Buzzin through the trumpet mouthpiece
Lesson time: (1min 15sec)
Kay Charlton shows you how to position the mouthpiece and buzz through it to make your first trumpet sounds.
Course preview
This lesson is part of the course Introduction to the Trumpet: My First Trumpet Lesson
Watch a preview of the full course below.
Lesson transcript:
Mouthpiece Buzzing Exercise
Now that you can make a buzz with your lips, let's try it through the mouthpiece.
Step 1: Positioning the Mouthpiece
- Take the mouthpiece out of your pea trumpet.
- The big part of the mouthpiece goes on your lips, right in the middle:
- Not too high,
- Not too low,
- Not on one side or the other,
- Right in the center.
Step 2: Feeling the Buzz
- Feel it on the top and bottom of your lips and do the same blow.
- Important:
- Don't puff your cheeks out.
- Remember, we did the same thing through the mouthpiece.
Enjoy the silly noise!
Step 3: Producing Sound
- Blow hard, make a strong sound.
Troubleshooting
If you find you're not making a sound at this point:
- It could be that your lips are too squeezed.
- If your lips are really, really squeezed tight, you're strangling the sound.
Relaxation Tips
- So relax a little bit.
- Keep your shoulders relaxed.
- Take a breath in.
Sound Variation
You might get a high-pitched sound or a low-pitched sound. Don't worry about that for the moment. Just get your lips buzzing.
Final Encouragement
Try and make a sound through the mouthpiece.
Well done!
About the instructor
Kay is a trumpet player, composer and teacher of brass and curriculum music, specialising in primary classroom teaching - KS2, First Access/WCET (whole-class ensemble teaching, where a class learns an instrument together) and teacher CPD (continuing professional development). She completed a Masters in Music Education - 'Teaching Musician' at Trinity Laban Conservatoire in 2018. Kay plays trumpet with the Bollywood Brass Band, a 9-piece band of brass and drums whose 2017 CD Carnatic Connection was nominated for a Songlines Magazine 'World Music Award' and given a 5-star review in the London Evening Standard. Kay composes and arranges for the band and leads on their education work, founding the Bollywood Brass Academy in 2017. Kay has presented her research into whole-class teaching at the Music Education Expo and the First Access Forum. She has designed and led CPD for LSO Discovery, Trinity College London, Music Education Solutions and the Bollywood Brass Band, and is an education consultant for Warwick Music. Kay's book of beginner repertoire, 'Are You Ready?', is published by Warwick Music; in 2017 Kay was commissioned by Warwick Music and Music Education Solutions to compose songs for a new KS1 scheme of work for the pBuzz, which was nominated as 'Education Resource of 2018' by the 'Education Awards'. Other publications include pieces for Trinity's Initial (2015/2018) and Grade 1 (2018) piano syllabus, Bollywood Blast! (Spartan Press) - a series of brass and wind tutor books with backing tracks in a Bollywood style - and Whole Class Bollywood Blast with David Rose (Bedford Music Hub), which is aimed at teachers of whole-class instrumental lessons and includes an Arts Award Discover programme. Her MusicGurus courses bring that classroom experience straight to you: from your very first trumpet lesson through two sets of tunes for beginners, Kay sets out exactly what to play and how to play it. www.kaycharlton.co.uk read more