What's the secret to getting a great trumpet tone?

Well one thing I notice that's different from me a begginer and other trumpet players who've actually played in band before is the tone. I'm unconfident with my tone and am afraid that if I play it won't be loud enough. However, most trumpet players who've played in band before are confident that from the first breath, they can make a good sound. Now I can hit a lot of higher notes and stuff but my tone varies.

Like sometimes, I'll have a great tone for a few seconds then lose air. And sometimes my trumpet will sound extremely muffled. And overall, how do you take complete control of the trumpets sound? Like be confident that if you want to play a high C, you can do so without dropping out. And that's another problem of mine, I can't hold notes for sh*t.

I've done some research on how to get more air and stuff but I still can't consitantly get a larger sound. My posture is good and my shoulders aren't raised, but apparently I'm still not getting enough air for a large and big sound.

I'm asking this because I feel if I actually had a decent tone, I could be a decent trumpet player. Right now, I can hardly hold notes and my tone sucks. I just personally want to be able to have a better tone and hit the notes I want to hit, confidently without it sounding muffled or dropping out.

One word:

AIR!

I'll let others explain. ;)

Well one thing I notice that's different from me a begginer and other trumpet players who've actually played in band before is the tone. I'm unconfident with my tone and am afraid that if I play it won't be loud enough. However, most trumpet players who've played in band before are confident that from the first breath, they can make a good sound. Now I can hit a lot of higher notes and stuff but my tone varies.

Like sometimes, I'll have a great tone for a few seconds then lose air. And sometimes my trumpet will sound extremely muffled. And overall, how do you take complete control of the trumpets sound? Like be confident that if you want to play a high C, you can do so without dropping out. And that's another problem of mine, I can't hold notes for sh*t.

I've done some research on how to get more air and stuff but I still can't consitantly get a larger sound. My posture is good and my shoulders aren't raised, but apparently I'm still not getting enough air for a large and big sound.

I'm asking this because I feel if I actually had a decent tone, I could be a decent trumpet player. Right now, I can hardly hold notes and my tone sucks. I just personally want to be able to have a better tone and hit the notes I want to hit, confidently without it sounding muffled or dropping out.

Its all about buzzing long tones and breath support. You need to breath from your diaphragm, keep your throat open and have a steady buzz. Play longs tone before you play that will help set your ambiture and open up your throat before you play. The most important thing is air. If you constantly practice your tone should improve also. Buy a BURP and buzz on that as much as you can it should help your tone.

Also your mouth piece might was something to do with it. If you don't already buy a size 3C mouth piece. Mouth pieces that have more depth tend to give a fuller tone.

First thing you need to do, before ANY of the above, is work out WHAT IS A GOOD TONE?!

You need to be able to intimately describe the tone you want to produce! Go onto you tube and look up trumpet players and find someone whose tone you really love.

A few names come to mind:

Jazz: Doc Severinsen, Wayne Bergeron, Eric Miyashiro, Roger Ingram, Scott Englebright, Bobby Shew, James Morrison, Arturo Sandoval, Wynton Marsalis, Nicholas Payton

Classical: Arturo Sandoval, Maurice Andre, Wynton Marsalis, Rafael Mendez, Sergei Nakariakov

Really try and get the sound you want inside your head. Feel the sound, imagine it.

Now play and hold a note as normal. Now, start to remember/imagine what you wanted to sound like.

Play at least half-a-dozen on different tones in a comfortable range, until you can get them sounding at least partly how you want them.

When you get the sound you want out of the trumpet, after time, it will become instinct and habit to always have the sound in your head and to play each note sounding that way.

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To address the above posts:

You need to breath from your diaphragm, keep your throat open and have a steady buzz.

This doesn't help one bit lol... Sure 'breath from your diaphragm'... How? (And I presume you mean the abdominal region? because the diaphragm can't do anything at all. It is simply a membrane) How does one accomplish this breathing?

My suggestion would be to do the following: Breath out ALL the air you have in your lungs until you are empty, then a little more so that you have virtually no air left. Now hold that for a slow count of 3 and then just relax and let the air come into your lungs naturally.

Keep your throat open? Again, how? You can't will your throat to open. Our body doesn't work that way. We can't think "Open throat" and it happens.

I'd rather suggest grabbing a card-board toilet-roll tube and breathing in and out through it for a minute or so while noticing the feeling in your throat. I can feel the air moving through my throat.

Once you feel like your throat is relaxed, try applying the breathing to the trumpet, starting on a middle G (2nd line from the bottom of the stave).

set your ambiture and open

What on earth is an Ambiture? I've heard of an Aperture and an Embouchure, but never an Ambiture.

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In conclusion it is important to really know what you want the instrument to sound like and to imagine that sound in your head as you are playing. If you can do that and spend maybe 5-10 minutes a day just playing held notes and trying to get the sound from your instrument to match the sound in your head, then you will notice a big improvement rather quickly.

I'm asking this because I feel if I actually had a decent tone, I could be a decent trumpet player. Right now, I can hardly hold notes and my tone sucks. I just personally want to be able to have a better tone and hit the notes I want to hit, confidently without it sounding muffled or dropping out.

How much do your practice and what do you practice?

When you say you could be a decent trumpet player, do you mean in a high-school band or as a professional musician?

Chris

Practice.

Air.

Attitude.

