Click to buy it from Prof. Hickman

Trumpet Pedagogy: A Compendium of Modern Teaching Techniques, by David Hickman

• 503 pages
• 369 photos
• 89 illustration
• dozens of music examples
• Hardbound
• 8.5 x 11 x 1.75 inches.
• $69 (soon to be $95)

If you play or teach trumpet, you have to have this book. In fact, I’m glad I didn’t discover this book until several years after I’d put out my own trumpet book, because if I’d seen this, I wouldn’t have bothered. The book is fantastic, and packed with so much information it’s going to be difficult to summarize. But it’s worth the challenge. Here we go:

David Hickman is a well-known player and teacher, currently at Arizona State University. Here’s a snippet from his web site:

David Hickman is considered one of the world’s pre-eminent trumpet virtuosos and has performed over 2,000 solo appearances around the world as a recitalist or guest soloist with nearly 500 different orchestras. His tours have taken him to Japan, Korea, Thailand, Spain, Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Austria, Canada, Mexico, Switzerland, and virtually every major American city.

As a noted clinician and author, Hickman has presented workshops on over 300 major university campuses. He has taught (13 summers) at the Banff Centre for the Arts (Canada), Bremen Trumpet Days (Germany), Rafael Mendez Brass Institute (18 summers), and dozens of music festivals.

Don't try this at home.

If you have any question about the trumpet, you’ll find it in Hickman’s doorstop of a book (Table of Contents). It’s got loads of pictures of great players, many of them closeups so you can see their embouchures, postures, and other details; there are dozens of pictures of instruments from ancient times to cutting edge trumpet makers. The illustrations are great and clear. The musical examples are numerous. And the amount of information is prodigious. You get the idea.

My favorite picture is this one of Louis Armstrong’s mouthpiece rim. It’s got grooves carved into it. The grooves grip his chops so that when he gave the horn a slight twist, he was able to play higher. This, btw, is not a recommended way to increase your range. Louis used to play 77 high Cs in a row at the end of a tune (I think it might have been St. Louis Blues, but am not sure). At a show England when he did this, he split his lip so badly that the front of his shirt was drenched in blood and he had to stop playing for a long period. It’s not clear whether he was using this twisting technique, but I’m guessing he was.

The chapters in Trumpet Pedagogy I found most interesting were

• Chapter 5: Efficient Practice
• Chapter 8: Advanced Range, Power and Endurance
• Chapter 9: Common Problems and Suggested Remedies
  • air in the tone
  • double buzz
  • upper register inconsistency
  • attacks
  • nose air leakage
  • dull, dead tone
  • “quacky’ low register
  • trills
  • dry mouth
  • inability to play softly

Whether you need to know about different embouchures, like the floating jaw embouchure versus the fixed jaw embouchure, or how Bell’s Palsy or other medical conditions affect trumpet playing, or are curious about trumpet music, trumpet players, trumpet mutes, or really anything else regarding the trumpet, you should buy the book. Also, chat up your local librarian and as her or him to purchase a copy for the library. It’s pretty expensive ($69 now, but for a limited time. Will go to $95 apparently), so a library might be able to afford it if you can’t.

There are few things about the book that could be improved upon, but here are some ways in which the book didn’t measure up for me. The price is high, but that’s understandable given the size, scope, and binding, but the price puts it out of range for all but the most serious players and teachers. Available only to trumpet players with a good job. I was surprised and disappointed with the quality of most of the images. The images are not so poor as to be ineffective, but many are pixellated, and nearly all of them would benefit from a few minutes in Photoshop adjusting curves.

But these are minor, piddling concerns. Honestly, I can’t recommend this book highly enough. Take advantage of Hickman’s vast expertise, his research spanning decades, and his contacts with trumpet luminaries who provided pictures galore. Buy the book.

Have fun, and good luck with your practice.

