Special Method of playing high notes

[trmpt_plyr]

Is there a special method for playing high notes? I have a teacher who says that there is, and he wants me to stop playing all music and exercises and do nothing but slurs all day long. I feel like it's kind of necessary... what does everyone else think?

[GenoValet]

I don't think anyone should second guess what your teacher might be trying to accomplish, but here is the best method I have found for improving range:

http://www.r-o-d-d-y-t-r-u-m-p-e-t.cc/catindex.html

[Usnbratt]

I got caught up in the high note thing, and I'm still paying for it in my senior year of college. Don't get wound up in playing high notes, it can slow you down in developing the skills and habits that will make you a much better player in the long run.
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-Ed

[oxleyk]

Just put the horn down and visualize in your mind playing high notes. That's all you really need.

Kent

[cheiden]

To the OP, I assume that the teacher you refer to is your band teacher and not an experienced trumpet teacher. While opinions vary, most would agree that the only good way to a better upper register is through careful practice with an experienced trumpet teacher. Without a good instructor and daily routine odds are good that you will flail, develop bad habits and wind up totally frustrated.
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[swingintrpt]

[holeypants]

[EdMann]

Right on, Charles. It's like watching a movie and fast forwarding to the explosions. There is so much more to playing than this ridiculous focus on the high register. I can't tell you how much time I wasted, both in school and now as a middle aged comebacker with three years under my belt fooling around upstairs in the "attic." It's ok to clean out the cobwebs a bit, but don't try to make it a living room.

Ed

[Billy B]

[cb3]

You can get the answer to your first question here http://www.trumpetherald.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=6
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[lucky_taino13]

I also got cought up on my upper register and thought all I needed was a new mouthpiece every few days and so I found out that wasnt the case. A good way to get up there is to really work on core breathing and being able to go from lower pedal tones to your highest note possible. This doesnt work for everyone but I did it as a warm up and after awhile I saw an improvement in my intonation and how solid my notes where coming out.

[gbdeamer]

[deleted_user_fdb91a0]

Lip slurs won't give you high notes.

Great embouchure technique will give you high notes (and everything else, too).

[silverhorn]

[BobList]

Lip slurs can help the high regester develop because you can't slur if too tense and tight, so this will help your high range as far as EASE of playing, and getting a good full sound up there. It gets you to relax in the upper regester. Anybody with a decent set of chops can "ska-weee" all day long, but to sound musical up high, ( Like Severensen) flexies will help.
To get expanded range?.. Not sure if flexibilities do that for ya. I couldn't say for sure. But lip slurs in the extreme upper limits makes it sound better.

Bobby List
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[John Mohan]

Ah, another misinformed teacher misleading a student....

As Claude Gordon said: "High notes are inevitable. They'll develop right along with the rest of the machine with proper practice and development."

Any method that seeks to do nothing but improve the upper register does so (if it does so, which it probably doesn't) at a cost of the lack of development in all the other neccessary and perhaps more important aspects of playing.

Find a new teacher, preferably one who studied with Claude Gordon.

Sincerely,

John Mohan
http://mattgraves.netfirms.com/john_mohan.htm
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16 Year Claude Gordon Student

[Pete Anderson]

[LeeC]

All the high note systems I know of are flawed. Most seriously flawed. As well as most/all methods discussing embouchure and air movement.

None of them have much of a clue as to the physics of the game. thus they are similar to witchcraft. Would you go to a doctor who prescribed leeches and prayer as a major course of his treatment? Well then you understand my thoughts on pretty much all the publications I've seen.

The good news is that most trumpet players don't have even a solid usable high C. Thus if the original poster were to practice his sight reading and develop that range he'd be well ahead of the game compared to most.

Even the Double C is well over emphasized. In the past forty years I've seen precisely one written for a public performance for profit. And the lead singer requested that we didn't play it. Didn't want us over shining his star.

A lead player with a reliable High F who plays in tune and in time? All he needs to do is act professionally and hope the local market needs trumpet players.

[BobList]

Actually, I've used Leeches in the past to help my trumpet playing. Most of you guys on here just call them "Booking Agents".

Bob
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[LeeC]