Changing Notes

Now that you’ve played your first note(s) on trumpet, it’s time to play some more of them. By that I mean different notes. More of the same note is fine, too, but that’s working on endurance, and that’s a topic for a little bit later.

There are two main ways to change notes on the trumpet: changing valves and changing air. Note that I didn’t say lips. Yes, the lips will be involved. Yes, the lips will vibrate at a different frequency. BUT using the air to change the notes will allow you to play more notes sooner, and ultimately play more efficiently. We’ll get into that in a minute, so before I get too far ahead of myself, lets talk about the valves.

Using the valves on the trumpet is by far the easier way to change notes. As long as you’re playing an open note (that is, not pressing down any valves) you can instantly play more notes by pressing down valves. This way of changing notes lets the trumpet (and the nature of acoustics) do the work for you. So, how do the valves do that? Well, each valve (in the case of most trumpets, a piston) has precision machined holes in them to line up with specific tubing on the trumpet in two different positions: up and down. In the up position, airflow bypasses extra tubing and goes as directly as possible to the bell. In this manner, when all 3 valves are up (which we call an open note) the trumpet is at its shortest length. As the valves are pressed into the down position, airflow is diverted into the extra tubing attached to each respective valve. This lengthens the trumpet overall, making the sound automatically move lower in pitch (thanks resonance!).

The downside of trumpet valves (aside from the compromise tuning system… WAY too early for that topic, but we’ll get there) is that there are only 7 distinct combinations that create different lengths. Starting from open (everything up, notated on fingering charts as “0”) we move to pressing the second valve (often notated on fingering charts as “2”). This has the shortest extra tubing and lowers the pitch by a half step: the smallest increment in Western music (micro-tones are a thing that may or may not get covered by this author). If we approximate that that additional length gives you that half step, then we need twice that for a whole step. Good news! The tubing on the first valve is just about twice the length of the second. So, pressing down only the first valve (“1” on a fingering chart) will lower the sound a whole step from an open note. Let’s keep going. To go another half step (this interval of 3 half steps is called a minor third) you’ll need to find tubing about 3 times the length of the tubing on the second valve. If you’ve been keeping track, we can accomplish this by pressing down both the first and second valves together (“12” on most fingering charts). But wait! What about the third valve (you guessed it: fingering charts call that one “3”)? Well, the third valve actually is about 3 times the length of the second valve, so technically, pressing the third valve alone will give you almost the same length as pressing the first and second together. Most of the time it will be easier (from both a tuning perspective and that the ring finger is typically weaker than the others) to use the 1 & 2 valve combination rather than 3. That said, it’s important to keep that third valve in mind here as the next half step down (4 half steps now, called a major third) is accomplished by adding the second valve to the third (yep, “23”). Continuing on, we keep the third valve, but change from second to first (just like going from our first half step to the whole step), arriving just shy of what would be a five half step drop (called a perfect fourth). Notice I said “just shy.” Well, remember that side note about the compromise tuning system? Without going too much into it, just remember that the combination of first and third valves (“13”) is a little bit too short. This means the correct fingering is the combination of the first and third valves AND a slight (~quarter inch) extension of the third valve slide (you might remember from “Your First Notes” that I said you’d need that ring… this is why). One last valve combination! This time you get to press down all three (“123”). Now you’re 6 half steps down from that open note (called a tritone). This combination, like “13” is also too short, but even more so than before, requiring a much longer extension of that third valve slide (~one inch). You’ll want to check this against a tuner at some point as each trumpet will be ever-so-slightly different. Don’t worry too much about it now, though. We’ll cover tuning and tuners in-depth another time.

So, those are your seven different valve combinations: 0 (open), 2, 1, 12 (or 3), 23, 13 (with slide), and 123 (with more slide). But wait! If there are only seven combinations, how do we play more than seven notes? That’s where the changing air comes in. Back in the old days (think pre-1800), trumpets didn’t even have valves. These are now called natural trumpets or baroque trumpets, referring respectively to the natural harmonic series or the baroque musical period during which they were played (They actually are still played sometimes, and I have one. I think it’s awesome!) The only way these trumpets could change notes was to take advantage of harmonic frequencies and changing partials (a term brass players use for the different notes along the harmonic series) primarily by increasing or decreasing airspeed. And if they needed to play a note between two notes in the series, they’d have to change out a slide to make the entire trumpet a different key! Valves really simplified that process.

