The UNT One O’Clock Lab Band- “White & Tight”

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If I have offended any of my politically correct readers, I apologize and now on with my post. I recently attended one of the most unforgettable jazz concerts of my lifetime. I have had the pleasure of being in attendance at some of the great jazz band concerts including Duke Ellington, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Maynard Ferguson, Don Ellis, Buddy Rich, Bill Watrous, etc. but the One O’Clock Lab band’s concert this past November 20th was one I will always remember. I have run, rehearsed, critiqued, coached and judged jazz bands most of my life and the first thing you…

“Clocking” Your Mouthpiece Part #2

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Some may remember my first post (How to place your mouthpiece in your horn) which was written to disprove a practice which stresses the importance of placing your mouthpiece in the proper position to benefit your consistency in playing. This practice is called “Clocking” and the reference to positioning your mouthpiece in the best rotation in your mouthpiece receiver turn out to be true. What I started out to disprove, I ended up totally agreeing with. The reason for this second post on the same subject is again to verify the importance of the correct rotation of your mouthpiece in…

The Evolving Vaughn Nark

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  The name Vaughn Nark may not be on everyone’s list as an outstanding trumpet player but he should be. Here is a short background from Wikipedia on this remarkable player; Originally from Mt. Carmel, Penn. Nark began playing the trumpet at the age of six. His father Leon, also a trumpeter, was his first teacher. At seven, he was exposed to Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Maynard Ferguson and Doc Severinsen. Soon after graduating from high school, Nark auditioned and was accepted by the Unites States Air Force Band in Washington, D.C., where he became a member of its premier jazz…

My Two Worst Performances

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  Trumpet players seldom admit to failure mainly because of their inflated egos. It truly takes a big man to actually admit to an occasional faux pas on their instrument. So to lighten my soul and get it out in the open, I will share with the world my two worst performances in hopes that other such suffers can emerge from their own closet and admit their shortcomings. Worst Performance #1 While teaching at the University of Northern Iowa, the faculty was expected, from time to time, to perform a solo recital. Early in my tenure there I agreed to…

Benefits of “Comeback Players”

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Definition of the term “Comeback Player”; A return by a well-known person, especially an entertainer or sports player, to the activity in which they have formerly been successful. We are all aware of the application of the term “comeback player” when speaking of sports, but are you also aware that this term applies to musicians also? Comeback players in music represent former musicians who for whatever reason chose or are forced to leave their instrument for an extended period of time. Eventually the draw is strong enough for the musician to reopen his/her instrument case and begin the slow and…

Shocking Discovery While Playing Pedal Tones!

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Many of us have dabbled with Pedal Tones during our stint as trumpet players so this post may be an eye opener for many of you. It was for me when I discovered this anomaly. During a return to Claude Gordon’s wonderful collection of trumpet lessons, Systematic Approach to Daily Practice”, I came across a shocking realization; the notes I thought I was playing were in fact one full octave above where I should have been playing. To fully explain how this came about, let me start from the beginning. When practicing notes which include pitches above our normal range,…

Changes Have Now Been Made to the University Interscholastic League Solo and Ensemble Submission Policy!

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As some of you may know, I have been very vocal when speaking of the Texas University Interscholastic League Solo and Ensemble Submission Policy. For more background on this subject read… http://www.thetrumpetblog.com/the-university-interscholastic-league-solo-and-ensemble-music/ also… http://www.thetrumpetblog.com/new-additions-to-uil-prescribed-solo-ensemble-music-list-for-grade-2-trumpet-quartet-numbers/ Eventually I received this response… http://www.thetrumpetblog.com/an-encouraging-response-from-the-university-interscholastic-league-solo-and-ensemble-music-department/ Today I checked their site and was very pleased to find that Mr. Musella is a man of his word for now composers and arrangers are able to submit their work for consideration to be added to the current listings of qualified solo ensemble material for contest. This is a very big change and I would like to thank the…

3 Reasons Why the “Selected Studies” book by H. Voxman Is Killing Your Band Programs

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Diminishing interest in instrumental music programs has been attributed to many reasons including financial cut backs, the rise of computer programs and gaming diversions, student’s current lack of good practice habits, competing athletic programs, etc. And all of these distractions can have an influence on the current trend of failing band programs. But recently I came to another realization which may be another reason for our failing band programs and that is why I am at my computer keyboard and not in bed sleeping. Reason #1. Selected Studies is not relevant to our students. This collection was printed in 1953.…

An Encouraging Response from The University Interscholastic League Solo and Ensemble Music Department

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Shortly after my first post explaining the difficulty in submitting arrangements for approval and eventual inclusion into the UIL Solo Ensemble List of accepted material, I received this communication from Mr. Gabe Musella which I have included below… Good morning, Dr. Chidester! My name is Gabe Musella and I am the newly hired UIL Assistant Music Director. One of my main responsibilities is to develop and execute a timeline to review and update the instrumental and vocal solo and ensemble portions of the Prescribed Music List. As a fellow composer and 30 year veteran of the classroom, I share your…