently this allows the lungs to fill up more freely if we do it in a relaxed manner.

Step four is to bring the belly button area in as if driving a "wedge" into the gut. We do this as aggressively as necessary for the phrase at hand.

Step five is to return the shoulders to a lower position and the last step is to exhale.

That's a total of 6 steps. It is pretty mechanical and slow at first, but after a few days of practice, the steps flow together, the whole breath can be taken in an eighth rest, and the rhythm/momentum of the whole process starts to work.

Personally, the part that has helped me the most is the added leverage my abdominal muscles have in pushing the air out when this area is not expanded as far as most people teach. Also, I used a scaled down version of this method for most of the playing I do. I know how different this must seem from how many of us were taught. All I can say is that it has been useful to me and me students, and it pretty well describes the way Doc has always appeared to breathe. I would strongly encourage anyone interested to get in touch with Bobby Shew. My apologies to him if my description isn't exactly right, but this gives everyone the general idea.

Since many of you have asked, I don't believe anyone is truly qualified to teach Jacob's approach to breathing except Arnold Jacobs. So I won't even try to compare the two systems except to say if they both work, then at their essence there must be the same fundamental principles at work. Remember, the primary application of Mr. Shew's system is to play high and loud.

HOPE THIS HAS BEEN HELPFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
John Daniel
Prof of Trpt Penn State Univ.

Note: this is an exerpt from a great book entitled, "TRUMPET TECHNIQUE" by Frank Gabriel Campos. It should be a part of every trumpet players library.

EFFICIENCY: THE PRIMARY GOAL

If there is a single quality of physical skill that ranks in importance above all others, it is efficiency. It is the very hear of high-level motor skill.

Accomplished performers spend most of their practice time refining their skill in order to perform more efficiently. To refine means to separate what is undesired from what is desired, producing a product that is pure and unadulterated.

In physical performance skill, we seek to eliminate excessive tension, for the presence of excess tension separates the amateur from the expert. It is not an easy or quick process, but it is the only path to mastery.
By Frank Gabriel Campos, professor of trumpet at Ithaca College's Whalen Center for Music and is an actice performer and clinician.

(note: this is a personal email I received from Roger Ingram, phenomenal lead trumpeter player, after playing at the Maynard Ferguson Tribute Concert in St. Louis, in September 2006. Be sure to check out his website at: www.rogeringram.com)

Hey Dan,
I would like to share a HUGE win I had last night. It goes with our work together of two and a half years ago. I was asked to be one of the featured soloists at the Maynard Ferguson Memorial Concert in St Louis last night. I stood up in front of an all-star band before a sold-out crowd of Maynard / Jazz lovers at the brand new theater (beautiful hall) at the University of Missouri St Louis and played my feature of the arrangement of "Watermelon Man" (from the "Come Blow Your Horn" LP of about 1962), blew 3 chourses of jazz and ended the chart on a double D, and brought the house down! For me, getting up in front of the band and wearing the soloist hat, becoming relaxed and nailing the musical work was a HUGE achievement.

Out of the 17 featured soloists, the buzz after the show was that Eric Miyashiro, Wayne Bergeron, and myself were the hits of the 3 hour memorial. There were other great moments as well, but that one for me being a defining moment in my life for sure. There were some things about the way the event was put together and the selections to be performed (almost nothing before 1975. No Birdland Dream Band / Roulette years material) that I thought was jive. Other than that, it was a fitting, tear jerking and wonderful way to say goodbye to one of the most amazing brass players of the 20th century.

I want to thank you Dan for all your help. When I went into the rehearsals for this event on the previous day, I knew I was going to have to confront this part of my playing (jazz) but after working with you, I got myself together and had a big win!! Thought you might like to know!

Now I've got the bug! Going to get some charts together and pursue the High School / College Band soloist market. By the time I had left the stage, I DIDN'T want to leave, you dig?

Stay in touch,
Roger

http://www.RogerIngram.com
Roger@RogerIngram.com
phone: 818.679.6940

ON PRACTICE: BY PAPPY MITCHELL
"Practice slowly and carefully, speed will come unbidden."

Booker Little Metronome magazine interview with Robert Levin in Spring 1961

“I think the emotional aspect of music is the most important. A lot of guys, and I've been guilty of this too, put too much stress on the technical, and that's not hard to do when you've learned to play in school

I don't hear any notes as being wrong. It's a matter of knowing how to integrate the notes and, if you must, how to resolve them. Because if you insist that this note or that note is wrong I think you're thinking conventionally--technically, and forgetting about emotion.
You try and build your story and resolve it.”

It's taken me all my life to learn what not to play.
-Dizzy Gillespie-

QUOTES FROM MILES DAVIS:

"Sometimes you have to play a long time to be able to play like yourself"

"Without music, life would be a mistake."


"Don't fear mistakes, there are none"

"For me, music and life are all about style"

"Don't play what's there, play what's not there"

"Where words fail, music speaks"

"It's always been a gift with me, hearing music the way I do. I don't know where it comes from, it's there and I don't question it!"

"A LEGEND IS AN OLD MAN WITH A CANE KNOWN FOR WHAT HE USED TO DO. I'M STILL DOING IT"
- Miles Davis

CLAUDE GORDON: ON PEDAL TONES

He talks about pedals in his book, "Systematic Approach to Daily Practice" starting on page 8:

When done properly they will:

1. Correct your embochure, therefore, help high register.

2.Give you great command of your instrument.

3.Give you more power and fluency.

4. Aid your attack and sureness.
5. Develop better vibration.
6. Develop intervals and fluency.
7. Bigger sound in all registers.
8. Develop endurance.

MUSIC, ROUTINES, PRACTICE, IMPROVISING
By Roger Ingram

(NOTE: Following is an email received from Roger Ingram, legendary lead trumpeter. It is a email answering questions from a student trumpeter who wrote to Roger for help. The information he shares with us is invaluable. See www.rogeringram.com for more info)

To answer your many questions, first of all try to remember that you are a musician. A musician who just happens to play the trumpet, yes? Music should come first. Of course it's great to become technically proficient on the instrument, but try not to become "robot" like.

Get enough technique to be able to express the MUSIC that is inside of you. At the end of the day, no matter what style of music you play, even if you are just playing parts in a jazz ensemble or an orchestra, the main goal should be expressing music, and communicating to the listener through your instrument.

A "routine" is OK I suppose. The important thing to do though is PRACTICE. There is a big difference between doing a "routine" and "practicing". If you want to do a routine, don't get "hung-up" with it. It sounds to me (according to your description) that you are doing a very complete routine already. In my opinion you may want to branch out and "get your feet wet" in some other playing areas.

PRACTICE.............practice means going into a practice room and working on all your weak points. Work on the things you can't do. Work on the things you don't sound good on and perfect them. After you get those things under control, get a NEW list of things to work on until you get a handle on those things. Keep changing up the practice menu. This will make you a well rounded MUSICIAN. Getting hung-up on a routine has a tendency to make a player "stagnent".......meaning "staying at one level, and maintaining only that one single level of limited exercises". A player becomes a professional "practicer" at that point.

Do you improvise? Practicing jazz can be a great way of maintaining ones overall playing technique and improves ones musicality at the same time. Attempting to play jazz brings into play every aspect of technique necessary to play the trumpet at a spontaneous/musical level.

It sounds like you love playing the trumpet and and that you are doing very well. I'm happy you take such an interest! Just try to keep your musicality in perspective.

