Advice · Education · Gear · Interview · Mouthpieces · Playing techniques · Teaching techniques

Design Innovations : BuzzBuddy

Designed in Australia by Lisa Holownia, BuzzBuddy provides a lip cushion to make it more comfortable to play. It has revolutionised trumpet playing for students with braces or dental work and is also great for outdoor playing. Lisa talks to us here about the process of design and what brought her to create BuzzBuddy in the first place.

Advice · Education · Playing techniques · Teaching techniques

NEW : Educational Resources

This new page has a variety of resources that I hope that you will find useful. Fellow teachers will find these to be easily accessible and understandable. These are all concepts and exercises that I have used with my own pre-college students over the past 25 years, and have also found lots of these to… Continue reading NEW : Educational Resources

Advice · Education · Playing techniques · Teaching techniques

Arban Variations

Arban's 'Cornet Method' is often referred to as the brass players' bible. It addresses many aspects of brass playing, both technically and musically, and with the right guidance is a superb tool for any player's development. However, many young players struggle with HOW to practise the exercises within this book, and many a copy is… Continue reading Arban Variations

Advice · Education · Interview

The Carmine Caruso Legacy

I think that the concept of a saxophonist and former violinist becoming one of the most well-respected and well-known trumpet (and brass) teachers is a fascinating one. His callisthenic approach will be well-known to many readers through his publications, but in addition to this concentration on the physical synchronisation of different muscle groups, he also… Continue reading The Carmine Caruso Legacy

Advice · Education

Claude Gordon Practice Routines

This article was originally written by Jeff Purtle and published in The Brass herald in 2009. Jeff Purtle is a private teacher, clinician, and trumpet player with international clientele. As a protégé of Claude Gordon he continues the traditions of Claude Gordon and Herbert L. Clarke with effortless playing and productive practice. Please visit purtle.com for a fabulous range of educational content.

Advice · Education

So You or Your Kid Wants to Play the Trumpet

An article by Estela Aragon, CEO/Founder at TrumpetHeadquarters.com Ahhhh the trumpet. So many of all ages fall in love with the instrument due to its age- less sound and versatility. The trumpet plays nice with classical, jazz, pop, mariachi, latin jazz, bluegrass, dixieland and many eastern music forms. It’s no wonder that the world is… Continue reading So You or Your Kid Wants to Play the Trumpet

Advice · Education · Gear Review

Do Bell Covers help prevent the spread of COVID-19?

OK, so I need to say right off the bat that I have no intention of actually answering this question! I am certainly not qualified. This past year (plus change) has seen it become ok for us all to express ‘opinions’ on science, and for us to have the choice to either agree or disagree, sometimes depending on our political leanings. This confusion has been confusing!

Advice · Education · Interview

Trumpet Headquarters : Estela Aragon

Education is a lifelong journey, and a journey that often starts in schools around the world that suffer from a lack of funding in music. It is more important than ever to find good quality and reliable resources to help children on their musical journey, as well as adults and advanced learners too. Trumpet Headquarters is a wonderful resource set up by Estela Aragon who was kind enough to talk to me here.

Advice · Education · Interview

Trumpet Artist Profile : Christopher Still

Chris Still is a renowned musician and educator, and I was delighted that he was able to find time to do this interview. He is currently a member of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the founder of ‘Honesty Pill’. Regular readers will have read Chris’ feature a couple of weeks ago - If you haven’t… Continue reading Trumpet Artist Profile : Christopher Still

Advice · Education · Interview

Honesty Pill : In conversation with Christopher Still

Educator, clinician and coach (and also a trumpet player with the Los Angeles Philharmonic!) Chris Still has a really fascinating project that can benefit ALL musicians. I am extremely grateful for his time to chat about "Honesty Pill". Can you give a brief rundown of what Honesty Pill is all about? Sure. Honesty Pill is… Continue reading Honesty Pill : In conversation with Christopher Still

Advice · Education · Interview

Trumpet Artist Profile: Marvin Stamm

Marvin Stamm is a colossus of the music world, having performed and recorded with many jazz legends throughout his illustrious career. At 79-years-young, he is still going strong and and has many interesting thoughts here on adapting to change, both musically and physiologically over the years. There is sound and compelling advice here for musicians of all instruments and of all ages!