TrumpetMaster - View Single Post - Octave slurs-Pivot

lonelyangel · 08-05-2005, 12:39 PM

I do pivot. The trumpet bell points down as I ascend and becomes horizontal for middle C and lower. I used to keep the horn very still - picking a point of refernce and keeping it there - but I eventually realised that this rigidity was causing tension - and some pain - in my neck and shoulders.
Then it was pointed out to me that although i was keeping the horn still
I was tilting my head backwards and forwards to compensate and achieve the angle that I needed between the mouthpiece and my lips. Nowdays I try to keep my head still and balanced on top of my spine and let the horn move where it needs to.
If you take the mouthpiece and play some arpegios or glissandi you may notice that the end of the mouthpiece moves up and down as you ascend and descend.
Here is a fun experiment to see if you use a pivot.
Get a blank piece of manuscript paper and place it on a music stand in front of you so that if you are playing your horn you can take sight with one eye of exactly where the bell lines up vertically when you are playing. You could play a middle G and note which line on the staffs your bell lines up with - then mark that with an x. Then hold the mouthpiece in your left hand and the trumpet (without the mouthpiece) in your right. Stand tall and balanced with your head free, floatin on top of your spine, then buzz a middle G on the mouthpiece. When you have arrived at a fat vibrant sound on that note carefully introduce the horn to the mouthpiece. You need to do this slowly and smoothly whilst still holding the note and being very careful not to move the mouthpiece even 1/2 a millimetre to adjust to the angle of the horn. It needs to be done with the precision a rocketship docking with a space station.
Again being careful not to move, take sight on to the manuscript paper and see where the top of the bell lines up - mark this point (in theory this should be in the same place as the first mark).

Then you can repeat this process with all the open notes (maybe include bottom G). you should end up with a line of xs at different points on the page. They maybe ascending as you play higher, or descending as you get higher - maybe you use different methods - upstream/downstream for different registers.

I am pretty sure that some of you will be suprised just how fathe trumpet might want to move to get the best sound - I would also be interested to know if any body finds that they end up with only one X on the page - ie no movement of the horn at all.

Don't read anything into the results you achieve by the way. There is no right or wrong way to play the trumpet as far as I am concerned.

Let me know what you find.

All the best. Noel.

08-05-2005, 12:39 PM	#10 (permalink)
lonelyangel Pianissimo User Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: London Posts: 196	I do pivot. The trumpet bell points down as I ascend and becomes horizontal for middle C and lower. I used to keep the horn very still - picking a point of refernce and keeping it there - but I eventually realised that this rigidity was causing tension - and some pain - in my neck and shoulders. Then it was pointed out to me that although i was keeping the horn still I was tilting my head backwards and forwards to compensate and achieve the angle that I needed between the mouthpiece and my lips. Nowdays I try to keep my head still and balanced on top of my spine and let the horn move where it needs to. If you take the mouthpiece and play some arpegios or glissandi you may notice that the end of the mouthpiece moves up and down as you ascend and descend. Here is a fun experiment to see if you use a pivot. Get a blank piece of manuscript paper and place it on a music stand in front of you so that if you are playing your horn you can take sight with one eye of exactly where the bell lines up vertically when you are playing. You could play a middle G and note which line on the staffs your bell lines up with - then mark that with an x. Then hold the mouthpiece in your left hand and the trumpet (without the mouthpiece) in your right. Stand tall and balanced with your head free, floatin on top of your spine, then buzz a middle G on the mouthpiece. When you have arrived at a fat vibrant sound on that note carefully introduce the horn to the mouthpiece. You need to do this slowly and smoothly whilst still holding the note and being very careful not to move the mouthpiece even 1/2 a millimetre to adjust to the angle of the horn. It needs to be done with the precision a rocketship docking with a space station. Again being careful not to move, take sight on to the manuscript paper and see where the top of the bell lines up - mark this point (in theory this should be in the same place as the first mark). Then you can repeat this process with all the open notes (maybe include bottom G). you should end up with a line of xs at different points on the page. They maybe ascending as you play higher, or descending as you get higher - maybe you use different methods - upstream/downstream for different registers. I am pretty sure that some of you will be suprised just how fathe trumpet might want to move to get the best sound - I would also be interested to know if any body finds that they end up with only one X on the page - ie no movement of the horn at all. Don't read anything into the results you achieve by the way. There is no right or wrong way to play the trumpet as far as I am concerned. Let me know what you find. All the best. Noel. __________________ Noel Langley - Eclipse Artist noel@eclipsetrumpets.com Eclipse Medium Yellow, scratch gold Eclipse Medium Heavy Red, custom 'Diamond Back' in 24ct gold Eclipse Red Brass Flugel Custom Scherzer piccolo with copper Wedgewood bell, finished in scratch gold Giardinelli 6S, 6M, 6FL Bach 3CW