Roger
© 2007 Roger Ingram
website:http://www.RogerIngram.com
Email: Roger@RogerIngram.com
Phone: 818.679.6940

QUOTE: CHET BAKER ABOUT WYNTON

"If I could play like Wynton (Marsalis), I wouldn't play like Wynton."
- Chet Baker

IT'S ALL IN YOUR HEAD
by Roger Ingram

(NOTE: Following is an email received from Roger Ingram, legendary lead trumpeter. It is a email answering questions from a student trumpeter who wrote to Roger for help. The information he shares with us is invaluable. See www.rogeringram.com for more info)

I know what you mean about Bobby Bryant's sound. It was very distinguishable. Although most people like to chalk these things up to chops/equipment, as far as sound is concerned it's all in what you hear in your "head". Everyone has a unique sound. No two people sound alike.

There are as many sounds as there are personalities. This is what is so wonderful about "sound!" This is why music and art is such a great thing! It's very personable.

For example, if I were to switch to equipment totally opposite of the equipment I use now, EVENTUALLY over a period of time and adjustment, I would end up sounding almost exactly as I do now because I have a "set" idea of what the trumpet sounds like for ME that I've had in my head ever since I heard a trumpet for the first time.

That's why it's OK to use the equipment that is EASIEST for YOU to play. You're going to end up sounding the same anyway, so why kill yourself?

If you really want to change your sound or become a better player, change your personality!

Roger
© 2007 Roger Ingram
website:http://www.RogerIngram.com
Email: Roger@RogerIngram.com
Phone: 818.679.6940

OVERBLOWING – THE BIGGEST ENEMY
By Roger Ingram

(NOTE: Following is an email received from Roger Ingram, legendary lead trumpeter. It is a email answering questions from a student trumpeter who wrote to Roger for help. The information he shares with us is invaluable.)

There is the old saying among trumpet players; "you can't fill-up the world!" This is of course in reference to playing outdoors. What we're really talking about here I suppose is acoustics.

Webster's New World Dictionary defines the word acoustics as
1. "qualities of a room that affect sound", 2. "science of sound".

So, I suppose what we're REALLY talking about here in regards to your query is the LACK of acoustics there-of.

When I travel with various performing groups, we usually play a different venu everyday. We could literally go from a wonderful concert hall with fantastic acoustics to some type of outdoor festival the next day with either no acoustics at all, or sub-standard acoustics at best. This is all in a days work and we get used to it.

When I was a kid, I had no choice but to practice outside. I wouldn't chalk-up any benefits from having been forced to do this though. It probably was NOT good for me as I most likely got into the habit of overblowing the horn from the lack of ANY acoustics (sound bounce back) in order to "hear" myself.

Overblowing the horn is one of the BIGGEST ENEMIES for a trumpet player, and alot of players do not not know this. This is why so many players have trouble extending their register among other things.

You must remember, for your entire trumpet playing career you're behind your bell. You'll never REALLY hear just how loud your projection is. Besides the fact you are always behind your bell, you must also realize that one's sound doesn't "come into it's own" until approximately 4 to 5 feet out of the bell. These combined facts have a tendency to cause the unaware player to overblow in orer to "hear" themselves.

FAITH.......an interesting word applied to trumpet playing.......it has it's place in the trumpet world though. You must just have simple faith that your sound is getting "out there" and leave it t that. That's it! Also, try not to get "mental" so to speak about it all.

Experience in the recording studio usually teaches trumpet players how well their sound gets out there. Pre-mixed playbacks don't lie. That's why most great studio trumpet players don't play overly loud in the studio. Playing "backed-off" also helps pitch, blend, quality of sound, and flexibility just to name a few good playing qualities.

Believe me, when you play at about your 70% level, the horn responds better and actually sounds "louder". This also saves your endurance and helps you perform on a more musical level. That's why so many wonderful studio trumpet players still sound loud on tape. This is commonly referred to as "printing well on tape".

My best embouchure developement came from playing soft. Soft playing builds a different set of muscles. Loud playing generally tears down muscle tissue, along with "forcing". I'm able to consistently play at my 70% to 80% volume level only because I spend time playing everyday at my 10% to 30% volume level to restore my playing from the previous gig.

Roger
© 2007 Roger Ingram
website:http://www.RogerIngram.com
Email: Roger@RogerIngram.com
Phone: 818.679.6940

"In my early professional years, I had put music on a pedestal. To me music was the most important thing. I came to realize that I was wrong - the people are the most important thing." - Herb Pomeroy

A GOOD SOUND
by Robert Baca

(editors note: this writer says all the things I believe, but says them better than I do!)

Attaining a good sound has been the goal of brass players for generations. Although our ideas of how to produce this sound have shifted from the actual physical study of sound itself to selecting suitable equipment, most musicians would agree that when range, technique and flexibility arrive at an acceptable level, creating a good sound becomes the greatest challenge. By studying the concept of sound quality, you can increase range technique, flexibility and overall playing ease to a more optimal level — a fact overlooked by most trumpet players. Imitating a good trumpet sound involves hearing and listening, processes best achieved when we slow down our mind and focus our attention.

Full vs. Loud
A full sound generates a strong fundamental and a full compliment of overtones. When we direct warm, moist, relaxed air through the center of the trumpet, it enables the overtones to set up properly and the sound will have the clarity that was intended in the design of the instrument. At this point distortion of tone is nonexistent. This is the difference between full and loud. How can we tell how much air to use, what direction it should go, or at what speed it should travel? These questions are resolved automatically by listening to the sound coming out of your bell. Through much listening, we will notice our sound getting closer to the instrument we wish to imitate. We constantly listen and compare. A sound can be loud, but it may not be full. Compare a $199 boom box with a $5,000 audio system. The volume level of the inexpensive set has to be turned up to nine or ten to achieve a loud sound. As the dial reaches this mark, distortion occurs. The $5,000 system creates a full sound by maintaining clarity in a room when the volume level is at 2, 3 or at its maximum.

Concentration
Producing a good sound requires much concentration. With concentration, refined by our interest in studying musical sound, our mind senses, isolates and analyzes the entire sound spectrum being heard. Eventually, through repetitious practicing and listening, the trained mind will unconsciously react by instructing the proper muscle groups to respond in forming the embouchure and air support to just the right degree, thus achieving the desired full sound. The same process exists when we learn to hit a baseball, walk or run. If we are preparing to run a marathon, most of the training is spent learning to quiet our mind to let the body function in the most efficient manner.

Dynamics
Think of dynamics not as loud or soft but as sound color, ranging from dark to bright. Imagine bright as the lead trumpet voice in the shout chorus of a big band arrangement, and dark as the second movement of the Haydn Trumpet Concerto. The dynamic color must fit the ensemble medium. A forte in the Hummel Trumpet Concerto with piano accompaniment would be drastically different than a forte written in a Mahler symphony or the shout chorus of a big band chart. Dynamics are greatly affected by the sound color of the rest of the ensemble.

The Printed Page: A Blueprint
Music written on a printed page should act as a guide to what the music should sound like. The sound is the end result. Printed music is only an image of what the composer had in mind. Three years ago I had a house built. From the blueprint I could conceptually see the roof, room sizes, landscaping, etc., but not until the house was completed could I actually observe the beauty of the design from the blueprint. In much the same way, the audience receives the full emotion of the performance based on what they hear, not on what is on the printed page.

Playing in the Upper Register
From the first music lesson we are taught that one note on the printed page is higher or lower than another. This is simply not true. Higher notes are actually faster frequencies. On the beach when the wind blows through a crack in a rock we hear the pitch go up with the velocity of the wind. A clear sound is easily attained in all registers when the velocity of relaxed air rather than the stiffness of the embouchure creates the upper register. Most importantly, build all registers slowly and securely.

