Wayne is one of my favorite trumpet players and is just a great guy. I credit Wayne for advising me about an important adjustment of my trumpet playing. He’s a wealth of knowledge and a world class player in every respect. Enjoy this masterclass in five parts:
Clean Your Trumpet!
A clean trumpet may be the easiest way to give yourself a performance “edge”, and it extends the life of your horn too. It’s just like changing the oil (and other fluids), rotating the tires, routine thorough inspections, and the occasional car wash for your automobile. These little maintenance tasks allow your car to run at it’s best and often saves you money in large repairs down the road. Cleaning a trumpet is quick, easy, and inexpensive. Clean your trumpet every six months for best performance and longevity. Here’s a list of what you will need:
Cleaning snake
Mouthpiece brush
Valve casing brush
Liquid dishwashing soap (Dawn, Ivory, etc.)
Valve oil
Slide grease
A couple of old towels
Old sponge, toothbrush, or washcloth (for cleaning tight spots and male slide tubes)
A large sink or bathtub
For those unsure of what to do with the above list of items, follow the simple steps below:
Fill your sink or tub with warm water (add soap while filling). Disassemble your trumpet, placing the valves off to the side. Place all parts (body, slides, top and bottom caps) in the sink to soak for 20 to 30 minutes. After soaking, run the snake (several times) through all tubes on the body and slides, taking care not to run the snake around sharp “elbows” or bends in the tubing (it will get stuck). Spend the most time on the leadpipe, tuning slide, and tubing that connects the tuning slide to the 3rd valve. Put a few drops of soap on the valve casing brush and run it through the valve casings, and do the same with the mouthpiece brush and all mouthpieces. After looking down the tubes and checking for any remaining gunk, thoroughly rinse each object and place on a towel to air dry. Clean each valve port (hole) using the same process as cleaning the casings and mouthpiece, taking care not to immerse the valve (and getting the felts wet). Make sure to use a very soft bristle brush on the valves (the casing brush is normally just fine) as the valves are delicate and any scratches or dents may affect performance. Rinse the valves and set aside to dry. After the trumpet is dry, re-assemble and oil/grease the trumpet. If you have a silver trumpet, now is the best time to polish it.
I also recommend an Ultrasonic or chemical cleaning once every 1-2 years. These must be done by a professional, but will completely clean every square inch of your trumpet, even in places unreachable by cleaning snake. Most reputable music stores and repair shops offer these services in the range of $65-100. The tech performing the cleaning will also give your instrument a thorough inspection. If you need a recommendation, contact me.
Adolph Herseth: A living legend
Here’s a fun video of a visit to Herseth’s studio in 2009. Bud shows some of his trumpet collection with his sharp wit and humor. I believe he was 88 at the time of the video.
Uncle Larry releases new EP House Fly
Read about Uncle Larry‘s new EP House Fly at Documents Unknown. I was fortunate enough to be a guest on this album and really enjoyed laying down a trumpet track. Get out there and support a talented and unique Milwaukee band!
Hakan Hardenberger Masterclass
A video of a masterclass given by one of Europe’s finest trumpet players. Enjoy!
National Brass Symposium master class
Here’s an excellent video of orchestral brass playing. It’s the famous chorale in the 5th movement of Mahler’s 2nd Symphony. Note the trumpet section is made up of the principals of the New York Philharmonic (Philip Smith), Cleveland Orchestra (Michael Sachs), Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Chris Martin), and the Boston Symphony Orchestra (Tom Rolfs).
Here’s another of the opening of Also Sprach Zarathustra. Personnel is slightly different. I really like the conducting of Michael Mulcahy (2nd trombone with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra). Do you?
How about Tchaikovsky’s 4th?
Thomas Hooten plays Turrin’s Chronicles
Here’s a fantastic clip of Thomas Hooten, principal trumpet of the Atlanta Symphony, performing with the U.S. Air Force Band at the 2011 National Trumpet Competition. The piece is the third movement of Chronicles by Joesph Turrin. Thomas displays a singing, resonant, focused sound in all registers with incredible articulation clarity. Note the great playing/accompanying of the Air Force band. Enjoy!
Maria Schneider Orchestra
One of my favorite performing ensembles is the Maria Schneider Orchestra. Maria assembles some of the world’s best talent (many, if not all from New York) to play her compositions. She writes lush, complex, lyrical, beautiful, and momentum-filled tunes that take big band instrumentation to a whole new palette of sound. Can’t get enough! Enjoy!
This one features the great Ingrid Jensen!
Maria’s website.
Arutunian Concerto – Chris Martin, trumpet
There are dozens of trumpeter playing at the highest level around the world. Chris Martin (principal trumpet, Chicago Symphony Orchestra) is very near the top of that heap, in my humble opinion. Enjoy this living legend doing a spectacular performance of the Arutunian Concerto! Make sure to listen to the rest of the piece (this clip is one of at least six parts).
Exercise the brain too!
Sometimes as brass players we forget to involve the brain as much as we should. Obviously, the brain is always active coordinating our breathing, lips, and fingers so that we may make a good sound and play the right notes at the right time. But, what about choosing the right note when playing a tune by ear or improvising a jazz solo? Is it C or C-sharp? How do you know? What about that little “thing” that Louis Armstrong adds to the ends of his phrases or long notes? Is it a shake? Lip trill? Maybe it’s vibrato? There’s a trumpet solo in the first movement of Mahler No. 5 marked molto portamento. What does that sound like? How do you play it? What about Tommy Dorsey’s slide vibrato on I’m Getting Sentimental Over You?
Dedicate 15 minutes of your weekly practice to playing by ear. Start out simple by playing easy songs (Amazing Grace, Happy Birthday, simple jazz tunes, etc.) from memory, trying to get as many right notes as possible on the first try. Try a different key. How about a song from the radio? Working on a solo or excerpt? Memorize the notes of a phrase and then get out of the music. Sheet music can trap us to just the notes on the page. Listen to a recording and imitate it. Find the music inside that phrase and get it to come out of your bell. Ignore the rhythm and tempo (gasp!) for a minute and just get the music. You can go through it with the metronome later. I guarantee your “batting average” will increase, and more importantly, your playing will have shape and begin to tell a story.
Amaze yourself by improving areas of your playing you’ve forgotten or haven’t discovered. It seems like brass playing is measured with a speedometer and altimeter. There’s more to playing an instrument than how fast or high you can play. Sure, that stuff helps, but is that why we play?