So lets talk about changing partials. The lips are involved, but air is much easier to think about (and control), so we’re going to focus on that first. Generally speaking, the faster air is moving through the trumpet, the faster the sound wave produced can vibrate. This means that faster air should equal higher notes. The flip side of that coin is that slower air will allow for lower notes. So far, we haven’t talked about what note you’re actually playing. That was deliberate. You’ll also notice that though I referenced fingering charts, I didn’t include one. Right now we’re focusing on how to play, not what to play. So, take a breath and play a note. Hold onto it, then try to speed up the air. A good way to do this initially is to think about blowing more air and playing louder. Try this out until you can get the note to change. It may take lots of tries, and that’s perfectly OK. Depending on what note you’re playing, the difficulty of changing notes can vary widely. Despite the notes being closer together as you go up (see the harmonic series above), it gets harder and harder to accurately change. Once you’ve figured out playing a higher note, or if you just want to try something different, try changing to a lower note. This will be a reverse process of playing higher. The air will need to slow down. To begin, try thinking of blowing less air, or playing quieter. Depending on what note you’re playing, you may not be able to go lower on an open note, so don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t happen. You may have to go up before you can go down (and vice versa).

Once you’ve started to get a feel for changing notes with your air, try out those fingerings from up above and see how the patterns work when starting from different open notes. Next time, we’ll look at figuring out specific notes and how to read music. For now, just have fun! Change notes, and try to make up a tune all on your own.

Your First Notes

Holding the Trumpet

Before you can start playing your trumpet, you’ll need to know how to hold it. Though you might think this would be a straightforward matter, there is some debate as to what is the “correct” hand position. I feel that whatever fits your hand most comfortably while allowing free motion of the fingers is the correct position for you, which may be different from what is correct for someone else. Below are two of the most common left hand grips. Feel free to adjust depending on your hand size.

In both of these grips, you’ll put your thumb in the appropriately named thumb saddle, assuming your trumpet has one. Many student models don’t have a thumb saddle, so if you’re missing one, don’t worry about it. How your other fingers wrap around the valve section is where grips vary. Frankly, as long as you can grasp the trumpet, support its weight, and it’s comfortable, you’re good.

At some point it will become necessary to move the third valve slide using the ring. ALL trumpets should have a third valve slide ring of some manner, so if you’re missing this one, talk to your local band repair shop. Which fingers you use to move the slide is dependent on your hand size, shape, and strength. Personally, I have my ring finger in the ring (easy to remember), and move the slide by pushing the ring out with my middle finger or pulling it in with my ring finger. This works well for me, but you should use whatever works well for you.

For the right hand, start with your index (pointer), middle, and ring fingers resting on the first, second, and third valves respectively. The rest of the hand placement isn’t nearly as straightforward, and can be counter-intuitive. For instance, what should you do with your pinky? Despite the hook looking like your pinky should be in it, most teachers (myself included), will tell you to rest your pinky on top of that hook. Here’s why: if your pinky is in the hook, the movement of your ring finger will be restricted. On top of the hook, you can move your ring finger freely, with your pinky potentially moving along with it. That said, if you ever find it necessary to play with only one hand (e.g., while turning a page, changing a mute, or should you only have one hand), then you should make use of the hook to support the weight of the instrument.

Thumb placement in the right hand is also up for debate, but I recommend placing it between the first and second valve casings. This, like the pinky placement, is to allow for relaxed, free motion of your valve fingers. The palm may want to drift inward toward the trumpet in this position, though, so imagine having a small ball (like a racquetball, squash ball, or stress ball) in the palm of your hand to help arch your fingers into the correct position. If your hand gets to squished in, moving your fingers will become harder. Ease of movement is the name of the game here. This positioning will have you set up to press the valves down (more on that in a later article) with the tips of your fingers, rather than the pads. When speed becomes a relevant component, this will make things much easier.

Alternate placement for the thumb: If you find the above placement uncomfortable (for instance, if you have larger than average hands), try moving your thumb to the underside of the leadpipe on the outside of the valves (This position is also a useful alternative in combination with the pinky hook in the case of one-handed playing). Once again, whatever is most comfortable for you, while allowing free motion is the correct position for you.

Producing Sound

How does a trumpet make sound? It all starts with your lips. Essentially, the trumpet just transmits the vibrations from your lips to the bell, then those vibrations travel through the air as sound. The trumpet is just a type of speaker! Neat, huh? But how do you make your lips vibrate? Assuming you’ve never played trumpet before, I’d like to walk through a 4 step process to get your lips going. If you can already make a sound, this should be an easy refresher.

The first step is, as it should be, the easiest. It is also rather silly, but that’s ok, so are most musicians. To begin, relax the muscles in your face, keeping your lips together. Using very little effort to keep your lips together, blow air out through your mouth and let your lips separate and bounce off each other. This process is sometimes called loose lip buzzing. It is also called horse flapping, for its resemblance to how a horse flaps its lips. This will help to loosen up the muscles around your lips, increase blood flow, and get your lips accustomed to vibration, which will probably feel a little weird at first.