Reading, Rhythm and Accuracy
If we practice too fast our mind initially develops the bad habit of not picking out all the details, resulting in reading, rhythm and accuracy problems. Slow down when practicing and let your mind see all there is to see. Near my house in Wisconsin is the town of Cleghorn, consisting of a few buildings and a thirty-five mile per hour speed sign. Few passing through this town observe the speed limit. Those traveling fifty-five barely know they passed a town, those doing forty notice the big oak tree with the endless branches that cover the road and those driving thirty-five could catch a rare glimpse of the squirrel that inhabits the trees. As Tim Gallawey states in his book, The Inner Game of Tennis, "...the unconscious mind hears everything, never forgets anything and is anything but stupid." Practice slowly enough with a good rhythmic sense to notice detail, but not so as to "daydream" with your concentration. Listen to mentors perform slower lyrical pieces and instantly try to imitate that which constitutes good musicianship.

Learn How to Play the Trumpet
Playing the trumpet, or any instrument, should be an extension of you. Jazz, orchestral and solo styles, while taking a lifetime to perfect, become much easier without fighting the fundamentals of the instrument. We have all suffered from the mistake of recovering from wasted practice time spent trying to work up a piece that was physically over our heads. In your practice day, spend a good portion on fundamentals and in music that is close to your ability level. Once you begin to feel comfortable with the fundamentals of playing, the lifelong journey of learning to express music in different genres becomes much more enjoyable.

Practice
Bill Adam, my trumpet teacher (retired, Indiana University), constantly reminded me that trumpet playing is a development process. There are no short cuts or sunken treasures to be found, only consistent practice and hard work. On the other hand, it's easy to lose sight that exercises are only a means to an end, and not the end themselves. Constantly listen to your sound concept and concentrate to keep it on track as you increase the difficulty of exercises, etudes and solos that you practice. Try to play musically with every note. Start the day by practicing simple exercises, like long tones, so the untrained mind can focus in properly on the sound and instruct the muscles where to go. Practice exercises that begin in the middle register and expand in both directions. Like a physical workout, slowly increase the musical demands at a pace so that the sound will always keep the clarity achieved in the middle register. If our concentration can stay focused, the "rough edges" of yesterday's playing will have no consequence on how we sound today. When our muscles are ready, they will perform correctly.

I practice three sets a day. The first set includes a routine of exercises to help quiet my mind and even out the rough edges of yesterday's playing. (Mr. Adam gave us a "routine" to help us refine our fundamentals. The routine was a series of exercises that would alone be useless without having Mr. Adam interject his personal interpretation of how they apply to each individual student. It was a kind of apprenticeship.) The second set is my musical session filled with etudes where I focus on what happens "in between the notes on those music pages." The third set (often at night) is usually filled with Arban's exercises, duets or jazz playing. It is better to exercise where you are not too anxious with your concentration. Sound quality should be the determining factor for speed, expansion of range, volume and the number of exercises to play. The sound must stay free in the higher range and technical exercises must remain relaxed. Because of performance demands, these factors may change daily and therefore practice must change accordingly.

Get a Good Teacher
Only through time and experience can we develop a deeper musical concept. Exposure to recordings, live concerts and actual performance situations are important but cannot replace studying with a good teacher. Living in Wisconsin, fishing is a favorite pastime of mine. When I first began learning the sport, I bought several books on the subject that discussed weather, lure choice, sonar, lake temperature, water conditions, etc. The books detailed how to properly hold the rod, provided casting exercises and even explained how to sense if there is a fish on the line. While the authors made money from my book purchases, I did not catch fish with any regularity until an experienced angler volunteered to take me fishing. He observed my actions and made suggestions like "Pull fast, but not that fast" and "You may think you have it on the bottom, but you don't. This is what it feels like to be on the bottom" and "Not yet, not yet, not yet. Now!" Simply put, there is no substitute for a good teacher.

Equipment
We refine our performance style for a lifetime, but as the difficulties associated with basic technique fade away and our sound consistently becomes centered, the actual instrument will have an influence on tone quality. As a performer and university instructor, I play a wide range of musical styles. A Bach Stradivarius trumpet delivers a very wide spectrum of musical color. The bright colors necessary for a Broadway pit orchestra or a rock session, and the dark colors necessary for the second movement of the Haydn Concerto with piano accompaniment are easily achieved with this instrument. Eventually, with perseverance, range, accuracy, time, technique, and flexibility, all reach acceptable levels through the efforts you make in practice. At this point, your sound concept can make all the difference for an audition or performance. Music is a lifelong challenge we never conquer, which is the very reason we find it so satisfying.

I hope these concepts will make performing easier and eliminate difficulties created by thinking too much. Many of these ideas I learned from my trumpet teacher, whose common sense approach to trumpet playing has produced an extraordinary number of professional players and teachers.

About the author
Bob Baca currently serves as associate professor of trumpet and director of jazz studies at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. He has performed with the Buddy Rich Big Band, Frank Sinatra, Mel Torme, Tony Bennett, Andy Williams and with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. He also freelances in the Twin Cities. Baca is in demand throughout the United States as a Bach clinician. His article Sound Advice appeared in the Spring 1992 edition of Bach Brass Notes. Bob performs exclusively on a Stradivarius model 180S37 with a Bach 3C mouthpiece. "I use the same trumpet whether I'm playing in a big band, symphony orchestra or for a solo recital. The Bach medium-large bore model facilitates production of a large, full sound with projection. It also allows for the flexibility of adapting my sound to fit the idiom."

NOTES ON A LESSON WITH PATRICK HESSIONS (former lead trumpet with Maynard) by Mike Wittcom

Dan, below are my notes from my lesson with Patrick Hession.

I have been interested in studying with a professional lead trumpeter for some time. Had a one time lesson with Wayne Bergeron in 2005, and realized so much can be gained from a seasoned pro’s experiences. Discussed this desire with a local pro jazz player, Dan Jacobs. He knows and recommended either Roger Ingram or Patrick Hession. Like many of you, I am familiar with each of these two’s recorded work. After reviewing both player’s webpages, I found Patrick’s home is near where I travel for work occasionally. So, I contacted him regarding a lesson and made an appointment. The lesson took place in Patrick’s living room.

I explained to Patrick that my immediate goals were 1) playing exactly in time and 2) phrasing. I have enough range for the gigs I play, so that was not top on my list. Hope would be to work more on that after addressing the first two goals. Fortunately, Patrick’s book covers a lot about breathing and playing in time.

When I arrived, Patrick had not played yet that day, so he started his warm-up while I was there. He began with a mute in, which I thought was due to the close proximity of his neighbors. But, Patrick told me he liked the resistance during the first few notes of the day. Since I brought a copy of his book, we opened it to “Exercise #1 - Warm-Up / Breathing”. For those of you who have read or use his book, he describes how he has used the same warm-up for years. It is great to discuss with an author of a technique text what is meant by some of the content.

I have been trained to breath deeply toward the abdominal muscles, but keep the shoulders level and relaxed. Patrick raises his shoulders to allow the lungs to fill all the way to the top. Similar to Bobby Shew’s method, I was told. Believe Roger gives Bobby credit for the same. Before we began the initial breath, Patrick turned on the metronome and set it to 60 bpm. The inhale of “Exercise #1” is 7 beats (7 seconds). Always subdividing the beat into sixteenth notes. This has helped me already, since I never really planned out when to breath. Just took a big breath some time before I was required to play. Patrick knows exactly how many beats before he plays and where within that beat for each entrance he begins his breath. This technique should really aid in my desire to play exactly in time. Also, he explained air intake to be like “yawning”. I have used the syllable “ko” for years to keep my throat open. “Yawning” seems more open.

