Trumpet Artist Profile: Allen Vizzutti

September 22, 2017January 7, 2021 Leslie Saidak1 Comment

Regular readers will most likely need no introduction to Allen Vizzutti – an artist of the highest calibre: soloist, recording artist, composer, educator and master clinician!

On a visit to the UK earlier this year I caught up with him and wanted to discuss two main topics with him – a fascinating topic on which Allen often talks in clinics and also in his method books that have become standard literature for students around the world: whether there is an over-emphasis on the word “buzz” in a trumpeter’s vocabulary; and also the design process behind the impending launch of the new Yamaha Vizzutti Model Trumpet.

I had a (brief!) opportunity to have a blow on a new prototype 9335V when Allen was touring Europe recently, and my first impression was that it felt very similar in response and tonal character to the 9335NY New York model. There was perhaps a slightly richer tonal core across the range though. I very much look forward to having a proper test-drive when the instrument is launched later this year – watch this space!

Below, Allen tells us a little about the thoughts and processes behind this new model:

“ The new Yamaha 9335V Bb trumpet will be launched in it’s second iteration in November. The Vizzutti model idea was born in a conference room in Japan several years ago and I was given the go ahead to help design a personal model from the ground up. It was an exciting opportunity and one for which I am very grateful. I worked on the project with Yamaha genius designers Bob Malone and Wayne Tanabe in New York at the Yamaha Atelier on 5th Ave.

Even though we had permission to start from scratch I had been enjoying using a gold plated but otherwise stock New York Xeno for some time. Logically we chose to start with that trumpet as the basis for the new model. If that didn’t prove successful we could always begin again from scratch. I would like to make clear that I am not a trumpet designer. My input was based on evaluations of the physical feel, the sound, timbre and the trumpet’s characteristics in different registers. Again, I was pretty happy with my stock Yamaha New York Xeno. I should note that I brought along a Bach Strad that belonged to one of my students because there were characteristics of that horn that I liked and wanted to reference.

The short story is after a few hours of experimenting with different small part changes we were getting amazing results. We blew the Bach away early on. Changes consisted of using different small parts made of varying materials and having different weights. We moved bracing and tested myriad slides, water keys and valve parts. I would ask for something and Bob and Wayne would head into the workshop and return to the testing room with changes. The final result came relatively quickly. The new 9335V had a better harmonic structure and was slightly more open and free blowing without being a large bore. It was much easier to play above high C regarding both response and resistance. The sound was a little darker than the New York Xeno. In reality, the improved characteristics of this trumpet are most noticeable by professional or near professional level players. When played with maximums of flexibility, power, control and beauty it is the best horn I have had.

Later when production was in full swing I tried 40 examples of the trumpet. Asked to pick 2 for my personal use I couldn’t really tell the difference between them. In the end I randomly pointed at a couple and those were the horns I ended up using. Unfortunately the first run of the 9335V was limited to a small number of units. The good news is the newer version will be unlimited!

Yamaha 9335V 2.0. What’s been changed? Over a couple of years Bob Malone worked on small tweaks to the 9335V. After he was happy with it I tried out several examples. We ended up with a minimal version of changes through evaluation most of which you cannot see. The water key structure is probably the most observable difference to the newest 9335V. It plays great. I like it a little better. I can honestly say I would be happy performing on either version.

Like a great automobile company, Yamaha is committed to constant development and improvement. The evolution never stops. The Yamaha 9335V should be available in November 2017. “

Regarding the question, “To buzz or not to buzz?”, Allen has kindly pointed me towards the relevant page in his method which I have reproduced below this. From my perspective, buzzing has always been a fundamental part of my teaching and important concept for beginners to grasp early on. The main priority for me is that the buzzing is used to show students how relaxed the chops should be and to put the emphasis on the air and support.

Aged 16, I was put through quite an aggressive embouchure change that set the mouthpiece onto a “buzzing embouchure”. This meant that my embouchure barely moved across the range of the instrument, but unfortunately my sound went to crap! It was only when I started at the RCM at 18 that James Watson told me to ignore the past 2 years, and I suddenly had my sound and flexibility back! Therefore Allen Vizzutti’s theories below strike a chord with me…

“ The use of the word buzz in trumpet study is pervasive. When creating sound with the lips alone or playing the mouthpiece alone it is easy to understand why this is true. The sounds created are sounds of buzzing. However, buzzing one’s lips into a trumpet mouthpiece will create an unwanted “beginner’s” sound. Even actual beginners can avoid ever having a beginner’s sound when taught to blow and not to buzz.

