ShanefGlynn

Hi , im new here , trumpet is my life. I'v been watching Wynton Marsalis' video "BLUES AND SWING" and am utterly amazed at the tone that man gets from his horn. Tracks like New Orleans and Goodbye , that soft creamy tone. I study the close ups of his embouchure and try to match it as best i can , he seems to play quite high up on the mouthpiece.

Iv seen him play a student model trumpet with a bach 7c and he can achieve the same tone. Im currently doing a lot of mouthpiece work , playing softly , long tones etc. I really try and pay attention to the quality of tone that comes out.

Just wondering if anyone has any tips on embouchure or books that might help me. Also , is it just me or are many trumpet players not that bothered with trying to achieve this tone. To me, its the sweetest sound ever to grace my ear. Chet had it , but in my honest opinion Wynton is the only one to truely master it.

Would love to hear some opinions on this.

Thanks , Shane.

rowuk

Shane,
there are many facets to "tone".
The first and easiest is the full sound that you get when your breathing is together and you are practicing regularly (but not beating your face up).
The second comes when your command of the instrument lets your personality shine through.
The third and probably least important is the limits of the instrument and mouthpiece that you use. Many players put this last step first thinking that they can get immediate gratification. A new ax can increase your motivation to shed, but will never replace anything else!
Listen to those great players, work on your trumpeting basics to let YOUR personality shine through!

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godchaser

Person Tag Results - ArtistshouseMusic

Good clips here on lots of stuff. Got it over in the 'Wise Talk!'. Wilmer's in the 'Resident Artist' section of the forum. Maybe drop'm a pm.

Searched books and found a couple threads. Lots of pages there, found these on the first few.

Music Books ( 1 (Music Books) 2 (Music Books))
Bear

Trumpet Method Books ( 1 (Trumpet Method Books) 2 (Trumpet Method Books))
talcito


Cheers

Sophar

Shane as Mr Herseth says "the sound in your head or your own oral concept" is the most important part of trumpet playing.

Glenn_Magerman

To me, its the sweetest sound ever to grace my ear. Chet had it , but in my honest opinion Wynton is the only one to truely master it.

Would love to hear some opinions on this.

Thanks , Shane.[/quote]

Hi Shane,
check out Bert Joris, he's a Belgium trumpet player with such a creamy sound... And his quartet is of absolute European top!

You could also transcribe solo's from the people you like, learn them by heart, and play with the recording.
Timing is also tone, as is phrasing...
If you try to fit in with the recording for 100%, you're achieving your goal of tone, with time, phrasing, eartraining new ideas, harmony, analysis etc, in such a way that it becomes second nature to you much faster than tone alone. I think...
Chet Baker solos and Miles solos are great to start with!

Or otherwise, it could be the trumpet that the guys play
Go find a Martin Committee or a Monette

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ShanefGlynn

Hi guys , thank you very much for your replies.

I guess when i said tone what i really meant was purely timbre. A constant pitch can sound so beautiful if it has the right timbre. The type im after is a breathy , warm , mellow sound. Soft. Sorry if my words sound very cliched.
That Blues and Swing video is a perfect example of the timbre i mean.
I'v listned to chris botti and that aint the sound i mean. I like his sound but there's too much reverb used.

Anyway the good news is that im making progress. I can achieve it in 2 octaves but any higher and it gets quite sharp edged (if that makes any sense). I just keep playing long tones towards a reflective surface and really listening to the sound quality , making minor embouchure adjustments to correct the timbre. Seems to be working.

Im aware that there is a lot more to playing the horn than just timbre
but i want to lay a solid foundation before going further.
Im starting a 4yr degree in jazz performance so that should put things in place.

Thanks again for your posts. Really like this forum.

Shane.

ShanefGlynn

Hey Glenn , really diggin Bert Joris. Thats the sound i mean. Nice 1.

kozbob

Nice tone, eh. "play with lots of feeling"

those are the words wynton marsalis spoke directly to me. like rowuk said in his post, let your personality shine though, and keep up with those standard exercises like long tones, etc. they work for me. good luck!

~zg

rowuk

Shane,
the upper octave gets "sharp edged" when your body or embouchure gets "tense". Yoga and/or Alexander Technique are 2 ways to become aware of what is in the way. Read the pages on body use at the Monette web site. Even if you don't use that equipment, the body use rules apply!

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Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

Vulgano Brother

Shane,
If you can get your dream tone over a couple of octaves, that is awesome! What may make it go away in the extreme upper register is that we tend to tighten our lips more horizontally than vertically upstairs. An isometric approach involving pulling the chin muscles down might help. Good luck, and have fun!

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