Here are links to Professor Hickman’s talk at the 2005 ITG conference (7 parts). Loads and loads of great information in these talks. (beginning of 6 deals with practice)

Hickman lecture 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Professor Hickman performing:

He’s not a trumpet player, he’s a trombone player, but Steve Turre is up in trumpet range when he plays his conch shells. Here’s a fantastic Afro-Cuban version of All Blues, the jazz standard written by Miles Davis. Hot stuff.

Sample/buy Steve Turre’s music

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I’ve just discovered Mnozil Brass. These guys are phenomenal players and are also pretty hilarious. The following video will show you both. The group is named after a pub in which they used to meet while attending the Vienna College of Music. The oddly-shaped trumpet you see in the video still below, held by the group’s founder, Thomas Gansch–I think he’s the chicken in the beginning of the vid–is a horn he developed himself, known as a Gansch horn.

Sample Mnozil Brass recordings here

Mnozil Brass is:

• Thomas Gansch (trumpet)
• Robert Rother (trumpet)
• Roman Rindberger (trumpet) (since 2004)
• Leonhard Paul (trombone & bass trumpet)
• Gerhard Füßl (trombone)
• Zoltan Kiss (trombone) (since 2005)
• Wilfried Brandstötter (tuba)

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And here’s my favorite Kenny Dorham tune, Afrodisia from my favorite album, Afro-Cuban. You can’t go wrong with this album….

Check out more samples of KD’s music here

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It can be tough to find a great present for a trumpet player if you don’t play the instrument yourself and know what might be useful or helpful. Look no further! Here are some suggestions for some of the best gear available to help take the skills and enjoyment of the trumpet player in your life to the next level. If that trumpet player is yourself, so much the better! Get yourself a present if nobody else will do it for you. Happy holidays!

 Yamaha’s “Silent Brass” Mute System ($125)

I’ve got one of these, and it saves me from frustrated neighbors and family members who simply don’t want to hear the B harmonic minor scale patterns for the thousandth time (no exaggeration). It allows you to hear yourself (with reverb if you want) and you can pump in mp3 or CD sounds to play along with as well, all quietly in the comfort of your own head. Combine this with the headphones below and you won’t come out of your practice room for days!

• Product Dimensions: 3.2 x 9.8 x 11.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  (31 customer reviews)

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The Bubble Mute ($68)

This is, by far, THE best-sounding Harmon-style mute out there. It’s got a warm rich sound without the stem in, and great wah-wah sound with the stem in. The copper gives an even warmer, richer tone than the aluminum model.

Or choose a cup mute ,straight mute, bucket mute, or choose from all mutes.

Some artwork from the Miles Davis album "Bitches Brew"

Sometimes it takes a long time to sound like yourself.
~Miles Davis
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As an awkward middle-school kid in a small Alaskan town, trying to understand the trumpet and how to play jazz, I thought, Maybe I should find some jazz recordings. I’ve heard of this guy named Miles Davis. I’ll order one of his albums. That was smart, but in the days before the Internet, there was no way to tell what I was getting, so I just ordered the album that was most popular at the time. It turned out to be Bitches Brew, a progressive fusion album that was way out there to my unaccustomed ears. I remember thinking, man, if this is jazz, I’m not so sure I like it. Fortunately, I persisted and came to love jazz, Miles, and even the fusion. Here are a few incarnations of Miles, including some Bitches Brew stuff.

The man was notoriously tight-lipped, misogynistic and clearly willing to speak his mind, like the famous quip to first lady Nancy Reagan. Even if his personal conduct might not be worth emulating, you can’t deny the beauty of his music and the range of styles he influenced and created. Here are some of the incarnations of Miles. I’m thankful to him and everyone who helped for all of them.

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Modal Miles (recordings of So What, other Miles recordings)

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And now for something completely different from the 2nd Great Quintet (1964-68). Check out Wayne Shorter’s sax solo!