Using the embouchure [described on page 153], one can learn to send a steady and firm airflow through the aperture – made by the lips, into the trumpet, creating a wonderful tone without ever thinking of buzzing. The tense, tight sound of buzzing and the accompanying weeks of frustration associated with “unlearning” this habit can be completely avoided. Unfortunately, for most of modern history, the conventional wisdom of trumpet pedagogy has been to instruct beginners to buzz their lips. Aggressively sending air through the trumpet without buzzing causes the air column to cycle in waves against the tubing of the horn. The vibrating air column is a result of the air meeting the resistance set up by the lips, mouthpiece and leadpipe. The trumpet bell amplifies the vibration. The smoother one blows through the horn, the smoother the sound. Buzzing does not create the sound.

ls there any purpose in buzzing? Actually, yes. Buzzing is just a different entity than trumpet tone production. Buzzing the lips without the mouthpiece and trumpet, including flapping them (loose and low-pitched), is a very useful relaxation technique. I do it to loosen my lips, warm down and as an emergency substitute when warming up may be impossible. Lip buzzing exact pitches to then match on the trumpet, as suggested in some educational material, is of little value (other than ear training), in my opinion. My range on the lips alone is very limited. My range on the trumpet is much more extensive.

Playing the mouthpiece alone is often referred to as mouthpiece buzzing. lt can be very useful as part of an organized warm-up. The concept of playing the mouthpiece should be the same as playing the trumpet. lmproving one’s mouthpiece sound can really help improve one’s trumpet sound as well. Eliminating the trumpet and its sometimes-confusing technical concerns can encourage successful breathing and relaxed blowing. Playing melodies on the mouthpiece is very helpful for ear training and embouchure pitch control. Ultimately, the smoothness of playing the mouthpiece alone will translate to a smooth and steady trumpet sound. “

To find out more about Allen, his projects, recordings and publications please visit www.vizzutti.com

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Advice · Education

1st things 1st…

September 5, 2017January 7, 2021 Leslie SaidakLeave a comment

A new school term is just starting, with thousands of children picking up a trumpet for the first time this month. The purpose of this article is to look at how we as teachers approach these crucial first few weeks, what our priorities are to ensure sustained enthusiasm and a solid technical and musical grounding… and also any tips and tricks that we have learnt that help to achieve this.

I will start with my tuppence-worth, and then welcome my fellow trumpet teachers to share their thoughts here too. Any top tips that any of you may have will be received with interest and gratitude!

The first priority has to be continuation – no child can get the educational, personal and emotional benefits that we all know learning an instrument can bring, if they are desperate to quit after a handful of lessons. For me, most of the activities are centred on materials and music that is already familiar to the new-starter: very simple (sometimes one-note) arrangements of pop songs, lots of full-on singing and ear activities including improvising with backing tracks from lesson 1. I have found this to be a really brilliant way of building confidence and enthusiasm from the start – there is no such thing as a wrong note after all!

As far as a technical grounding goes, I tend to concentrate on 2 main aspects: Breathing and Tongue Level. I will also do a bit of mouthpiece work and buzzing with them to get them used to the feel of it, without worrying about it sounding rubbish!

The purpose of the controlled breathing is hopefully obvious. I have spoken to a number of teachers who do not start to talk about tongue level until months or sometimes years in. I have found that getting students to think about and sing melodies using aaah, eeeh etc gets most kids comfortably with a workable range of a 5^th or an octave within 2-3 weeks. The sooner they can play some ‘proper’ tunes, the better! I cringe when I hear (often very experienced) brass teachers telling their students to ‘blow harder’ or ‘squeeze’ to get up to that 2^nd space G.

There are loads of fantastic all-in-one tutor books around. I tend to use mostly my own materials for the first 5 or six weeks until half term, and then ask the parents to get their wallets out for a good book.

