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What is the highest note you can hit reliably? |
G (sitting top position of staff) |
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4% |
[ 7 ] |
A above the staff |
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4% |
[ 6 ] |
B above the staff |
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0% |
[ 1 ] |
C above the staff |
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15% |
[ 22 ] |
D above the staff |
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21% |
[ 31 ] |
E above the staff |
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9% |
[ 14 ] |
F above the staff |
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18% |
[ 27 ] |
G above the staff |
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9% |
[ 14 ] |
Beyond G above the staff |
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14% |
[ 21 ] |
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Total Votes : 143 |
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Message |
ashenfang Regular Member
Joined: 10 Oct 2018 Posts: 15
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Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2018 1:57 pm Post subject: What is your range? |
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Curious to see what everyone's upper range is. As in, the highest note you can reliably hit - not squeak out. |
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cheiden Heavyweight Member
Joined: 28 Sep 2004 Posts: 8914 Location: Orange County, CA
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Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2018 2:46 pm Post subject: |
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I've cast my vote though I take issue with the description of notes you can "hit". To my mind, that sounds like notes you swing at and sometimes you hit them and sometimes you don't, which isn't a very good metric. I suspect that what you really want to know is how high can folks reliably play. _________________ "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 |
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Christian K. Peters Heavyweight Member
Joined: 12 Nov 2001 Posts: 1532 Location: Eugene, Oregon
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Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2018 3:02 pm Post subject: What note |
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Hello all,
Somebody once quoted that 98% of trumpet playing was below C above the staff. So, unless you have the specialty of the lead book or equivalent, that might be good enough. I voted. I have a playable range to E all the time, tired or not, and am able to continue whatever I am playing without much problem. Ask me to play an F or F#, and I am kind of wasted after that. There is not much reason to go beyond, for me, except for bragging rights. Though I have attained the G's in Satin Doll from time to time. Certainly not with reliability. There you have an honest appraisal of my ability. _________________ Christian K. Peters
Schilke Loyalist since 1976 |
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Brassnose Heavyweight Member
Joined: 07 Mar 2016 Posts: 2054 Location: Germany
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Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2018 8:57 pm Post subject: |
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I am with CK Peters here. I can play a high e but really only need it rarely. I am not a lead or similar player and most of the time there is no need to go above high c. As another player on the german Trompetenforum put it: blow in nicely and it will come out nicely ... being in tune and time withe the rest of the band/orchestra is more important to me at the moment than being Mini Maynard _________________ 2019 Martin Schmidt eXcellence
1992 Bach 43GH/43
1989 Kühnl & Hoyer Model 15 flugel
1980/2023 Custom Blessing Scholastic C 😎
1977 Conn 6B
1951 Buescher 400 Lightweight
AR Resonance, Frate, Klier |
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Brassnose Heavyweight Member
Joined: 07 Mar 2016 Posts: 2054 Location: Germany
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Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2018 9:00 pm Post subject: |
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Oh, I forgot. Playing high did get a lot easier after consistently practinging my air support and toungue along with an embouchure change a few years ago. Plus I switched back from Monette to my very first mouthpiece, a Klier USA 5C from 1980. _________________ 2019 Martin Schmidt eXcellence
1992 Bach 43GH/43
1989 Kühnl & Hoyer Model 15 flugel
1980/2023 Custom Blessing Scholastic C 😎
1977 Conn 6B
1951 Buescher 400 Lightweight
AR Resonance, Frate, Klier |
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Croquethed Heavyweight Member
Joined: 19 Dec 2013 Posts: 615 Location: Oakville, CT
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Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2018 3:53 am Post subject: |
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For anything above high C, my manager comes out, takes my mouthpiece, says good job, and calls Lionel in from the bullpen. |
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Yamahaguy Heavyweight Member
Joined: 09 Dec 2004 Posts: 3992
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Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2018 5:35 am Post subject: |
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Playing up to double D reliably is not an issue, although I really don't need
to on a daily basis. The majority of what I get paid to do doesn't require me
to play above a high C...although sometimes there are G's and A's above
that are optional, but are by no means necessary. |
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jhatpro Heavyweight Member
Joined: 17 Mar 2002 Posts: 10204 Location: The Land Beyond O'Hare
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Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2018 6:40 am Post subject: |
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I sold all the horns that would tempt me to try to play above the highest note in West End Blues. _________________ Jim Hatfield
"The notes are there - find them.” Mingus
2021 Martinus Geelan Custom
2005 Bach 180-72R
1965 Getzen Eterna Severinsen
1946 Conn Victor
1998 Scodwell flugel
1986 Bach 181 cornet
1954 Conn 80A cornet
2002 Getzen bugle |
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TrumpetMD Heavyweight Member
Joined: 22 Oct 2008 Posts: 2416 Location: Maryland
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Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2018 6:41 am Post subject: Re: What is your range? |
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ashenfang wrote: | Curious to see what everyone's upper range is. As in, the highest note you can reliably hit - not squeak out. |
These questions can be interesting, but the answers are often skewed, because not everyone replies. If this was an accurate survey, with everyone replying, the majority of people would likely select option 1, 2, or 3. But at this point in the poll, the majority of respondents state they can play above a C.
