CT Trumpet Lessons, Performing Artist, Badollet Ensemble

The next three weeks are a beautiful example of the challenges of freelance playing and maintaining chop endurance and musical style challenges. This week I have rehearsals and a performance with the Asylum Hill Orchestra in Hartford, CT where I'm performing the Music for the Royal Fireworks, Zadok the Priest, and the King Shall Rejoice-all Handel (all on picc), plus the Missa in tempore belli of F. J. Haydn on C trumpet.  Got the music 3 days in advance. The following week is one rehearsal with a brass quartet and harp with a performance the next day in Marblehead, MA, don't have the music for this yet. The next week I begin a month long run of playing lead on City of Angels at Curtain Call Theatre in Stamford, CT.  Got the music a few days ago, so I have the luxury of two weeks to review it and get the chops into a lead mouthpiece. On top of this I have a busy teaching schedule all during this and have to prepare for all of the above at the same time. So...how do you p...

I have an adult student who is a thoracic doc with whom I have great conversations about breathing.  Teaching him has helped me really define, verbally, control of proper air flow for trumpet playing so there isn't a contradiction between medical functionality and teacher description.  He has such an understanding of function of the lungs that he processes what I describe through his thorough lens.  With all my students I do my best to avoid too much technical vocabulary and keep things simple and easy to understand with my vast wardrobe of analogies. Vincent Penzarella has said it best, "Exhalation is inhalation without hesitation".  Now, this is an advanced concept, so although my students hear me say this, I give lots of examples of what this means.  For years I did not breath deep enough and move my air fast enough and still sounded decent.   Having a deep understanding of the importance of a very deep, relaxed inhalation and pushing out my exhalation...