Clocking Mouthpieces- A Practice from the Past

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My first introduction to clocking a brass instrument mouthpiece began several decades ago when I was returning home from Willard Elementary School in Moline, Illinois. On the way home I stopped at a local gas station to visit with its owner.  That day I happened to be lugging my Olds Recording cornet home with me and as I visited with the proprietor, we were joined by a customer who aggressively questioned, “Hey kid, what are you doing with that horn”. As a grade school youth, I was more than intimidate as I replied, “I’m taking it home to practice” was…

Substantiating Evidence That All Trumpet Mouthpieces are Not Equal (or consistent).

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In a previous post, I addressed the practice of “Clocking” your mouthpiece (“Clocking” Your Mouthpiece Part #2 – Trumpet Blog (thetrumpetblog.com). At the end of my post, I admitted to the possibility that rotating one’s mouthpiece can and did change the sound as well as a resistance factor. In the same article I admitted that I was originally skeptical of this technique but after trying it myself, I was convinced that the rotation made a difference in the final outcome. I also admitted that I had no idea why this happened. I recently had the pleasure of visiting with someone…

Practicing on the Road

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Much discussion has been raise over the noise factor when practicing on the road and for that reason I wanted to give just another suggestion for solving this problem. Next week I will be on one of our vacations and because of the luggage limitations, I will not be able to take my horn. *&%^%$#@#% I did plan to carry my mouthpiece with me but buzzing on a mouthpiece is not the same as buzzing on a horn. The resistance is such that I end up deciding I wouldn’t do that again. Also the buzzing sound tends to annoy my…

The Definitive Guide to Trumpet Mouthpieces- Reprinted from 2013

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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,…

How To Increase Strength and Speed In Your Valve Fingers

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This trick came to me by way of the great cornet player and leader of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, Mr. Merle Evans. While enjoying the very infrequent resting period during one of the circus performances, I asked Mr. Evans if he knew any tricks to improve strength and speed in working ones valves. The following information was gleaned from the conversation. This conversion needs only to be temporary for after a few days you will notice an improvement in both your speed and strength in your valve fingers. Materials required for conversion- three extra valve springs.…

Starting Over…again part 6- Reprinted from 2017 (We are way ahead of the others)

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This is what is being advertised as the “New” way to practice in limited spaces. Watch the new advertisement and then read what we were discussing more than 5 years ago. One of the greatest joys I have experienced while writing this blog for the past 7 years is when readers write in with their own views and opinions. This is a very fine example of such a reader. His name is Felice Sobrero and after viewing my post he left a comment on his experience with the same issue I was covering which was being able to practice in…

Make Your Own Mouthpiece Buzzing Adapter

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As you can see from the photo, my first Mouthpiece Buzzing Adapter was assembled many years ago, long before the more popular ones came on the market. I ran across mine this morning by accident and thought it would be an interesting project for you do-it-your-selfers out there. As close as I can remember, I put this one together about 30 years ago out of old trumpet parts. At that time, it was the only one that I knew of and it worked very well, and still does. There are commercially designed and manufactured models of the basic concept and…

Buying A New/Used Trumpet Is Like Buying A New/Used Car

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You may think this is a strange comparison but the selection of each is very similar as I will try to illustrate. Guidelines when purchasing a new car • Should I buy a new car or a used one? • Do I need a new car? • What do I want to do with my new car? • How much money should I spend? • Where can I get the best deal? • Which manufacture should I look at? • Which model should I try? • What options should I consider? • Should I trade in my old model or…