| Re: Hard & Loud, is there a limit?
A good trumpet will allow us to bark out the low notes; it need not be really good for this, being good should suffice. Our choice of mouthpiece an affect this greatly, so it is a good idea to try different mouthpieces to determine if it is the horn, the mouthpiece or the player. To determine if it is the player, have somebody else test the mouthpiece/instrument combination.
From your description of the drastic changes with fingerings, it may be that the vertical allignment of the valves is faulty. It can be a relatively cheap fix, involving felts and corks.
Fixing the player is even cheaper, but it does involve some time and patience.
Long tones with extreme dynamics are highly effective for expanding our usable dynamics. Start pp, crescendo to fffff and decrescendo immediately once the sound starts to break up, and continue the decrescendo to ppppp.
For the lower register, staccato quarter notes, accented, each louder than the one before. Start with middle c and work chromatically downwards. The goal is a big, ugly, barking sound downstairs at a level far louder than we must usually play.
These exercises, over time, can produce some excellent skills that, like riding a bicycle, we never can truly forget.
If, however, the horn or mouthpiece is the weak link, no amount of practice can correct it. Have fun and good luck!
__________________ "A tool good enough to be so used and not too good" C.S. Lewis That Hideous Strength www.letsbuildhope.org |