(music from this quintet: boxed set, studio recordings, complete Plugged Nickel performance, Plugged Nickel highlights, Cookin’ at the Plugged Nickel)

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And now for something completely differenter: here’s some of Bitches Brew (album, Complete Columbia Recordings)

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• Thankful for Trumpeters III (talkingtrumpet.wordpress.com)
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I remember sitting in the sun on the back porch of my apartment, with a beer, supremely content and listening to Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony as played by the Chicago Symphony, directed by George Solti, with Adolph “Bud” Herseth playing principal trumpet (CD, mp3). I’m incredibly grateful for the huge amount of music Mr. Herseth is responsible for, not only directly from himself, but from his teaching and his example. A profound thank you!

Here’s a version with Barenboim conducting the CSO. I think I like this one even better, especially since the trumpet parts are more prominent.

CSO recordings

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PJBE: CDs, mp3s

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Over the next several days, as we all contemplate what it means to be thankful–and if we’re truly lucky, to enjoy family, friends and food–I thought I’d feature some trumpeters for whom I’m eternally grateful. I’m going to go, in order, from the order I remember them in my life, chronologically.

First up is Chuck Mangione. Jazz purists pooh-pooh the guy and his music, but millions love his music, and still do, but whatever. When I hear anything from his Live from the Hollywood Bowl double-album, the wave of nostalgia I feel is physical and undeniable even though my taste in jazz trumpeters has moved on. I’d fall asleep to that album as a middle-school kid. It was this album that introduced me to two of my most favorite musicians of all time: Dizzy Gillespie (who was a long-time friend of the Mangione family) and Chick Corea, who played 4th trumpet on that album, if memory serves correctly. So in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I’d like to start with these 2 videos (I couldn’t find anything with Chick Corea playing 4th trumpet….).

Chuck Mangione (CD, mp3), Children of Sanchez

Dizzy Gillespie’s appearance on The Muppet Show happened after my exposure to this album, but that appearance made me fall in love with the guy’s sense of humor and ability to not take himself too seriously, yet still kick some serious ass on trumpet. The guy was a wonderful man. I wish I’d met him, or even seen him live. RIP, Dizzy.

Here he is with Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem playing (and singing!) St. Louis Blues

Dizzy’s Cds, mp3, and especially this interview/appearance on Piano Jazz with Marian McPartland

I’m so thankful both of these men did their thing with music. They’ve both made my life richer.

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~Beverly Sills, soprano (1929 – 2007)
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Hummel in 1814

The Concerto in Eb by Johann Nepomuk Hummel is a beautiful, inspiring and, of course, challenging piece of music, a pillar of classical trumpet repetoire. One of the most foolish and embarrassing musical moments of my life came in my senior year of high school at a music festival in Alaska for which I played (mangled is a more appropriate term) this piece that  Maurice André plays below so beautifully below. I however, was unprepared for the demands of this very difficult piece, attempted it without help or a teacher (there were no accomplished classical trumpet players in Sitka), and with inadequate practice (I was still flailing away at it just before the performance, yet another lapse in judgment). Anyway, the hapless adjudicator complimented my accompanist, the wonderfully helpful Peggy Brandt, but that’s about all he could say.

I had no business trying to play that piece, but I didn’t know any better. The only good thing that came of the experience is that I learned a thing or two, like how important it is to find a teacher who can help you play better, who gives you pieces you can handle, and who can help set yourself up for successful performances.  I was reminded of my own embarrassing experience when listening to a hilarious recording of the Hummel sent in for pre-audition to the Boston Symphony. Hear it here. (from trumpet bloopers)

Maurice André plays this piece with so much feeling, flair and bravura. The audience loved it, and so did I. Would’ve been great to be there.  Maurice André is one of the most phenomenal classical trumpet players of this or any age. He practiced for a few hours very early in the morning.  Classical tuba master Rex Martin–who was gracious to talk at length about his own practice–mentioned this about André and marveled at his ability to get all that work done early in the day, then have your time completely free until the gig that evening. And Maurice André performed so much. In 1978 he did 220 concerts! He had to practice early in the day so his lip had a chance to recover before the performance. Pretty remarkable. (find Maurice André’s CDs & mp3s)

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