Mike _________________ Bach Stradivarius 43* Trumpet (1974), Bach 6C Mouthpiece.
Bach Stradivarius 184 Cornet (1988), Yamaha 13E4 Mouthpiece
Olds L-12 Flugelhorn (1969), Yamaha 13F4 Mouthpiece.
Plus a few other Bach, Getzen, Olds, Carol, HN White, and Besson horns. |
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ohnecael Regular Member
Joined: 16 Mar 2018 Posts: 75 Location: Fort Wayne IN
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Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2018 8:00 am Post subject: Re: What is your range? |
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TrumpetMD wrote: | ashenfang wrote: | Curious to see what everyone's upper range is. As in, the highest note you can reliably hit - not squeak out. |
These questions can be interesting, but the answers are often skewed, because not everyone replies. If this was an accurate survey, with everyone replying, the majority of people would likely select option 1, 2, or 3. But at this point in the poll, the majority of respondents state they can play above a C.
Mike |
Thats the problem with these polls as well. some people just answer they can play above at or above a high c just to inflate thier own egos irreguardless, most playing really doesnt require that range in most settings if you arent a lead player which most of us aren't anyway so it doesnt really matter that much. _________________ Long tones. |
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John Mohan Heavyweight Member
Joined: 13 Nov 2001 Posts: 9830 Location: Chicago, Illinois
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Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2018 11:43 am Post subject: |
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jhatpro wrote: | I sold all the horns that would tempt me to try to play above the highest note in West End Blues. |
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Brad361 Heavyweight Member
Joined: 16 Dec 2007 Posts: 7080 Location: Houston, TX.
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Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2018 7:11 am Post subject: |
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Regarding who needs a range above second ledger line C: depends on the genre....which I guess is obvious.
If you’re playing primarily concert/ community band/orchestra, first part, C-D above the staff pretty much adequate. Big band lead or second part, and for LOTS of other “commercial” settings, you really need a solid, useable F AND HIGHER above that. I doubt that guys like John (above) could get by with just a C-D.
One thing I remind my students of is if your top end is maybe F, your C-D should be stronger, better quality and more useable.
Brad _________________ When asked if he always sounds great:
"I always try, but not always, because the horn is merciless, unpredictable and traitorous." - Arturo Sandoval |
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DaveH Heavyweight Member
Joined: 20 Nov 2001 Posts: 3861
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Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2018 8:10 am Post subject: |
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Yes, in my opinion, this is the most significant generality for the development of usable and playable range above second ledger line C (what we used to call high C)....it is like having more horsepower in the engine. In general, the more "headroom" (high end), the potentially easier and more effortless the "cruising" speed (the normal or ordinary range). My musical demands never required more, but then I can only speak for myself and what makes up my own personal experiences.
And, of course, a good low register is needed as well.
