This past week the advantages and disadvantages of a bent mouthpiece surfaced again. To those of you who may not be familiar with the term “bent mouthpiece”, let me explain. Many years ago in a far off land lived a very good trumpet player who wanted to play in a…
These posts are written by: Bruce Chidester
Using Technology to Improve Your Trumpet Playing- Using a Metronome
A Metronome is defined as “an instrument of the devil which speed up in difficult passages and slows down in easy passages”. To prove my point, try playing the last page of W. Brandt Concertpiece # 1 with a metronome and you will realize how much a metronome can increase…
Finding the Correct Mouthpiece Placement
When first starting out as trumpet players we have to locate the correct position for our mouthpiece. This sounds simple enough but after teaching for more years than I care to remember, this decision is more important than most people realize. The exact location can be determined by luck, comfort,…
Which Flugel Horn Is The Best?
While trying to complete my coverage of the flugel horn, I decided to see what typical trumpet/flugel horn players say about the many instruments available on the market today. I have included only the material found on one site in a span of two weeks- “The Yamaha Flugels are great…
Looking For A New Trumpet Case?
From time to time we all get a little antsy when it comes to our equipment and this is my case at this time. I have a perfectly good original hard case for my Bobby Shew Z trumpet but still “lust” for something new. This is the reason I have…
Remembering Don Jacoby
Jake is gone but not forgotten by many of us in the trumpet world who were fortunate enough to have known him. If you are interested in his background and accomplishments, I highly recommend Clint “Pops” Mc Laughlin’s site . If you are interested in what Jake was really like,…
Big Mouthpiece or Small Mouthpiece? That Is The Question. Part 3
What advantage is there for the use of two mouthpieces? This is a question which comes up often for many times we are faced with contrasting performance styles, i.e. Classical music and Jazz compositions. Generally the Classical music requires a darker, more “legit” timbre and the Jazz music requires a…
Big Mouthpiece or Small Mouthpiece? That Is The Question. Part 2
What constitutes a big or small mouthpiece? There are several areas which can be described as parts of a big or small mouthpiece. • Cup diameter- The distance between inner edge or bite of a cup is described as the cup diameter. • Cup depth- The distance from the top…
Big Mouthpiece or Small Mouthpiece? That Is The Question.
This has been a constant decision for all trumpet players. The large mouthpiece gives you a big, dark, rich sound but on the other hand, the small mouthpiece makes the upper register easier to play. I will try to illustrate the advantages as well as the disadvantages when trying to…
Are Spitballs In Your Future?
This product has been on the market for many years and my first contact is worth sharing. When first introduced to the brass playing world, the ease of cleaning my instrument with these objects was very appealing to my ears. So, I purchased a jar and ran one or two…