This Simple 3-Step Process Will Improve Your Sound

Your trumpet sound is the audible manifestation of your soul. So I have a question for you. How much attention are you giving your trumpet sound?

It's very easy to overlook your sound. Most players do because we're very attracted to the fast notes and the high notes and everything in between.

But I'm telling you now, you need to take a moment and consider your trumpet sound. That's what we're going to do today. I'm going to show you one way to improve your trumpet sound. But before we do, I just want to play a few notes for you.

All right? So this is one of my favorite things to do.

You can incorporate this exercise near the beginning of your practice session, and it's simply to sing, buzz, and play. That's it.

So I recommend choosing one or two notes to focus on at a time because you really want to really hone in on one or two notes and really focus on them so that over time, you're going to hit every note in your range.

Okay, so sing. Well, actually, there's a step before sing, and it's getting a reference pitch. So for that, I have my phone here. And I'm going to open up my app because right now around me, I don't have a piano.

If I had a piano that was in tune, I would use that, but I don't. So I have my app here. And the main thing is that you want to have a dependable source of something that you know is going to be in tune.

Alright. So I'm going to play a G here. That's the wrong register. Hold on. Let it let's try that again. Okay, so now I have that pitch. Now I know what it sounds like. I'm going to sing it. I want to produce the sound with my body.

Okay, why? Because my body is the primary instrument, that's why.

If I can produce the sound with my body, then the trumpet is going to amplify the sound that I put into it. So by singing the sound, I'm literally producing the exact frequency with my body.

Alright, so let's hum it. Alright, that was a little high. I'll try that one more time. Alright, now I have that. The next thing I want to do is buzz it on the mouthpiece.

(Buzzes trumpet mouthpiece).

And now I'm going to play it in the trumpet.

And that's the whole process. You just keep doing that over and again until you get a clean attack, until you get a clean, steady sustain, until you get a clean, good release. So really quick. If you didn't know.

I'm not trying to be funny. I'm not trying to oversimplify things. I guess I am in a way. But there are three parts to the note. It's the beginning, the middle and the end. Okay, that's a real easy way to think about it.

In the trumpet land, in trumpet world, we call the beginning the attack. The middle part of the note is the sustain, and then there's the release. So your attack needs to be clean. Alright? There are a few ways we attack a notes.

I don't like attack because it makes me think of pounding or beating up something. And as a result, people have very explosive attacks that are not controlled. But if you think of an attack as a release of air, because that's what it is, then you'll have a cleaner beginning to your note.

Alright? So if you practice the way I'm teaching you now, which is get an audible source, sing, buzz, play, you'll be able to get a very good sustain and you have an opportunity to practice your attacks.

So that's pretty much it. Just pick one or two notes a day, spend five to 10 minutes on a note and be on your way with your routine. But you're really going to listen deeply. You're just going to pay attention.

That's really all you're doing. You're going to pay attention to what you're doing. I know it sounds simple, but some people just don't pay attention. So pay attention to your sound.

Really quick. I know you may have noticed if, but just in case you didn't, when I was buzzing, I was holding my trumpet mouthpiece like this.

So I have basically all five fingers on one side of my mouthpiece, and then on the opposite hand, it's just one finger. And that's for balance, and secondly, it evens the pressure across my face.

And that's pretty much it. It prevents me from pressing too hard. So all my life I heard to use your less dominant hand. So I'm right handed. I was told to use my left hand when I buzz. That makes sense.

Now, to take it a step further, trust me, you should test it right now. Use five fingertips. I guess I should hold it this way. And then one finger in the opposite hand and then buzz, and you'll just feel an evenness across your face.

Now I wish I made that up. I didn't. I got that tip from a book called The Buzzing Book. I think the author is Thompson could be mistaken. Look into it for yourself. But that's something that's going to be very helpful for you to use that technique.

You sing, buzz, play and use the grip that I just taught you. Okay?

Now, I want to take an opportunity right now to invite you to purchase my new course that's coming out soon. It's not available yet.

It's called the buzzing solution. In this course, I'm going to teach you three types of buzzing and when you should use each type. There are three types of buzzing, and they are all for different benefits, different function.

I want to tell you, everybody should not buzz the trumpet mouthpiece. I know a lot of great players who don't buzz at all, and they will be so upset for me to even talk to you about this right now. And I know others that buzz every day, and they hold principal positions and major orchestras that you know of, all right?

And then everything in between me, I buzz for a season, and I don't buzz for a season. I understand the benefit of both ways, and I just simply want to share that with you. So I want you to find my course that's going to be available soon.

It's called the buzzing solution. All right? Watch your inbox to learn about when it's coming out, alright? Now, it's going to be very affordable, alright? Because I want you to have it. And for the people who buy the course, something really cool the Buzzing Challenge.

You're going to have access to the Buzzing Challenge Live, okay? And this is where you're going to find your best sound, the simple way. You're going to be a part of the community of trumpet players who purchased the Buzzing Solution, and we're going to have daily challenges, and you're going to have access to me live to have your questions answered, alright?

You might have a question about the challenge for that day, or you might have gone through the course a little bit and have a question about the course. Either way, I'll be there to help you, and you're going to have lifetime access to the Buzzing Solution.

And when we do the Buzzing Challenge, it's going to be recorded, and it's going to be a part of the Buzzing Solution, so you can watch that over and again as much as you need to. That's important because, as you know, it takes time to get better on the trumpet.

Alright? I know that if you come for a week, you're going to get better in that week. Yeah, for sure, because I'm going to help you. But at the same time, you're not going to get as good as you're able to.

Like, you're not going to reach your ultimate form in five days because repetition is the mother of learning. So buy the buzzing solution when it becomes available. Watch your inbox and then join me live for the buzzing solution.

I hope you take me up on this offer. It's going to be cool, all right? And I'll be there to help you. That's all today. Go ahead, sing, buzz, play and I'll see you here in a little while.

Take care. God bless you.

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