Shake like a pro - how?

Satchmo101 · Regular Member Joined: 05 Jun 2018 Posts: 22

Notice that top trumpet pros such as Wayne Bergeron and Mike Lovatt seem to be able to do delightful shakes which seem to be at least a tone apart. I tend to do them as an exaggerated wide vibrato and hope for the best but the pros seem to be producing quite a different and cool effect. Notice they seem to start them a bit slower and they quicken them up, don;t know if this kind of a set-up or just a style thing. Any tips appreciated

_________________
Smith-Watkins Bb (ML) Professional Trumpet
Smith-Watkins Bb Professional Cornet
Conn Vintage One Flugelhorn

John Mohan · Posted: Mon Sep 17, 2018 8:48 am Post subject:

It's all about tongue level. To get great, fluid "shakes" (aka lip trills, or really, tongue trills) the tongue needs to be arched up a bit more than it would be to just sustain the note. And then you move the note by doing with your tongue exactly what you do when whistling a trill. This is easier to demonstrate than to put into words. If you want, contact me through the e-mail button below and we can get together on Skype and I'll show you what I mean in a couple of minutes.

Cheers,

John Mohan
_________________
Trumpet Player, Clinician & Teacher
1st Trpt for Cats, Phantom of the Opera, West Side Story, Evita, Hunchback of Notre Dame,
Grease, The Producers, Addams Family, In the Heights, etc.
Ex LA Studio Musician
16 Year Claude Gordon Student

Sharkbaitboi · Posted: Mon Sep 17, 2018 8:49 am Post subject:

Arban lip trill exercises. The one where its quarter, eighth, sixteenth, sextuplets in all valve and partials

Satchmo101 · Regular Member Joined: 05 Jun 2018 Posts: 22

Thanks for this - will get the arban out and think of trill whistling with tongue. Have tried starting them slower and seems to set them off better.
_________________
Smith-Watkins Bb (ML) Professional Trumpet
Smith-Watkins Bb Professional Cornet
Conn Vintage One Flugelhorn

Turkle · Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2018 10:07 am Post subject:

I started off practicing on the partial between Bb and C above the staff - that interval (and related valve combinations) was really easy for me to figure out. The rest pretty much came naturally after that.
_________________
Yamaha 8310Z trumpet
Yamaha 8310Z flugel
Curry 3.

B. Scriver · Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2018 10:10 am Post subject:

Let's see how Wayne does it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtepdJngvvk

Brian Scriver
www.grmouthpieces.com

starkadder · Heavyweight Member Joined: 01 May 2008 Posts: 542

Another example of how to shake like a pro:

Denny Schreffler · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 2:34 am Post subject:

joey · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 3:18 am Post subject:

In June I sat down and talked with Daniel Gerona about this.

You can check it out here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qGxbLGHUB0&t=2s

Like a lot of trumpet techniques, it's about building the coordination, then learning to apply it.

I hope this helps,

Joey
_________________
Joey Tartell
Indiana University

Mike Sailors · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 5:21 am Post subject:

The OP wants to know about a shake, not a lip trill. Both have their place, but they're different.

I learned by first doing them with a bucket mute in. It's a lot easier and you can learn the feel. Shakes are all feel in my opinion.

Hear it, then do it.
_________________
www.mikesailors.com

Yamahaguy · Heavyweight Member Joined: 09 Dec 2004 Posts: 3992

Turkle · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 7:18 am Post subject:

One more tip - when I first started trying to do shakes, I was pressing the mouthpiece into my chops. That was cutting off the air and thus the sound. It will not shock you that this was a bad strategy.

A friend saw me trying to do it and pointed out that instead of pushing the horn onto my chops I should instead pull the horn away from the chops and increase the airflow a bit. All of a sudden it was super easy to shake at the end of the note.

So if, like me, you were pressing the horn on your chops, try pulling it away a bit and put a little more air through it and see if that helps.

Like any other technique on the horn, you just have to mess around with it for a while until you get the sound you are looking for!
_________________
Yamaha 8310Z trumpet
Yamaha 8310Z flugel
Curry 3.

cheiden · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 8:54 am Post subject:

The first time I produced a lip trill was entirely by accident. I was doing The Wizard of Oz with a children's group but they had cobbled in "No Bad News" from The Wiz. The piece ended with a rip up to C and I was using a plunger. All of a sudden with no intention on my part, the note started trilling. Freaked me out. Thought it was a fluke but sure enough, most every time I executed the lick the C would trill.
_________________
"I'm an engineer, which means I think I know a whole bunch of stuff I really don't."
Charles J Heiden/So Cal
Bach Strad 180ML43*/43 Bb/Yamaha 731 Flugel/Benge 1X C/Kanstul 920 Picc/Conn 80A Cornet
Bach 3C rim on 1.5C underpart

John Mohan · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 9:10 am Post subject:

Speed · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 9:29 am Post subject:

Let's see if we can get on the same page about the terminology.

The first time I ever noticed the effect was listening to what Lew Soloff played toward the end of Blood, Sweat & Tears' "Spinning Wheel." I think it's fair to classify that as a trademark lick.

Is that a "shake" or is that a "lip trill."

Are the effects different, or are a "shake" and a "lip trill" two different techniques that generate the same effect?

If not, an example of each would be helpful.

Take care,
Marc Speed

Denny Schreffler · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 10:31 am Post subject:

cheiden · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:13 am Post subject:

jazz_trpt · Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2018 5:48 am Post subject:

Shake like a pro? Stop drinking for a couple of days...
_________________
Jeff Helgesen
Free jazz solo transcriptions!