Concepts for Trumpet

Music for All Summer Symposium 2018

Dr. Mary Thornton

Professor of Trumpet Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi

www.marythorntontrumpet.com mary.thornton@tamucc.edu

June 24 – 30, 2018 Ball State University

Muncie, Indiana

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Before you begin each day of practice…here is an important thought:

“Every bit of playing we do today, be it good or bad, or indifferent, goes toward deciding the sort of player we will be tomorrow. A player who begins every day with a load of thoughtless, shoddy flourishes, is simply perfecting their faults.

Time spent trying to do simple things well is like putting money in the bank. Use your warm-up time to do simple things well.” –John Fletcher

I. Breathing and the Buzz

• Breathing to play our instrument is a bit different than breathing to stay alive. It’s important to activate that type of breathing each day. The exercises we do together are all drawn from “The Breathing Gym” by Sam Pilafian and Patrick Sheridan. • The “How To” method of breathing. Breathe in as you imagine saying the word “how” and articulate your exhalation. Breathing is the “circle of life”. Air comes in and air goes out, there is no stopping. • Loose Lip Buzzing. (Also known as the Horse). Just remember to get some blood flowing to the embouchure. You should already be thinking about the idea of a sustained and even sound. • Focused lip buzzing. Here there are many options, and many opinions about how much is a good thing, and what register to buzz in for pitch matching. My opinion is that a little bit goes a long way. The work we do together will be drawn from “Technical Studies” by James Stamp. Be sure to use a piano or some sort of keyboard app so that you always have a solid, independent pitch reference. You can also work toward working with a drone but only after all notes can be consistently played in tune with an independent fixed pitch. Keep your ears wide open!

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II. Sound

The most important aspect of your sound is the image you have of it in your mind. You must have a clear idea of the sound you want to create. This means you should listen to A LOT of music. To develop a tonal concept you can focus on trumpet players, but to really speed your development as a musician, be sure to listen to great musicians and ensembles of all kinds. There is soooo much music out there that you will never hear it all. Vincent Cichowicz – Long Tone Studies (short version). Extended versions of these exercises are found in the book compiled by Mark Dulin and Michael Cichowicz.

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Adapted from James Stamp Technical Studies:

• Rule Number One in all Stamp work is to “stay up when going down and stay down when going up”. Do not give away the directions you are heading. • Avoid “falling into” or “landing” on notes. Intonation should always be in mind. Practice with a practice buddy to work on resultant tones. • Range Building with an evenness of sound and the rule of “three strikes”. • Chromatic Scales from the “middle”. Maintain the second line G feel.

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III. Technique/Daily Practice and Routines Clarke Technical Study Number One. Available in the public domain and in various published versions.

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Scales:

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IV. Tools to Use/Tonal Energy

• Technology today allows us great access to tools that can help us accelerate our progress. We will explore how to use the Drone Tone Tool and the Tonal Energy App for best results. • There is always the need for a metronome (a loud one), and a tuner, and a means of recording yourself. Luckily, today there are many ways to have everything we need right on our smartphones!

V. All Things Trumpet

• Auditions. The key to a successful audition is preparation. Think of the 5 P’s. “Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance”. Preparation doesn’t just mean learning the notes. Before an audition it is important to get enough rest. Get some sleep the night before. Be sure you have everything organized, all of your music together, all of the mutes and trumpets you need, all of the supplies you might need (like valve oil, slide grease, pencil), throw a snack/protein bar in your trumpet case in case you don’t have a chance to get something healthy (and NOT SALTY) to eat. Be prepared to focus on your own warm up, your own plan. At an audition, you are likely to hear people doing all sorts of weird things. It doesn’t matter. You just focus on you. • In the heat of the moment…SLOW DOWN! Things are not moving as fast as you think they are. Take your time. First, look at the key signature and the time signature. Take a moment to remember what that tells you. Second, scan the page for the complex areas, meaning the spots with the fastest notes, most complicated rhythms. Third, think for a moment how you are going to navigate the tricky bits, what tempo is realistic for a good sight read, figure the rhythms in your mind. Finger a few of the tricky spots as you think the tempo. Fourth, settle yourself, take a breath and go. Don’t stop and let mistakes go, make music as much as you can.

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Websites of Note: www.trumpetguild.org www.trumpetherald.com www.imslp.org www.trumpetexcerpts.org www.banddirector.com www.dronetonetool.com www.allthingstrumpet.com www.trumpetexercises.net Apps of Note: Tonal Energy Drum Beats from Nine Buzz DroneToneTool by James Roberts FlexBeat Metronome (for mixed meters especially)

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Trumpet Players to Discover (by no means a complete list-and keep in mind some folks do both): Classical Alison Balsom Wynton Marsalis Håkan Hardenberger Jens Lindeman Doc Severinsen Michael Sachs Phil Smith Chris Martin Allen Vizzutti Thomas Hooten Chris Gekker Ray Mase David Bilger Tine Thing Helseth Jazz Wynton Marsalis Sean Jones Miles Davis Dizzy Gillespie Ingrid Jensen Nadje Noordhuis Carol Morgan Terence Blanchard Clark Terry Bobby Shew Wayne Bergeron

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Etude Books/Technical Studies (not a complete list): Allard AdvancedRhythmsArban CompleteConservatoryMethodBalasanian 20EtudesBalay 15Etudes(Leduc)Bartold,ed. ClassicalandModernWorks,Vol.1Berdiev 17StudiesforTrumpetBitsch 20EtudesBoehme 24MelodicandTechnicalStudiesBona RhythmicalArticulationBordogni 24VocalisesforTrumpet(transposition)Bousquet 36CelebratedStudiesBrandt 34Studiesand24LastEtudesCharlier 36TranscendentalEtudesClarke TechnicalStudiesColin AdvancedLipFlexibilities(complete)Collins IntheSingingStyleConcone LyricalStudiesDufresne DevelopingSightReadingGates OddMeterEtudesGekker ArticulationStudiesGekker FifteenStudiesforPiccoloTrumpetGekker 24EtudesGetchell PracticalStudiesfortheTrumpet/Cornet(Books1and2)Goldman PracticalStudiesforTrumpetHaynie DevelopmentandMaintenanceHering 28EtudesHering EtudesinalltheMajorandMinorKeysHickman ThePiccoloTrumpetHickman SpeedReadingforBeginnersHickman SpeedReadingforMelodicInstrumentsIrons 27GroupsofExercisesKopprasch 60SelectedStudies(Book1)Lin LipFlexibilitiesLonginotti StudiesinClassicandModernStyleNagel SpeedStudiesPaudert 24ModernVirtuosoStudiesPilafian/Sheridan TheBrassGymPilafian/Sheridan TheBreathingGymSachs FundamentalStudiesSachs TheOrchestralTrumpetSachse 100Etudes(transposition)Schlossberg DailyDrillsandTechnicalStudies

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Small MelodiousandRhythmicalExercisesSmith TopTonesfortheTrumpeterSnedecor LowEtudesSnedecor LyricalStudiesVol1,Vol2Stephenson Daytudes(allvolumes)St.Jacome GrandConservatoryMethodStamp Warm-UpStudiesThompson TheBuzzingBookWerner 40StudiesforTrumpetWurm 40StudiesVizzutti TrumpetMethod(I,II,III)***This handout is not a complete guide to everything we will have covered in our masterclasses, but more of a reminder about the things we have talked about over the course of the week. As you work on the topics we covered and reflect on your time at the symposium, it is likely you will have questions. Always feel free to email me any questions you might have and I will answer. Remember, your progress is all about mindful practice. Enjoy it! You never know where it will take you!