(not necessarily in that order)

Trumpet is one of those instruments where it helps if you're a prick.

Practice.

Trumpet is one of those instruments where it helps if you're a prick.

LOL!!!

Sometimes applies to trombonists too. :w00t:

LOL!!!

Sometimes applies to trombonists too. :w00t:

Some people have that down then....

Obviously you guys don't know what you're talking about....jerks. Why don't you shut the gently caress up about trombones, and quit scalloping all the time, losers!

:angry::angry:

...;)

Hahaha! Very good Robin! :D

Thanks for the advice guys. I haven't read all of it yet, but I will eventually as I need all the help I can get. I'm going to try it all eventually. But another huge problem of mine, is even if I get an okay tone, I can't tell if what I'm playing is right or not. Like basically I can't tell the difference between a C and a G, the difference between a D or a Bb. Probably because I don't know what an in tune "C" or "G" is suppose to sound like. This often leads me to sound out of tune and leads me to play too low or too high. This is often a reason I'm afraid to play, because I'm afraid I'm not going to be hitting the same notes as the rest of the section.

I imagine you don't sing, do you? I don't, but I have a good ear. If you sang (maybe you do, I dunno) you'd know that in order to sing in tune, the ear is the most important part of the body. I can't offer any advice on ear training, really, but it can help with playing almost any instrument, especially brass. A.) because of intonation and being afraid of being out of tune can be elimated by hearing and feeling what is and is not in tune, and B.) knowing the notes you are hitting are actually the right notes by hearing them before you actually play them. Simple as that. Hear the notes in your head. For instance, practice your open notes, from low C to as high as you are comfortable and really listen to the intonation and how those notes sound in relation to each other. If you really can't make much sense of this as you practice, find a private teacher to steer you in the right direction - that's invaluable.

Thanks for the advice guys. I haven't read all of it yet, but I will eventually as I need all the help I can get. I'm going to try it all eventually. But another huge problem of mine, is even if I get an okay tone, I can't tell if what I'm playing is right or not. Like basically I can't tell the difference between a C and a G, the difference between a D or a Bb. Probably because I don't know what an in tune "C" or "G" is suppose to sound like. This often leads me to sound out of tune and leads me to play too low or too high. This is often a reason I'm afraid to play, because I'm afraid I'm not going to be hitting the same notes as the rest of the section.

NOTHING is worse than feeble, tentative playing. Play out!

It's better to play loud and wrong than soft and tentative.

NOTHING is worse than feeble, tentative playing. Play out!

Absolutely! My Jazz Band director was so adement about this point. He would want us to make hundreds of mistakes as long as they were with conviction. It made the band one of the best bands in the state.

NOTHING is worse than feeble, tentative playing. Play out!

Definitely when you are performing (which includes band rehersals etc), play like you can't make a mistake.

There is an old saying I recall: You can tell the best trumpet players by how loud their mistakes are.

Basically, the top trumpet players always think that they are going to play it right, so when the do occasionally screw it up, it is normally pretty darn noticable.

However, when you are practicing, I think it is important that you play a different dynamics etc. Never feebly but don't blast away and hope for the best.

An incredible exercise that will help any trumpet player of any level is this:

Mark Van Cleave

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As for not knowing what is going to come out of the trumpet, the best thing you can do is to practice singing a phrase and then playing it on the trumpet.

You have to learn to hear what you are about to play clearly in your head. If you are struggling with this then you will have tone troubles.

Or sing tunes like happy birthday and stuff and then play them by ear on the trumpet.

Once you get fairly accurate at singing and playing, start sight-reading music by singing through it first while pushing the correct valves down, then from there play it on the trumpet.

Don't worry too much about whether you are singing it right or not to begin with. You will get used to reading the shape etc of the music and just do it by instinct.

Chris

Thanks I'm reading that article right now. But I can't help but wonder... could it be the way I'm blowing into the mouth piece that's stop me from being good? I've noticed most other trumpet players put there lips on the mouthpiece differently and I'm mostly likely not doing it right. All I know is right now, I have trouble even holding a middle C(Which means I can just barely do a low concert Bb scale). But yeah, I'm going to try the things you guys have mentioned.

EDIT: Read the thing, really helping me improve overall fast. Followed his advice about playing low notes loud and soft notes quieter and now I can hit middle C's like nothing. One question though, how do you make sure that after practicing and hitting all the whole notes and getting the better tone, that next time you pick up the trumpet your tone won't go back to sucking and NOT being able to hit those notes?

One question though, how do you make sure that after practicing and hitting all the whole notes and getting the better tone, that next time you pick up the trumpet your tone won't go back to sucking and NOT being able to hit those notes?

That is WHY you practice! lol So that next time your brain/body automatically remembers that to get THIS sound it must make THAT action.

Just keep practicing the Mark Van Cleave exercise and really make sure you are following it like it says.

Low for loud, and gradually back off as you ascend... Basically you play just quite enough that the note clicks up to the next note above with that same fingering (partial).

Keep imagining what you want your sound to be like while you are playing.

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Also, remember that the Mark Van Cleave exercise is only an exercise! Real music is often written with a crescendo (Get louder) to higher notes.

However, once the exercise trains your lips it won't matter what dynamic (loudness) you are playing at.

Just keep adding another partial (The next note with the same fingering) to the top of the exercise when you are comfortable with the last one.

Soon enough things will work themselves out.

Chris