This is super-geeky, but whatever. This summer I’m going to only play one mouthpiece per horn! Today starts my summer playing schedule and for the next month and a half, it’s going to be a very busy one. The last few months I have been slowly driving myself crazy switching mouthpieces. I was juggling about six and (obviously) not completely thrilled with any of them. I think the reason I wasn’t happy with any one...

My good friend Lauren Bernofsky (the composer whose works I love and have reviewed here on All Things Trumpet) passed this article on to me.  I have a post dedicated to cleaning your horn and personally find this stuff very important.  I’m very glad to have gotten this article because it just supports my cause.  I hope you enjoy it.  Well, “enjoy” probably isn’t the right word…  Read and heed. Think Music Heals? Trombone...

Here’s the bottom line with mutes; for the most part – You Get What You Pay For. Q.           What makes one mute worth more than another? A.            Consistent intonation in all registers.  Often lesser mutes will make you sharp in the lower register and flat in the upper register. A.            Intonation to the instrument; meaning, how far do you have to pull your slide when you put the mute in? ...

Here is an email-article that I read written by Jens Lindemann.  For those of you new to the trumpet world, Jens is one of the greats.  Actually, I would put him in the top 10 living all-round players.  He is one of the few trumpet players making a living as an international soloist. This was originally written a few years ago and I see on his website that he is now endorsing GR mouthpieces.  I’ve met Gary Radtke of GR technologies...

Here’s a quick post that I am sure is common sense to some of you but will hopefully save the rest of you some money.  I had a friend ask me the other day where I take my horns to get cleaned.  (The deep chemical flush cleaning.)  I used to get my horns dipped at the local music repair shop but now I do it myself.  You can do this in your bath tub but it is far better to use a wash basin or turkey roasting pan.  You want a pan or...

I found this article on Phil Rinaldi’s site and he has graciously allowed me to duplicate it here for you.  It was written by the great trumpet player/designer Mark Van Cleave.  Interestingly, I have never met Mark or know his teaching but I COMPLETELY agree with what he has to say in his article.  In fact, if you take the time to read both of our articles, you will find a lot of similarities!  Enjoy! How to Choose a Trumpet...

Over the years I have had a number of people ask me what horns I play.  Instruments are a very personal decision and my thoughts are only my opinion, so here goes.  I am very proud to own and play Eclipse trumpets and Flugel horn.  I own a LHY Bb and C trumpet in gold plate, a Red Brass Flugel in raw, and the most recent addition to the family is an Eclipse piccolo in polished gold plate.  The piccolo is so amazing I am posting a...

Those of you that know me know that I am perhaps the biggest trumpet equipment geek out there.  (With the possible exception of my dear friend, Trent Austin who is one of my favorite players and has recently opened his own music store in the Boston area.  I can’t think of anyone that I would rather talk with about buying a trumpet.  Trent has either played or owned every trumpet ever made!  Check out Austin Custom Brass here.) ...

I have been asked at clinics about mouthpieces and how many are the right amount to play or if you should play everything on one mouthpiece.  I have read that Miles Davis played the same mouthpiece he got in junior high his entire career.  I have also played with the magnificent lead, jazz, commercial player, Lew Soloff who actually had a mouthpiece belt so he could easily grab a different mouthpiece for almost every other phrase!  At...