I have spoken to a number of colleagues with some great technical tips. One was to ask the student to grip a thin drinks straw (the type that comes with a Capri-Sun) to form nice centred and relaxed embouchure. Then put the mouthpiece over the top of the straw, and then finally remove the straw, leaving the mouthpiece perfectly centred. Repeating this at the start of each practice or lesson gets the student used to exactly where it should go. I used this myself for a while, and it worked very well with most students. However, I found that in these early days, especially if you have an excited younger student, you do not want to be doing anything that tempers and gets in the way of their enthusiasm and love of what they have just started. As with any of these things, it is a balancing act.

What are the priorities for you as you set another student off on their adventure? What are the things that have worked well and perhaps not so well? Have your priorities (or indeed the students) changed over the years? Please do comment here…

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Gear · Teaching techniques · Trumpets

Resources for Group Trumpet Tuition

January 25, 2017 Leslie Saidak2 Comments

Music education has changed drastically over the past few years, and is a topic upon which instrumental teachers have often lamented. In the UK in particular we had a sudden shift to whole-class and group instrumental tuition 12 years ago, which has taken a long time to establish itself as anything more than a musical experience for children. Now that teachers are getting more accustomed to this setting and scenario, approaches to teaching beginner students are having to change with the focus particularly in the early weeks and months on having fun, rather than a technical grounding.

From my experience, I felt ill-equipped with suitable resources moving into group teaching (2005-2010), so found that I was primarily relying on writing and creating my own. I know that this is a similar story that I have heard from many other trumpet teachers too. In many respects this is a good thing as you do not become bound to a ‘method’ and any materials that you do use are purely as a resource rather than a learning guide. In this setting particularly, improvisation (both from students and teachers!), singing, general musicianship and listening become even more important tools.

As we have all adjusted to these changes, many of the available teaching materials and ‘tutor books’ have now changed as well. Here I have given a run-down of many of the methods and resources that can be useful for teaching beginning students in a group situation.

Trumpet Basics – John Miller (pub. Faber)

This is a great step-by-step method, with a nice mix of different styles too. The ensemble pieces included here are well-arranged and work really well. The layout is clear and is engaging for learners of all ages. The only negative aspect is that there are not many pieces that are suitable for a mixed ability group, and it does rely on everyone progressing at a pretty similar rate.

Standard of Excellence – Bruce Pearson (pub. Kjos)

The variety of exercises and tunes here is great, and the ensemble stuff, particularly mixing with the other brass instruments is well thought out and fun. The layout though could probably do with being updated as younger children particularly seem much more engaged by an open layout with pictures and diagrams as well as the notation. Some of the repertoire could also do with a facelift.

Team Brass – Richard Duckett (pub. Faber)

I really like the step-by-step nature of this method as each page introduces new elements while also consolidating the previous page. This alongside the nice ensemble arrangements makes this a good resource particularly for mixed instruments. The repertoire and the layout though are a little outdated now and perhaps is not as engaging for younger children as some of the other options available.

Essential Elements (pub. Hal Leonard)

This has good varied content and works well with combinations of all brass and woodwind. The ensembles work nicely, although involves some adaptation to work with mixed abilities. The online resources are also really well integrated, with apps available for phone and tablet.

The Boosey Brass Method (pub. Boosey & Hawkes)

This has a lovely, clear and engaging layout. It is full of great games and activities that are good for at home as well as in the lesson. A particular feature that I really like is visualising of notes as ‘building blocks’ to help encourage controlled air flow. This tutor book is however aimed more at individual or small group tuition with lots of nice mixed ability duets, but no arrangements ‘ready to go’ for larger ensembles.

ABRSM Music Medals (pub. ABRSM)

The Music Medals offer good targets and in-class assessment for children learning in a group, and there are a number of good resources too. The ensemble book has a nice selection, but it is very narrow in style. The ‘musicianship’ side of the syllabus seems a little dry and is also quite hard to teach to groups of younger children in an engaging manner.

Trinity College London – Small Group Tests, & First Access Tests for whole classes (pub. Trinity)

As with the Music Medals, this is a way of setting targets and offering individual assessment (and certificates) to children learning in groups. There is a nice variety of repertoire with many different styles represented. There is also a real emphasis on ear work and improvisation, and all of the tunes have lyrics to encourage aural development.

There are obviously a lot of other resources both in print, as audio, video and online that I have not covered here, and I am very interested to hear of teachers’ experiences with the materials above, or indeed any others that have been useful to readers.