Flexibility in your surroundings Being flexible in your surroundings or environment refers to your interaction with the situation and people around you. Musicians at times can be moody, prideful, insecure as well as stubborn and arrogant. This is not a trait of all musicians but is true of many. When you are performing in an ensemble or performing on stage as a soloist, you are more on display than say someone working in a factory or fixing a leaky water pipes. Learning to be more patient and understanding can be very important to your musical success. Trumpet players have a…

Flexibility when performing Whether you play regularly in an orchestra or a jazz combo, each performing medium has its own playing expectations. If you are playing lead in a big band, you will be expected to play at the upper dynamic levels as well as in the upper range of the instrument. If you perform regularly on a third cornet part in a concert band, you will be required to play low parts at lower dynamic levels. No matter what part you play regularly, you will need to compensate for these narrow playing expectations. Flash back time again- I distinctly…

To celebrate our 5th anniversary of our site, we have decided to post the top three most popular topics. Today we are featuring our second most popular post- HI-R-BY-A-THIRD stands for How to Increase Your Range By A Third This is a new support group just for high note wimps like me and it begins Today! • If you are tired of having other trumpet players laugh at you when you miss the high note at the end of your solo, join our group. • If you have lost jobs because of your limited range and want to play in…

Warning! This video contains foul language and intense personal anguish. If you are offended by aggressive, confrontational behavior, do not view this video. If you are underage, do not view this video. If you have ever been attacked by a small man (woman?)on the street when practicing your horn, do not view this video.

Before we get into the advantages and disadvantages of having perfect pitch, we first need to establish what perfect pitch is. Reprinted from Wikipedia: Absolute pitch (AP), widely referred to as perfect pitch, is a rare auditory phenomenon characterized by the ability of a person to identify or re-create a given musical note without the benefit of a reference tone. AP can be demonstrated via linguistic labeling (“naming” a note), auditory imagery, or sensorimotor responses. For example, an AP possessor can accurately reproduce a heard tone on their musical instrument without “hunting” for the correct pitch. Researchers estimate the occurrence…