Patrick’s breath capacity is amazing! We would breath at a constant rate for 7 beats. Even though we were breathing at close to the same rate, I was completely full before 5 beats. Patrick went all the way through 7 beats. To give you some idea of the difference in our sizes, Patrick is about 5’7” medium-athletic. I am 6’6” large frame. So, I was shocked at how much more air he could intake.

Other items he stressed in the exercises were the breath attacks versus the tongue attacks. As we worked on the breath attack, Patrick demonstrated his mastery of “whisper tones”. I have heard of them, but have not witnessed a demonstration. Patrick can begin a note that is so faint it is barely audible. Hence their name. He begins these notes and crescendos to double forte and back to whisper. Tremendous control.

We covered the first half of the book; which contains: breathing, relaxation, isometrics / develop center, relaxing center, refocusing center, lip slurs, ride the air stream, and riding the center. After that, same type of exercises, but more advanced. After we got through “riding the center”, Patrick said now practice other stuff daily.

After we completed the formal lesson using the book I began asking other questions. One was regarding his students. He has some high school students who want to have range like him. He has them work on Arban’s and Clarke’s methods. After they have those books under their fingers, he will begin them on range. He plays so many different styles and gigs that he has many books, charts, and sheets out in the practice area. He played a difficult “legit” solo piece for me. He is quite comfortable in the big band and “legit” settings.

Before now, I had heard Patrick about once a year during his 5 years with Maynard. I had to ask questions about being on the band. As we talked, Patrick would play different parts from different charts. One thing I keep noticing was how my ear seemed to “jump” each time he played G or high C. Since he hits notes so much in the center now, his horn resonates more than when I play. He also explained his horn, Monette MF, “rings like heck”. My ear was catching all the overtones. His playing in the note center was really demonstrated during one of the exercises later in his book. Exercise #17 is for “glissandos”. One of the patterns is quarter notes starting at middle C - high C - middle C - high C - middle C - high C - low C - high C- low C - double high C - low C - triple high C - low C hold. Tempo is 60 bpm in cut time! After playing it, Patrick says, the triple C is really only with his chops; not supported like it would be in a performance. Each note was on the money!

Before I left, I told him my long term dream is to play Maynard’s solo on “Danny Boy”. Patrick has recently performed this, so he took out the music and played it beginning to end. No misses or cracked notes. What a treat for me.

By the way, my ears were ringing most of the 3 hour drive home. He has serious power to use when he chooses.

Patrick’s schedule is full for a few weeks. So, I will be working on the first half of the book. After ITG, his schedule will free up a little and we will set-up another lesson then.

Looking forward to it!

Mike

NOTES from BOBBY SHEW CLINIC:
From O.J.'s trumpet page, articles and reviews.

Background:
Bobby started the clinic by telling a bit about his background as a trumpet player:
• Learned by ear, by trying
• Self taught – "one of those people"
• In a way "I had a better system" – no one said "Bobby do that" – I had to think

Students:
Students I see today are afraid to think. A lot of teaching I see (at clinics, etc.) states that "This is the way" – I am amazed – there is no such thing as "one way" to play the trumpet.

The important things I try to communicate to my students are:
• Proper listening
• Think! – Do it!
• Copycats – NO!
• Confidence – find your own voice.

How Bobby developed his knowledge:

As I said I never studied in the normal way - Arban bored me. I just started out by playing. Things worked. I got jobs in better and better bands. When I was in the Buddy Rich band there was a lead player that Buddy did not like. A sax player said "Buddy why don’t you try Bobby?" Buddy then said: "Bobby, get over there" Now, I started to get nervous, I had never practiced high notes. The song was some simple shuffle stuff and only one high F at the end. I put my knee up to get it and managed to get through it – you know I could swing – and Buddy, being a drummer wanted that. Buddy then said: "You are now my new lead player". I said to him "I have no chops". "Go home and get it – have it for tomorrow", Buddy then said. Well this was the beginning with problems for me, like muscle problems, hernias – I’ve been through a lot of problems.
I now see that students do the same I did. Man, I have to help these kids. This is no fun memories.
To find out things I decided to buy books, Maggio, Gordon, Callet, etc. There are a lot of dangerous attitude among methods out there: "Do what I say". This is the egomania or "guru-syndromes".
Remember: "The best teacher is yourself"

You know earlier I though Maynard Ferguson was "inhuman", but because of Buddy Rich I had to learn how to do this. One day I had the courage to ask Maynard behind the stage: "How do you do this". He showed me a book called "The science of breath". This was a yoga book not a trumpet book.

Later I asked Bud Brisbois to show me his system. It was very opposite of the normal stuff, like lift your shoulders, etc. I went home and tried it. I played from the back of the Clarke book, the glissando exercise, a gliss from E to high E. Suddenly I went above that high E and ended on a big fat high A. This was my first high A. With this new system I also got up to double C.
Facts versus opinions:

I have done more than 25 years of research in this field now. I have read a lot of medical books, etc. There are a lot of opinions about breathing and misconception like breathe from the diaphragm etc. I needed to know and a doctor showed me some facts. I have been talking to a lot of people. Several of my students are in medicine, physics etc. I always ask my students questions.
Some points:

• High notes = fast air, not lot of air
• Avoid over blowing
• Back off = access to upper register
• Relax – wrong word, efficiency – good word



Warm up:
Bobby Shew has an effective and quick warm-up method.

1. Flutter with completely relaxed lips, by blowing carefully with a closed mouth (sounding almost like when a horse blows through the nose). This stimulates the blood circulation and removes the milk acid, and should be done as often as possible, also in breaks during performance.

2. Do "lip buzzing", that is isometric lip vibration, as if you play without the mouthpiece. Not more than 15 - 20 seconds each time. This is also a good test on the lip condition. He said that the lip position when buzzing is not equal to the lip position when playing on the instrument.

3. Play on the mouthpiece with a clean sound.

He said that he would try to find the good feeling – "The Bobby Shew feeling" that he felt when he was playing good. This was what he was looking for and he would do 1 and 2 until the sound was good. Then he was ready.

He had discovered the flutter by watching people doing this when they where playing.

Breathing:
Bobby demonstrated his "6- step" breathing technique:

1. Intake (small), abdomen moves outward slightly, but relaxed.

2. Intake (large), abdomen moves inward (horizontally) to create wedge position.

3. Intake, abdomen holds position (not tense) shoulders lift straight up.

4. Grip (isometrically) abdomen muscles, maintaining innermost position (lock wedge tension)

5. Relax and lower shoulders to comfortable playing position.

6. Blow (as if spitting rice)

The important thing with step 1 is that it makes the diaphragm drop down.

Students with pinched sound:
Often students came to see Bobby and wanted to play difficult things right away. But he would first ask them to simply play a low C. By listening to the sound of that note, Bobby could tell right away if the student had potential for a double high C in his low note sound.
Very often students had a pinched sound that they had accepted as ok. Bobby now took up his trumpet and demonstrated how it sounded (playing with a pinched sound).
Now the first thing was to make the student aware of this by opening the sound. Bobby demonstrates, calling the pinched sound "NO-sound" and the open sound "YES sound".

He then played slowly: "YES – NO – YES – NO "

The next is to have the student play a simple ascending scale. Even if this first notes are open he often goes into a more pinched sound as he ascend.

A lot of people can hit a high note but it is pinched. Bobby demonstrates a pinched double high C – then an open one.
Do not become obsessed by high notes. The most important thing is good sound !

Tape yourself and listen closely.
Good practice habits:
Bobby did not get time to go into this subject deeply but he pointed out some important points to remember:
15 minutes 4 times a day is much better than 1 hour practice.
Why?
Because after 15 minutes you still feel good and the body remember that "peek feeling"

Try this for a couple of weeks and see for yourself.