The second step can be called either firm lip buzzing or, more commonly, free buzzing. This time, use a good deal of effort to keep your lips together as you blow air. Think of making a continual “p” sound (similar to the tongue out “raspberry” sound). This will take more air than you might expect and may make you light-headed at first. If that happens, take a break and come back in a few minutes. Try holding onto one note as you get comfortable with this, then try changing notes up or down. At this point, don’t think too much about how it’s happening, just whether or not it is. Trust me, I’ll go into way too much detail on the mechanics of it in a later article.

The third step brings the mouthpiece into play. Buzzing on the mouthpiece will feel similar to free buzzing, but will require much less muscular effort, so if you were successful in step 2, step 3 should come easily. The basic setup will begin the same way, with a continual “p” sound to produce the note. The change, of course, is that the mouthpiece will be in your hand(s) and on your face. Your grip and mouthpiece placement will both affect the way the buzz happens, so let’s take a minute to learn the “correct” ways to do it.

Gripping the mouthpiece is far less complicated than gripping the trumpet, but as with many simple things, it is often overlooked. There are two ways that I favor as being “correct” when teaching mouthpiece buzzing. That’s not to say that other grips are wrong, but these are both geared toward avoiding excessive mouthpiece pressure (which can lead to some bad habits… more on that at a later time). If neither of these grips work for you, I encourage you to experiment and find one that does, but try to keep minimal pressure in mind as you do.

The first grip involves using your thumb and forefinger to grasp the shank (smooth part) of the mouthpiece. Your remaining fingers can stay up or down, whichever is more comfortable for you, so long as they remain relaxed. Don’t strain the fingers holding the shank. You only need to support the mouthpiece; don’t try to crush it!

The second grip uses all of your fingertips together. Bunch your fingers together as if making a hand puppet, then place both hands on the mouthpiece shank on opposite sides. Again, the grip should support the mouthpiece without straining.

Both of these grips, when done correctly, remove the ability to use excessive pressure when buzzing. Once you begin pressing the mouthpiece too hard into your lips, your fingers will slide up the shank toward the cup. Fingers in place: good. Fingers moving: bad. Again, we’ll talk more about mouthpiece pressure later, but for now, just try to keep it light.

Now, let’s talk about placement of the mouthpiece on the lips. Various method books over the years have given inconsistent advice over what is considered “proper” placement. Some recommend half top lip and half bottom lip, some dropping it lower for one-third top lip and two-thirds bottom, and others recommend the exact opposite. Placement from left to right is usually recommended as being centered, or at least very close to the center. So, what is correct? Whatever works for you! The fact of the matter is that each person’s embouchure (that’s the fancy music word for the setup of muscles around your lips that help you make your sound) is different and will require a slightly different setup. I don’t play strictly on center, myself, so what works for you may not be what works for me, and vice versa. Starting in the center (both up/down and left/right) is a good place to start, but you should experiment and find what placement works best for you. Find a place that, ideally, is both comfortable and easy to produce a sound.

Finally, we get to use the trumpet! If you’ve succeeded on steps 2 and 3, this should be a piece of cake. Similar setup, but less effort. Think of a “p” sound and blow into the mouthpiece (after you put it into the trumpet, of course). Congratulations! You (probably) just made a sound on your trumpet. If you didn’t, don’t worry. Try again. Use more air. Use less air. Relax your lips. Tighten them. Once you’ve got it, remember how it felt and try to do it again, and again, and again!

Next week, we’ll look at the different ways to change notes so we can start to make music. Now go play some Trumpet On Your Own.

Welcome to "Trumpet On Your Own!"

Hello there! If you’re reading this, you probably either want to learn how to play the trumpet or how to play the trumpet better. Good news: this new series will help you do both. Bad news: it’s going to take effort on your part.

Trumpet On Your Own was originally conceived of as a method book that I began writing when I found myself constantly disappointed with the beginning methods used in band programs. To be fair, band methods have to try to teach ALL instruments at the same time, and that isn’t easy. What I wanted for my students was a book that really focused on just what was unique to the trumpet, but that also dug deeper into how (and just as importantly why) things work. By having a beginning method that focuses just on the instrument YOU play (which is, of course, trumpet, right?) there can be much more detail and, ideally, quicker progress.

This is not to say that this series is only for beginners. Yes, that was its original intent, but it will cover more than just how to play notes. It is also intended to teach you how to practice: a skill that too many teachers forget to teach and so many learners forget to learn. Hopefully, this will encourage you to become your own teacher (even if that puts me out of a job). It may be difficult at times, as we’re usually our own harshest critic, but learning to teach yourself will help you improve more quickly (at anything, really) and place you on a path of lifelong learning and improvement.

Keep an eye out for regular posts here as this series will cover a large amount of material. Hopefully as you follow along, you’ll find it easy enough to “Trumpet On Your Own.”