Product Reviews – Page 2

New Arrangements/Transcriptions Added This Month To Trumpet Ensemble Music. Com

written by Bruce Chidester on September 27, 2023

This has been a very busy month as you can see by the number of new arrangements/transcriptions added to our site. We have also had an increase in requests from individuals asking for special arrangements not currently in our library. If you have any special needs for your ensemble, feel free to contact me and I will do my best to fill your needs. Remember, you are not obligated to purchase any of these requests if, after listening to them when they are posted, you didn’t like them. That has never happened but there could always be a first time………

Clocking Mouthpieces- A Practice from the Past

written by Bruce Chidester on July 13, 2023

My first introduction to clocking a brass instrument mouthpiece began several decades ago when I was returning home from Willard Elementary School in Moline, Illinois. On the way home I stopped at a local gas station to visit with its owner. That day I happened to be lugging my Olds Recording cornet home with me and as I visited with the proprietor, we were joined by a customer who aggressively questioned, “Hey kid, what are you doing with that horn”. As a grade school youth, I was more than intimidate as I replied, “I’m taking it home to practice” was…

Possibly The Most Difficult Record Copy Ever Made

written by Bruce Chidester on May 20, 2023

One of my all-time favorite Dixieland groups was Kenny Ball And His Jazzmen. A list of their successes in the early 1960s would include the following- Midnight in Moscow, The Green Leaves of Summer, Sukiyaki, Hello Dolly and When I’m Sixty- Four. But the most impressive recording in my opinion, was a lengthy (6 minutes 28 seconds) number entitled High Society. To an average listener, the extended Clarinet solo which lasts through seven full choruses might seem excessive but to a fellow musician it has the effect of sheer amazement. The traditional Clarinet solo was recorded by Alphonse Picou and…

More Interesting Assumptions Proven and Disproven

written by Bruce Chidester on April 30, 2023

In our never ending quest for truths and the American dream, I came across this assertion which sounded very plausible, yet questionable. On one of the more popular trumpet bulletin boards I found a reference to a trick which apparently Mr. Armando Ghitalla was given credit. The writer mentioned in passing that “Ghitalla did a lot of experimenting with paper clips, and various hand fashioned doodads, placing them in the backbore of the mouthpiece and other places”. Now I am not a strong fan of placing paper clips in my instrument but the name Ghitalla raised my interest. If this…

Advanced Interval Studies

written by Bruce Chidester on February 19, 2023

The market is inundated with educational material, all guaranteed to improve your trumpet playing ability. And here’s one more to consider. Through many decades of teaching and practicing myself, there have been many methods, etudes and exercises which have been helpful to me and my students. Previous exercises on interval study have centered around the melodic approach to interval study which I feel is not the most effective direction. The reason I took a different approach was to isolate the intervals and in doing so, make the practice much more difficult and at the same time create a more productive…

Product Review- “flowStick” and “flowDisk” Part 2

written by Bruce Chidester on January 1, 2023

A full week has passed since I began evaluating this product and I have posted my findings below. Advertised claims- True …..“Tool for Brass Instruments- Trumpet, trombone, cornet, French horn airflow and sound True …..airflow training with music and the instrument- The flowStick makes it possible! True …..an airflow you can hear and feel Possible…..The bore of the flowStick is a sophisticated system with blowing edges inside for optimal feedback on the air intensity. True …..flexible for everybody True …..The air consumption with the flowStick can be adjusted individually by turning the screw”. True …..The air resistance or air consumption can…

NEW Series- Concert Trio Pieces For All Instruments

written by Bruce Chidester on January 1, 2023

We have had several requests to offer some of our original trio compositions for various combinations of instruments. In order to fill these requests, we have opened a new category of arrangements/compositions called “Concert Pieces” which we will add to regularly. This new section of offerings will address these requests in that each arrangement/transcription can be performed as a trio with any three matching instruments in either Treble or Bass clef. To illustrate the flexibility of these pieces, we have included our first offering below, recorded with several applications. Marimba Trio Sample Trombone Trio Sample Clarinet Trio Sample Full length…

Product Review- “flowStick” and “flowDisk” for Trumpet

written by Bruce Chidester on December 27, 2022

When I first came across this product, I was eager to find out what this item was promoting. After a couple Emails, my questions were to be answered; shortly after its (their) arrival. The following Claims has been recently posted on their Web site. 1.“Tool for Brass Instruments- Trumpet, trombone, cornet, french horn airflow and sound 2.Airflow training with music and the instrument- The flowStick makes it possible! 3.An airflow you can hear and feel 4.The bore of the flowStick is a sophisticated system with blowing edges inside for optimal feedback on the air intensity. 5.Flexible for everybody 6.The air consumption…

Mr. Nick Drozdoff- “The Best Trumpet Teacher I Never Met”

written by Bruce Chidester on December 19, 2022

As the final post in our continuing saga of the importance of Mr. Nick Drozdoff’s Method for Trumpet players, I will share with you how his thought-provoking conclusions have changed my trumpet playing life. After reading his method book and through regular practicing, I have- Increased my upper register by a fourth (E above high C to the A above). Improved my wide skip slurs. Improved my sound Increased my endurance Lessened my mouthpiece pressure Reduced my practice time and at the same time improved my playing ability. Improved my soft passages as well as gaining more volume. Lessened the physical…

Continuing Review of “How to Practice- The Drozdoff Method”

written by Bruce Chidester on December 2, 2022

Now that you have learned some background about Nick Drozdoff, I’ll start explaining my situation and share some of the results I have enjoyed after following the suggestions in his method. And if you haven’t read his background, I suggest that you start your homework with our previous posts at Let Me Introduce You To My New Trumpet Coach- Mr. Nick Drozdoff and Learn More About Nick Drozdoff. As I mentioned on our first post, I started looking into Mr. Drozdoff’s teaching material after receiving my copy of his material How to Practice- The Drozdoff Method. This is not the…