O.J. 1999 O.J.'s Trumpet Page Articles and reviews
Clinic with Bobby Shew

IRON CHOPS by Roger Ingram

(note: this is written by legendary lead trumpeter, Roger Ingram. It is a response to a question from a student. It contains vital information for any trumpeter)

Irv,

Nobody has "iron chops". Such a thing does not exist. What some people DO have however (which is easily developed by anyone) is a sense of, and coordination of the usage of internal compression along with the absolute control of the aperture.

This combined with the development of muscle memory in regards to finding one's slots (partials), a sense of overall control of playing volume, and the right equipment, lends itself to what is referred to as "efficient playing". This is at times misconstrued as "iron chops".

Being "efficient" should always be the primary goal of any brass player in regards to the purely mechanical aspect of playing the instrument. Range and endurance are the by-products of efficiency.

You must also realize Irv, that as you said, this was the first time you had played "lead" on a big band job in quite awhile. What did you expect? Sometimes it takes awhile to get used to the saddle again. Try not to be too hard on yourself. Everyone's corners get tired at some point. I suppose a reasonable goal would be getting through a 4 hour gig without too much discomfort.

Roger Ingram
www.rogeringram.com

THE LEAD TRUMPETER: an interview with Bernie Glow for the New Yorker Magazine 1969

"First of all, the lead player has got to be able to play the instrument
with a good, big sound," Glow said. "He's got to have a good high register. He's got to have endurance. Above all, I think, he's got to understand what a melody line means when he plays it--whether it's supposed to mean some-thing syrupy and Guy
Lombardo-ish or supposed to be something gentle or something swinging. A first-trumpet player's job is to look at a piece of paper
and make it sound like music. It's a piece of paper with black dots on
it, and of itself it's not music, and if it's played by the wrong people it'll never be music. It's a matter of interpretation. There are dozens of trumpet players in New York who can play as high as I can, or higher. Or who can play as strong as I can--though, in all frankness, there are very few guys in town who can play as strong as I can or as long as I can. I never reach a point where my lip is so tired that I just can't play anymore. But what you have to do is play music. Some people play the trumpet instead of playing music. There are players who are technically marvelous but get so wrapped up in playing technically marvelously that they ignore the fact that the only purpose in playing that well is to play music.

The playing of the instrument is not the end. To me, that's the basic difference between a great musician and a good one. There are musicians in New York who do pretty well because they never hit clams-- you can't put anything in front of them they can't play. They have all the qualifications. But they just don't have any musical sense. They never sound as if they understand what they're playing. They play it perfectly, but somehow it just doesn't add up. All those perfect notes don't add up
to a song.

"Beyond this, there's a certain attitude that's necessary for the
lead player--toward the men he's working with and toward the leader. A man can't be a good lead player if the fellows he's working with don't respect him. If they don't respect him, they're not going to cooperate, and you can't browbeat people into playing music. Music is not that sort of animal. You shouldn't , ordinarily, have to say a word to the other guys if the music is fairly well written. They should listen to you and play with you. Your interpretation is definitive. Of course, sometimes the music is not plain enough. Or sometimes arrangers will mark phrasing on the music that turns out to be the opposite of what is required to make it fit with the rhythm section. When this happens, the lead player will ignore the markings, and nine times out of ten the arranger will look up and say, "Gee, thanks. Beautiful. It's just what I had in mind."

Worrying about such niceties as making one's perfect notes add up to a song is a luxury of a few. Most people who try to play the trumpet find that their problems with it are as much physical as musical, the instrument evidently having been designed for maximum discomfort, annoyance, and a pain to the player. With a sensible instrument such as a clarinet or a saxophone, the sound is produced in part by the vibration of a reed. But in the case of the trumpet, the player must vibrate his lips, which are tightly pursed and and then buzzed against a metal mouth-piece. During long performances, the muscles of the lips and face tire, and the lips may eventually give out and refuse to
buzz. Playing in the high register of many instruments is largely a mechanical matter--pressing a different key or combination of keys, for instance. To play in the trumpet's high register, the player must press his lips tighter and tighter as he ascends, and provide more and more air pressure, supported by his diaphragm and by muscles in his back and elsewhere. This pressure further tires the mouth, and can also bring on leg and back aches. If the pressure is incorrectly applied, from the abdomen instead of the diaphragm, it can apparently cause a hernia. Normally, though it will produce nothing worse than dizziness and blackouts--the phenomenon discussed in the March 14, 1959 issue of the British Medical Journal, in the article by the late
Dr. E. P. Sharpey-Schafer, who was professor of medicine at St. Thomas' Hospital, in London, and Maurice E. Faulkner, a professor of
music at the University of California in Santa Barbara. "The effects [of playing the trumpet] on the circulation," they wrote, "are those
of a formidable Valsalva maneuver [a hard nose-blow with the nostrils
and mouth blocked]: peripheral venus valves shut and blood accumulates distal to them. The effective cardiac-filling pressure, stroke output, and mean arterial pressure fall off rapidly. After about 7 seconds the slight rise of arterial pressure indicates onset of reflex constriction, which persists, after cessation of blowing, during the overshoot. Since the brain is not protected by venous valves the
supply pressure across it falls so that the cerebral blood flow may
become inadequate during the period of blowing. More usually dizziness or blackout is maximal immediately on release of intrathoracic pressure...."

Dr. Sharpey-Schafer, who made the observations while Faulkner played
the horn, reported that Faulkner reached a mouth pressure of a hundred and sixty millimeters of mercury (about three pounds per square inch) while playing a high D. It would have been interesting if he had made similar measurements during a performance by a "commercial"--that is, a jazz or dance-band player, such as Glow, to compare with those of a "legitimate," or symphonic, player, such as Professor Faulkner. In the past twenty or thirty years, the commercial players have extended the range of the trumpet far beyond it's textbook limits: today they play in a register that the legitimate player would never attempt, and with a brute force that he would never employ.

(Editor's note: The above is not entirely true. Whereas, the so-called "legit" players did not have to play in the upper register continuously (as a matter of course) as modern day demands, Herbert L. Clark finished a number of
solos on a high "F", and the old St. Jacome books have exercises up
to and including a high "F", albeit with disclaimers. The old Ernest
Williams book has exercises in the upper register among others of the
old school...now back to the Whitworth article) The range of the
standard B-flat trumpet was once considered to be roughly from the F sharp below the staff to the high C above the staff. Commercial
players are now expected to be able to play F's and G's above the high C all day, and some of them occasionally will play as high as the double C (an octave above high C), and even beyond.

(Editors note... I once had a record of Doc Severinsen's on which he finished a piece with a very nice double E, but have forgotten the name.. If anybody knows the record or piece, please let me know.. at morriek@halcyon.com) Trumpet

Glow is unrepentant for having strayed into jazz and studio work. "It's really been fun," he says, "I'm a guy who's making a good living doing something he'd rather be doing than anything else in the
world." He still remembers the sting of the blackboard point, though, and he rarely misses a note.

Reprinted from the Dec. 10, 1969 issue of The New Yorker Magazine

QUOTE: LOUIS ARMSTRONG

"“You blows who you is." -Louis Armstrong"

GOALS IN MUSIC
Tom Harrell

"That's one of my goals, for the music to communicate to people and for them to feel the emotions that I feel, in terms of the music. I'm blessed that I can play music that I love to play and people enjoy it. It really makes everything worthwhile."

"Music is a religion and it can structure your life and provide order in the universe. If my music makes people feel better and hopeful, then it gives me meaning and hope."

