Sally Fetterman Dr.

Marx Brass Methods February 9, 2022

Teaching Procedures Outline - Trumpet

 Out of the Case:

 Case on ground
 Logo facing up
 Place mouthpiece into mouthpiece receiver, quarter turn into place
 Lubricate the valves with valve oil
 Unscrew the top of the valve casings
 Pull them out one at a time (not all the way out)
 Apply oil to the cylindrical part (do not rotate)
 Put the valve casings back in place, screw them back on
 Rotate the valve caps until they lock into place.
 Lubricate 1st and 3rd tuning slides with valve oil.

 Posture
 When seated: Sit on the edge of the seat, feet flat on floor
 When standing: Feet flat on floor, don’t collapse chest, one foot slightly more forward
than the other.

 Hand Position
 Left Hand Carriage:
 Middle and index fingers wrap around the valve casings
 Ring finger goes inside the tuning ring
 Thumb goes in the thumb saddle
 Right Hand Carriage:
 Thumb goes in between the first and second valve casings
 Pointer, middle, and ring fingers are placed on top of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd valves
 Pinky finger is placed on top of the finger hook and not inside of it

 Initial Sounds:
 Say “M” and bring the corners of the mouth in to form embouchure
 Make a buzzing sound with this shape
 Place mouthpiece in the center of the lips
 Make a buzzing sound with the mouthpiece in this position

 Articulation:
 Tip of the tongue touches where the gums meet the back of the teeth
  Say “ta” for a normal sound
 Say “do” for connected and legato
 Sat “ti” for separated and staccato

 Problems and Solutions for beginners:

 Problem: Breathiness in tone
 Solution: Try blowing a paper to keep it against a wall
 Problem: Too much mouthpiece pressure, red ring on the mouth
 Solution: Lick chops before playing, only use enough pressure to create a seal
 Problem: puffed cheeks while playing
 Encourage student to play with correct embouchure (Initial Sounds)

 Idiosyncrasies
 Third valve slide must be extended when playing the notes D and C# because they tend
to be flat
 Horn angle
 Players’ horn angles vary depending on their natural bite
 Overbite: play downstream, bell is pointed down
 Underbite: play upstream, bell is pointed up

 References
 A Complete Guide to Brass by Scott Whitener
 Trumpetguild.org
 Trumpetherald.com