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I took the best parts of the ARBAN'S book, and expanded. 116 pages! Dave Scott has created the jazz method book
Why Scales? Scales are like the alphabet. You have to learn the alphabet before you can read, write, or of course, spell. But unlike the alphabet, we use scales in physically relational patterns to create music. This is the reason to study scales even more extensively than young people learn the alphabet. Scales are EVERYWHERE in music. Learning the scales is the best way to start preparing oneself to play the complete range of musical possibilities. Furthermore, it is probably the best way to learn how to “get around the horn”, lip-wise and finger-wise. How do you best learn scales? By working the scales into various scale patterns that are like patterns in music. Just going up and down the scale is not enough. We benefit from scales when we know them backwards, forwards, inside out, twisted, high and low, arpeggiated, slurred and tongued, you know, just “worked” in general. Scale Book for Trumpet is pedagogically sequenced to allow beginners to get going without throwing too many variables in all at once; it begins with 36 exercises using just the first five notes of the scale. Then, the whole scale is introduced, but in the simplest rhythmic forms, using quarter notes. Pages later, eighth notes are added, then low notes. Slowly and sequentially, by working thru this collection of exercises, trumpet students are introduced to the other scales, the easiest ones at first, then the chromatic scale. Finally, what the student has learned is put to the test when the exercises combine scales, patterns, and ranges. He or she is ready to read music!
Why Lip Flexibility? I think of playing the trumpet like a professional baseball pitcher throws strikes. It’s all about control. The pitcher winds up, and throws the ball—curve, fast, slider, changeup. He doesn’t think about it too much, but hundreds of muscles in his body have to be amazingly coordinated and amazingly precise. His body just knows what to do because he has done it enough. Well, playing the trumpet is just like that. We coordinate ever so slight variations in air compression, mouthpiece pressure, aperture size , and lip tension (not to mention fingers). Trust me—like the ball player, it’s best not to think about it too much. We train our body to know how it feels, using the sound as our guide. You just have to do it a bunch. It feels good when you get it! How do you best learn lip flexibility?Working with a teacher, start simple and build on it, as the pages in this book reflect. A good teacher will monitor the student’s lip flexibility technique, and make sure the student isn’t merely using mouthpiece pressure. Quality of sound and tone is the best guide. Demand precision, and use a metronome. Be patient. Also, I do a lot of what I call “leapfrog” with my beginner students. “Leapfrog” is when I play measures 1, 3, 5, 7 etc of an exercise, and the student plays measure 2, 4, 6, 8 and so on. There are several good things that can come out of this: first and foremost, the student can best hear how he compares to a good example, and repetitively. Also, since the student is required to process smaller packets of information (one or two measures at a time), I find that the student gets less overwhelmed and will be more successful. Finally, the student is resting more, and doesn’t get worn out as fast.
Why Reading Exercises?We play trumpet, hopefully, because it is fun. I think for most people, it gets especially fun when you play music with others. A person who reads music well is far more valuable to a music ensemble. A good music reader will have the opportunity to play with better players, learn music faster, and experience more musical variety. How do you best learn to read music?The real key to reading music is getting good at reading rhythm. How do you do that? It is challenging to learn rhythm on your own at first . You need constant feedback to know if you are right or wrong. With a teacher, work your way through the pages of reading exercises in this book. Have your teacher teach you the conducting patterns of each time signature. Practice literally conducting those patterns; I often give my students a pencil and tell them it is a baton, and we practice conducting. When your conducting skills become automatic (when you can carry on an unrelated conversation and simultaneously conduct a steady beat), practice SAYING the rhythms as you conduct. The conducting will help you keep track of the beats and where you are in the measure. You will also need to know how it sounds and feels to subdivide the beat. Can you play eighth notes to a steady beat, then switch to eighth note triplets, then sixteenths? Can you switch between those and quarter note triplets? If you can, you are well on your way!
The book sells for $10 (plus $5 shipping and handling in the U.S.). Send a check or money order to:
The rulesBuy a metronome. You have not played an exercise correctly until you can play it with a steady beat, and without “stopping and starting”. The metronomic tempo for each exercise is your choice. Always ask yourself, “does this sound beautiful?” Remember: SING! SING through your horn!
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