-Tom Harrell

SCIENTIFIC TRUMPET PLAYING
by Brad Goode

ON PRACTICING THE TRUMPET
Playing the trumpet can be a difficult and frustrating experience. Of all instrumentalists, trumpeters seem to go through the most psychological trauma related to basic concepts. We have all experienced those periods when we struggle to achieve what was once "second-nature." Such feelings of bewilderment produce our greatest and most characteristic excuses, such as--"my chops are down," "I'm blown out," or "I'm having an off day."

Many trumpeters will go through life ascribing mystical reasons to their successes or failures, eventually giving up because they "just didn't have it."

The only path to greater success is through knowledge, practice, common sense and patience. If one makes a careful study of the elements involved, the mechanics of the instrument become clear and easy to approach. This school of thought has been called "scientific trumpet playing", and it's subscribers count among the most successful performers and teachers. With regular, informed and purposeful practice sessions devoted to covering the basic elements of playing, the trumpeter can emerge free to think about music, rather than technical difficulty.

WHAT MAKES A TRUMPET WORK?????
Many people believe that the trumpet is a megaphone which amplifies the sound of the mouthpiece or the buzzing of the lips. This can be disproved very easily. First try this; as you are playing a note, hold the horn with your right hand and hold the mouthpiece stem with your left hand. Now, while still playing the note, gently remove the mouthpiece from the horn. Is the mouthpiece buzzing? If it is perhaps you are playing very loudly.

Next, try this; put the mouthpiece back in the horn. While holding the horn with your right hand, tap the mouthpiece gently with your left palm, and try different fingerings. You should hear distinct tones.

These demonstrations should serve to illustrate that buzzing does not create the tone. Although mouthpiece buzzing CAN be an effective practice technique for developing the embouchure,(I do it daily) it usually requires more force than is used in playing the instrument. In fact, it has been proven that the sound is produced by vibrations of the air column within the instrument. Simply put, this means that the slower the air, the lower the note. (Or the faster the air, the higher the note!)

Armed with this knowledge, it would seem that a great part of our practicing should be devoted to controlling the speed of the air stream. (Hitting the right notes!)

WHAT DO THE LIPS DO?????
The lips do provide an important function in playing, but not nearly as important as many people believe. The lips vibrate at different speeds for different pitches, but this vibration is INVOLUNTARY and is a result of the changing speed of the air passing over the lips. If one tries to control the lips, it is impossible to change the position for every note in a fast passage.
So what do the lips do? They just sit there and provide a vibratory medium between the mouthpiece and the teeth. Think of a clarinet; the reed is held tightly in one position by the ligature against the mouthpiece facing. Once it is all set the player does the rest with his or her air. In our system, the teeth are the facing, the mouthpiece is the ligature, and the lips are the reed; held in one position free to vibrate with the air.

In order to ensure that the embouchure remains stable, the lips should be firmed before the mouthpiece is placed. The proper position can be found by pronouncing the letter “M” and then slightly contracting the muscles around the lips.

WHAT ABOUT THE AIR?????
You need a lot of air. The best way to fill your lungs is to take a deep breath, as if you were yawning. Make sure that there is no sound to your inhalation. If you hear a hissing sound as you breathe in, then you are compressing or squeezing the lungs somehow.
A good breath is made up of two parts; inhalation and exhalation. A common fallacy among many players is the inclusion of a third step, making the process inhalation-hold-exhalation. By holding the breath before commencing the tone, one may inhibit the flow of air, resulting in a choked or thin tone.

Now, think about a balloon. Imagine that you blow up a balloon, and squeeze it without tying off the opening. The air would rush out quickly, and the resultant sound would be low and flatulent. Now imagine blowing up the same balloon, and as you squeeze it, I pull the opening taut with both hands. Now you can squeeze the balloon for a long time before the air runs out, and the resultant sound is a high-pitched squeal.

As the air is blown into the horn, it should be compressed in the mouth. The proper oral cavity formation for the trumpet
is more like that used in hissing than in blowing out a candle. This is an important point which is often overlooked

In our system, the lungs are like the balloon. You fill them up with air and let them deflate. The differences in resistance at the opening are created inside of our mouths. (Not by opening and closing the aperture!) When the back of the tongue is low in the mouth, the oral cavity (inside of the mouth) is very big. As the back of the tongue comes closer to the roof of the mouth, the oral cavity becomes smaller and more resistant. Thus, the air rushes across the tongue faster, and the pitch goes higher.

This can be demonstrated by pronouncing different syllables. As you say "EE", "OO" and "AH", notice the position of the back of the tongue. Also, try whistling a familiar tune, and notice what happens to your tongue. So, we see that the tongue produces the control over air speed.

WHAT IS TONGUING?????
Tonguing, or articulation, is a function of the front of the tongue. It is a simple concept that is quite often misunderstood. The front of the tongue breaks up the air stream by lightly touching on the roof of the mouth, acting as a kind of 'release valve' for the air. THE TONGUE DOES NOT START THE TONE!! You can prove this by playing a few "breath attacks", starting the note with no articulation at all.

One important point: be sure never to allow your tongue to penetrate between your teeth.

WHAT ABOUT MY FINGERING PROBLEMS?????
These problems have to do with the mental side of playing. If you are having problems with fingerings, challenge yourself with more difficult material. Spend most of your practice time in keys, scales or etudes that are the most challenging.

HOW CAN I GET A GOOD TONE?????
The most important element in tone production is a concept of sound. This simply means that in order to get a good sound, you must have that sound in your "mind's ear" before you pick up the horn. Your sound is dependent largely upon your influences, or upon the sounds which you consider to be desirable. This is a very subjective area, and it is the reason why all trumpeters sound unique.

A sound which is neither too bright nor too dark and also resonates freely will provide the most success. As you progress, you may want to tailor your equipment to help you achieve your ideal sound with less struggle.

To develop your concept of sound, spend as much time as possible listening to recordings and live performances of good trumpet playing. A few good role models might be drawn from the following list;

CLASSICAL PLAYERS
Maurice Andre
Adolph Herseth
Gerald Schwartz
Chris Gekker
Thomas Stevens

JAZZ PLAYERS
Louis Armstrong
Cootie Williams
Fats Navarro
Clifford Brown
Booker Little
Lee Morgan
Freddie Hubbard
Clark Terry
Kenny Wheeler
Terrance Blanchard

CROSSOVER PLAYERS
Doc Severinsen
Vince DiMartino
Wynton Marsalis
Allen Vizzutti
Rafael Mendez
Arturo Sandoval

Your sound might also be influenced by players of other instruments. Some of the biggest influences on my own sound have been saxophone players such as John Coltrane and Von Freeman.
The best practice for tone is usually derived through long tone exercises. Long tones should be practiced at all dynamic levels, with and without varying degrees of vibrato.

Equipment also contributes to tone color. In general, the deeper the mouthpiece, the more low overtones dominate. The shallower the mouthpiece, the brighter the sound will be. A good mouthpiece is one that gives you the sound closest to your own ideal when you are playing freely. THE MOUTHPIECE WILL NOT IMPROVE YOUR UPPER OR LOWER REGISTER. A trumpet which is neither too large nor too small, and which plays reasonably in tune is most desirable. Different horns may have slightly different qualities, but in the end a horn will sound only like your own concept.

HOW DO I PRACTICE ALL OF THIS?????
A good practice session should be divided into three parts:

WARM UP
TECHNICAL PRACTICE
MUSICAL PRACTICE

The WARM UP is a very subjective matter. This phase should consist of whatever makes you feel ready to tackle some serious playing. Some players feel there is no need to ease themselves into playing at all, while others MUST perform extensive rituals before dealing with any music.

