Are Trumpet Players Born That Way or Do They Grow Into It? (Reprinted from Dec 14, 2019)

Trumpet players have the reputation of being, arrogant, self-centered, boisterous, know-it-alls and for this, we are sorry. Some players learn this naturally and some of us did not realize it was happening until it was too late. This is typical of the view most musicians have of trumpet players- How many trumpets does it take to change a light bulb? Five. One to handle the bulb and four to tell him how much better they could’ve done it. Is it justified? It might be, but I am more interested in the answer to this question- “Do trumpet players have these…

The Definitive Guide to Trumpet Mouthpieces- Reprinted from 2013

Trumpet Mouthpieces – Getting Started Most instrument manufacturers also make mouthpieces which are produced under their own name and are included with the purchase of their instrument. Beginning trumpet and cornet players will not need to go through the endless quest to find the perfect mouthpiece as the more experienced players often do for the younger player needs to be more concerned with basic practice habits and steady improvement on his/her instrument and less concerned with what Mr. Trumpet player uses to play his style of music. To be perfectly honest, if I’m asked what is the best trumpet mouthpiece,…

History of Dance Cards

Dance Card From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia A dance card or programme du bal (also known by its German-language name, Tanzkarte) is used by a woman to record the names of the gentlemen with whom she intends to dance each successive dance at a formal ball. They appear to have originated in 18th century, but their use first became widespread in 19th century Vienna, especially at the massive balls during Fasching before Lent. Dance engagements card for 11 January 1887, showing a list of all the dances for the evening – valse, polka, lancers and quadrille; opposite each dance is…

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Dry mouth with Two Solutions

Many times, we are faced with difficult conditions when performing under pressure and one of these conditions is dry mouth. A trumpet player with dry mouth is like a fish without water. Both conditions will result in a very bad situation.   Common Causes of Dry mouth Dry mouth is not always related to an underlying condition. It may be caused by: Not drinking adequate water Nervousness Stress Certain medications Aging Cancer therapy (radiation/chemotherapy) Smoking Methamphetamine use Injury or surgery Tobacco Exercising or playing in the heat   Take note of conditions 2 (nervousness) and 3 (stress). These two are…

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Brush After Every Practice

The phrase “be sure to brush after every meal” should be applied to trumpet playing. There are three reasons why this is important to all of us playing brass instruments. Reason #1- It’s healthier. The amount of food, crud and moisture that builds up in our instruments in a short amount of time is impressive. Bacteria begin to develop to a point that germs can be contracted through our many hours of blowing into the instrument. Brushing our teeth after a practice session will help eliminate the possibility of these foreign bodies getting into your system. The exposed brass inside…

Preparing For Your First Gig

Be sure to visit our sister site…… Trumpet Ensemble Music for all of your solo, ensemble and study material needs. ______________________________________ I distinctly remember my first real paying gig. It was at the Officers Club at the Rock Island Arsenal base and I was in high school. Fortunate for me I was a better player than anyone else on the job. It was a New Year’s Eve dance and the book (music) was easy although hard to read from all the spilled beer and cross outs on the one-hundred year old manuscript. But enough about my first time, let’s see…

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You Raise Me Up – Trumpet Ensemble

  From time to time we have readers send in recordings of our music and this young man was kind enough to take the time to prepare our arrangement of “You Raised Me Up”. We would like to thank Javed for his recording and it looks as if we have a very talented and industrious young trumpet player out there. From Javed; Arranged by Branson Trumpet Ensemble – Chidester Played & Recorded by Javed Hassan This is me messing with my webcam and trying to get 4 vids at once. not good quality, I know, But the music was ok…

Historically (Hysterically) Important Advice for Cornet/Trumpet Players- Part #2

This is part #2 from the advice given in the duet collection Celebrated Practice Duets by Arthur Amsden. Don’t fail to pour water through your cornet before beginning the day’s work; never mind WHY, just DO IT and note the benefit of this simple advice. allow yourself to acquire a tremolo in your tone; nothing can be more objectionable than a cheap, shivery, trembling tone “a goat-stop” tone is a performers worst asset. hold your instrument too high or too low, and by all means don’t hold it sideways, that’s an unmistakable sign that you’re a novice. beat time with…

Historically (Hysterically) Important Advice for Cornet/Trumpet Players

On February 1, 1918 a wonderful collection of duets was published by Arthur Amsden which was titled “Celebrated Practice Duets”. We are indebted to the composer for sharing his compositions with us and if you are in need of a very large (70) collection of excellent duets of varying difficulty, I strongly recommend you purchase this collection. A friend introduced me to this book and each week we play through it to keep both our chops up as well as our reading skills (thanks Doyle). This past week I shared my copy with another new trumpet friend (thanks Steve) and…

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When I Grow Up I Want To Play Like Bobby Shew

That is a strange statement coming from a nearly eighty years old trumpet player, but that is how I would have liked to have played. Bobby has had a tremendous impact on the trumpet world, not only because of his beautiful sound, range and very gifted improvisational skills, but his contribution to trumpet education and equipment advances have also been important. Before I continue with his many accolades, let me first tell you of the first time I met this giant of the horn. I first met Mr. Shew when I picked him up at a high school in the…

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