A warm up should be a brief period of time in which you touch on each of the elements of playing. I like to think of the warm up as a mini-practice session, to make sure everything is functioning as it should be. Personally, if I will be performing three or four sets of difficult music, (5 hours) I like to have a nice, long warm up session of 1/2 hour. If my schedule is tight, this routine can be stripped to its bare essentials and can be done in five minutes.

Above all, a warm up is a luxury. It can improve consistency and confidence, but need not be essential.

In the TECHNICAL segment of your practicing, try to spend some time focusing on the individual elements of technique. These are TONE, AIR CONTROL (or flexibility, or tongue-level) ARTICULATION, VELOCITY and some exercises that incorporate all of the elements.

There are many fine books that contain studies relevant to each area, although as you progress you may develop your own methods of practicing. I am including the following list of some of the best available methods, along with recommended studies for each element of technique:

J.B. Arban, Complete Method for Cornet
Max Schlossberg, Daily Drills and Technical Studies
Herbert L. Clarke, Technical Studies
Herbert L. Clarke, Characteristic Studies
E.F. Goldman, Practical Studies
Charles Colin, Advanced Lip Flexibilities
Walter M. Smith, Lip Flexibility
James Stamp, Warm Ups and Studies
Carmine Caruso, Musical Calisthenics
Theo Charlier, Etudes Transcendantes


SOME RECOMMENDED STUDIES

* Be sure to rest as much as you play. The idea is to gear up, not to tear down. *

LONG TONES
Caruso #1
Arban #1-15
Stamp #3
Schlossberg #1-13

FLEXIBILITY
* The term "Lip Flexibility" is a misnomer. It's the tongue level which needs to be flexible. Focus on keeping the embouchure firm and steady. Speed up the air and raise the back of the tongue to ascend, and vice-versa.
Colin any study
Smith any study
Goldman #15,16,17
Schlossberg #31,61,74
Clarke tech. #3

ARTICULATION
*Practice single tongue (staccato & legato), double and triple tongue.
Schlossberg #30,36,88,92
Goldman #1,2,3,4,5
Charlier #1,16,18
Arban Double and Triple Tonguing sections

VELOCITY
Arban Characteristic study #13
Caruso Scale studies
Clarke Tech. #1,2
Charlier #14
Clarke Char. #1

COMBINATION
Arban Characteristic #1,5,6
Clarke Char. #21
Charlier #23
Goldman #19

One or two studies drawn from each category, played thoughtfully and musically should be more than enough for technical maintenance. By challenging yourself to play this material correctly on a regular basis, you should be more than ready for any technical demands you should encounter. Regular technical practice will keep you in touch with the control of your instrument.

The MUSICAL portion of your routine is the time in which to prepare for upcoming performances, learn new material, practice improvisation or simply experiment. During this time, try to forget that you are playing the trumpet. Imagine yourself singing through the instrument, and make everything as musical as possible. It may be helpful to integrate this portion of your routine with a lot of listening to recordings. They will provide you with inspiration and stimulation to try new things.

Remember to make everything that you practice sound like MUSIC. Even during your warm up and technical studies, play as if you had an audience. Strive to make each note pure and vocal in quality. By practicing in this manner, you will develop musicality as a habit, rather than as an inspirational phenomenon.

Most of all try to enjoy your practice time. I tend to use mine as a form of meditation, centering in on myself as a musician. The process of growth and self improvement which you build in your trumpet practice may also build in you, the individual.


Thanks to my teachers Byron Baxter, Vince DiMartino, Chris Gekker and William Adam, from whom much of this material was learned.

posted by i_b_goode at 1:06 PM 0 comments links to this post
The Lost Art of Trumpet Design

During the 19th century, great pains were taken to develop a design
for a trumpet that would equal the cornets of the day as a solo instrument.


Working with Besson, Monsieur Merri Franquin came up with a basic
design that featured a tapered leadpipe and bell to facilitate the
elements of intonation, projection, clarity and ease of playing.


The Besson trumpets of that era were small bore horns, with very
narrow bell tapers.


A 1907 F.Besson trumpet in C was owned by the Chicago Symphony
Orchestra, utilized by solo trumpeters in the group performing
especially difficult passages throughout the entire 20th century.
This horn has a bore size of .445, and a very slim bell with a quick
taper to the rim.


I first saw this horn when I did a gig at Orchestra Hall back in the late
80's. I saw it again in the late 90's at the Schilke factory. It is currently
in the possession of Steve Winans, a.k.a. Dr. Valve. Playing on this horn,
on several occasions, really got me interested in the history of trpt.
design, and in trying vintage instruments. This is, by far, the easiest,
nicest playing horn I have ever played. Schilke copied this bell on his D/Eflat horns.


In my own collection, I have found several American horns which seem
to resemble this early Besson in size and design. Most notably:


1) 1920's Buescher trpts. In particular, model #9 (.445)
2) Keefer or earlier Distin trumpets (.445)

The following trumpets share most characteristics of the Besson, but have
wider bell flares, more typical of the 1920's-40's Besson design:


1) Martin "M" or "#1" bore trpts of the 1920's and 1930's. (.445)
2) Conn 22B, 12B and 24B B flat trumpets. (.438)
3) The King "Liberty" and Super20 models (.445)


In fact, when Adolph Herseth joined the Chicago Symphony, he was
playing a .438 bore 22B.


My pet theory:

The influx of German conductors in American orchestras sparked a need
for trumpets that had the broader qualities of the German rotary instruments. The sound of the "french style" trumpet fell out of favour.


Conn responded with the 2B, originally designed for the players of the
Philadelphia Orchestra. This was a .460 bore variant of the 22B, but with
an important difference- The radius of the tuning slide was made wider.
The effect of this design change gave the player a more open, round sound, and allowed for a more open feeling to the scale.


Bach, Benge and Holton had early success copying the medium bore
French trumpets, But the trend in classical sound forced them to offer
larger, broader sounding instruments. When Bach moved to Mt. Vernon,
he abandoned his Brevete copy, and began copying the Conn 2B.


Although these changes, bigger bores, leadpipes and bells, succeeded in
delivering the desired sound qualities, THE EASE OF PLAYING, INTONATION AND CLARITY WENT OUT THE WINDOW.


Incidentally, the virtuoso jazz players of this era stuck with the smaller
bore, narrower wrap horns, as the physical demands of their gigs were simply too taxing to be achieved on TANKS.



Martin's dual bore concept was introduced in the "Handcraft Imperial" line. This horn had a top slide measuring .445
and a bottom slide measuring .453. This design provides the feel/resistance of the small horn with the sound of a larger
one. Later, they did the same thing with the "Committee" model. My personal feeling, owning both cylinder and dual bore
versions of the Martin, is that a great deal of focus and control are lost with the dual bore. Roy Eldridge and Dizzy Gillespie
both played the "M" bore in the 30's, switching to dual bore Committees around 1939. Listen to the recordings of Roy's
Chicago band of 1937. HOLY COW!!! Has anyone ever played more trumpet than that? I recorded "Hypnotic Suggestion"
on the dual bore H.I. My next Delmark release was recorded on the "M" bore. It gave me much more ease, facility, clarity and range.


This begs the question; Is it worth all the added physical difficulty and mental anguish to play a big, broad horn, simply because Fritz Reiner liked his Mahler symphonies tubby? Lately, I've been practicing with the Arban book on my 1939 Keefer.
It makes everything seem eminently easy. Trumpeters of the 1800's and early 1900's were undoubtedly using similar equipment.


My concern in moving to smaller horns was that I would sound smaller or weaker in performance. I have found the
opposite to be the case! The older designs provide better clarity and projection, and my students and colleagues are all
commenting on my apparent improvement in power and range. On the Buescher #9 and the Keefer, the very tight bell
flare creates a narrower sound than I am used to making, but both horns cut through bands with greater clarity, and have NO
intonation issues. Even the low D and C# are in tune without regulating the valve slides.


Yamaha has made a nice move with the Bobby Shew "Z" model. It's a variant on the "Committee" idea. Schilke makes
a superb horn in it's "S42". I'd like to see someone copy the 1907 Besson.

posted by i_b_goode at 12:01 PM 0 comments links to this post
TWO NEW RECORDINGS

In May, Delmark records released HYPNOTIC SUGGESTION. This quartet date features the talents of the
brilliant young pianist Adrean Farrugia from Toronto, with my longtime Chicago cohorts Kelly Sill on bass and
Dana Hall on drums.

In July, SteepleChase records released STEEPLECHASE JAM SESSION VOL.17. Fellow trumpeters John McNeil and
Ryan Kisor joined me for a fun session with Andy LaVerne, piano; Steve LaSpina, bass; Matt Wilson, drums.

I hope you will enjoy these new CDs!

posted by i_b_goode at 12:42 PM 0 comments links to this post
Have we seen the end of regional styles?

Years ago,jazz players carried stylistic traits which marked the tendencies and aesthetics of their musical home towns. From the 1920's until the 1970's, it was
possible to hear and identify these traits, especially in the playing of people
from the most active jazz communities. This was, of course, due to the influence
of local players in the formative stages of one's development. The established
local heroes exerted great sway over the other local musicians and audiences.
It was to their standards,expectations and approval that the younger musician aspired.

In my own experience as a young player, I traveled around the Midwest listening
to the great players of that region. During the late 1970's and early 1980's, regional differences still seemed very pronounced in my mind. Each city had a different characteristic rhythm section style and feeling, and groups of horn players seemed to also share truly distinctive qualities. As I studied the great recordings, I could make the connections to what I was hearing in my travels: A Detroit trumpet sound,as heard in the styles of Marcus Belgrave, Thad Jones, Jimmy Cook, and today in Dwight Adams: A Chicago tenor style, exemplified by Von Freeman, Johnny Griffin, Clifford Jordan, John Gilmore and others: An Indianapolis hard-grooving swing,featured by the Montgomery Brothers, Slide Hampton, Freddie Hubbard, and now by Pharez Whitted: A laid back, almost countrified jazz style heard in Louisville
and Cincinnati, typified by Cal Collins, Jimmy McGarry and Jimmy Raney.

Because jazz is now institutionalized, we may be losing these flavors which
once made traveling to different regions so interesting. Woody Shaw is said to have
commented "Jazz died when it entered the schools." Dexter Gordon said, "I don't
know where these kids are coming from. They all sound alike, like they all had the same teacher." Although these statements may sound harsh, to me they have the ring of truth.

As jazz educators, we must be careful not to kill the very thing we love. The standardization of jazz teaching methods is,itself,very unjazzlike. We must also beware of reductionism in the teaching of jazz history. We, by consensus, have limited the players we ask our students to study and emulate to the few we have deemed to be the most important. It has become increasingly difficult to find distinguishable stylistic characteristics separating young, talented players.

There is some promise on this front. The advent of the artist/teacher in university jazz programs is providing much needed perspective. As many schools are
adding rosters of adjunct jazz faculty comprised of top local players, the jazz departments are beginning to function much like real jazz communities.

The educational system does not bare the full responsibility for the homogenization of jazz. The jazz media has developed a pop-culture model for the
marketing of new artists. What sounds the most familiar is projected as the most
marketable. Thus, since the 1980's we have been plagued by a stream of highly lauded and well promoted sound-alikes. Now, our students are emulating THESE people.

The booking policies of so-called 'jazz clubs' may also be to blame. The traditional model had established artists leading bands, and young players trying to
make an impression on the older cats. If a young musician could earn their respect,
and gain employment as a sideman,he may later be approached by the manager or promoter for his own booking.

Today's model most often has the venue managed by someone who has no knowledge of the music, whatsoever. His main concern is the bottom line. He accepts tapes and solicitation from all comers, and hires accordingly. Thus,a band of young players may find themselves working without having to meet anyone's expectations. They are left alone to learn the business and the music by themselves. This has resulted in an epidemic of musical relativism.

It's become increasingly difficult to pass the torch, as nobody seems to know which torch to pass. Politics and philosophy seem to be more and more at play. A young player no longer learns by observing the people in his community and attempting
to integrate and distinguish himself.

It's our duty to correct this situation. The music is at stake.

posted by i_b_goode at 11:44 AM 3 comments links to this post
Improvising Melody

When jazz players play an improvised solo, they may use a variety of techniques. Sometimes players think of a scale that matches a particular chord sound and play notes of that scale. Other times, soloists may repeat phrases and licks that they have heard others use, and fit these licks to the chord changes. A player may also invent and memorize his own original melodic material and then insert it at the appropriate time.

These are all good techniques. Most of us experiment with each of these approaches, particularly in the early stages of our jazz study. These methods provide a good introduction to soloing, and give us ways to sound good quickly.

As the student advances and gets further into the music,he or she will certainly do more and more listening to recordings of the greatjazz soloists. As awareness of the art of improvising grows, the student will become aware of the musical depth from which these jazz greats are working. The great improvisers operate on numerous levels at once, and they do much more than simply run scales or patterns, or play their favorite licks.

After listening to a great musician play a solo, I feel that something very special has been communicated to me. Each solo is unique, and it tells its own type of story. Beyond the personal feeling that each player may express,these solos are special because they have made meaningful musical statements.

Certainly, these players have all mastered their chords and scales, they all have great technique on their instruments,and they are polished performers. What makes their playing interesting is that it is always somehow different or new. In other words, they truly are IMPROVISING: making something up right at that moment to fit that situation.

It is not hard to make something up, or do something thathas never been done before. All it takes is a sense of adventure. It is, however, VERY HARD to make up something new that sounds really good, fits the changes and makes a lot of sense to the listener.

One of the primary goals in improvising is to create new melody statements that fit the changes and rhythm, and to link these statements together in a coherent stream of musical thought.

In many ways, great jazz soloists think like composers. After all, our typical process is to remove the composed melody from a tune, and improvise new melodies in its place. The beauty, shape, length,direction, harmonic accuracy and inventiveness of these improvised melody lines are some of the components that hold the listener’s attention, and that comunicate in a non verbal language.

When professional players get together and discuss soloists that interest them, they don’t say things like: "Wow, that guy really knows his scales!" or "Gee, she can really play fast!" What they say is more like: " He plays beautiful lines!" or "She can really tell a story!"

There are definite techniques used in improvising lines.These compositional techniques are very similar to those used by great composers in the classical world. There is a very distinct similarity between the melodic writing of J.S. Bach and the melodic improvising of Charlie Parker. The same principles of melody apply to each genre.

MELODIC CONSTRUCTION

The listener hears harmonic motion on the beat.

What does this mean? It means that we expect some sort of regularity in the sound of our music. When we hear that regularity, the effect is very pleasing and settling. When we do not hear it, it can create tension. Although we often use this tension on purpose, it is in the resolution of the tension that we enjoy its effect most.

The basic principle of good melodic construction can be summed up like this : THE MELODIC LINE ACCURATELY DEFINES THE CHORD PROGRESSION. This means that in listening only to the melody, one can actually hear the chord changes.

The overriding rule is STRONG BEAT / WEAK BEAT. Chord tones fall on the beat, and non-chord tones or chord tones may fall between the beats.

The rules are meant to be bent, and sometimes broken, but learning this simple technique can give you a solid foundation in melodic playing. Here are some ways to practice:

1. Practice writing solos out. You can compose entire choruses on the tunes you are learning. Then you can play these solos. See