But, I think you can be a good trumpet player with a reasonable and usable range - to high C or thereabouts. When I was taking lessons and playing regularly many years ago, it seemed that high C was the goal by the senior year in high school for anyone who was a serious player taking private lessons. Anything that was added after and beyond that was "extra credit", helping to provide a more effortless lower and middle range. |
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John Mohan Heavyweight Member
Joined: 13 Nov 2001 Posts: 9830 Location: Chicago, Illinois
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Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2018 10:00 am Post subject: |
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Brad361 wrote: | Regarding who needs a range above second ledger line C: depends on the genre....which I guess is obvious.
If you’re playing primarily concert/ community band/orchestra, first part, C-D above the staff pretty much adequate. Big band lead or second part, and for LOTS of other “commercial” settings, you really need a solid, useable F AND HIGHER above that. I doubt that guys like John (above) could get by with just a C-D.
One thing I remind my students of is if your top end is maybe F, your C-D should be stronger, better quality and more useable.
Brad |
Well said Brad. In the playing situations that the vast majority of trumpet players encounter, a good solid High C will suffice - and a solid High D is icing on the cake.
And you are right, there's no way on earth I would have gotten hired to play any of the major musicals I did if I couldn't play (not just "hit") the highest notes in the shows, which were at minimum, an E above High C (in Hunchback, and there were a number of them, and also I remember Phantom as just going up to E) and in most other shows, somewhere around an F to a G. Starlight Express has a written Double B and The Producers has a sixteenth note run up to High C that has Up 8va in the ink, though after playing it once I was told by the Music Director to never take it up again (the band for that production played in a small room off stage and that room had no sound absorbing material except a heavy curtain on one wall and my bell was pointed directly toward the side of the MD's head and only about 6 feet from him).
I will add this: Through out my career we who were chair holders on the shows always had to deal with trumpet players who wanted to be subs but just couldn't hack it because they were obsessed with high notes. Many of them could play higher - a lot higher - than us full-timers could. But they were "musically challenged" (no pun intended). Bad tone, bad intonation and not accurate. But they could peel paint off of walls with amazing high notes. Well, most of them could. The saddest cases were the ones who obsessed about high notes at the cost of all reasonable playing ability, yet couldn't even play them well.
Claude Gordon often said to me, "Don't worry about the high notes. High notes are inevitable if you are practicing correctly! They'll develop right along with the rest of the machine."
My own experience as a player and now a teacher confirms that he was right.
Best wishes,
John Mohan
Skype Lessons Available - Click on the e-mail button below if interested _________________ 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 |
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JetJaguar Heavyweight Member
Joined: 20 Nov 2006 Posts: 1518 Location: Vancouver, BC
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Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2018 12:19 pm Post subject: |
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Sub-poll
At what point in this thread will the fists start flying?:
-first page
-second page
-third page _________________ 1938 Martin Handcraft Imperial #2 bore, 38 bell
Bach 7C mouthpiece
I'm looking for a Connstellation 5C-N or 5B-N mouthpiece
www.jazzscales.org
The Coady Strengthening Exercises: http://coady.coolwarm.com |
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bike&ed Heavyweight Member
Joined: 24 Dec 2004 Posts: 1837
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Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2018 1:14 pm Post subject: |
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John Mohan wrote: | Brad361 wrote: | Regarding who needs a range above second ledger line C: depends on the genre....which I guess is obvious.
If you’re playing primarily concert/ community band/orchestra, first part, C-D above the staff pretty much adequate. Big band lead or second part, and for LOTS of other “commercial” settings, you really need a solid, useable F AND HIGHER above that. I doubt that guys like John (above) could get by with just a C-D.
One thing I remind my students of is if your top end is maybe F, your C-D should be stronger, better quality and more useable.
Brad |
Well said Brad. In the playing situations that the vast majority of trumpet players encounter, a good solid High C will suffice - and a solid High D is icing on the cake.
And you are right, there's no way on earth I would have gotten hired to play any of the major musicals I did if I couldn't play (not just "hit") the highest notes in the shows, which were at minimum, an E above High C (in Hunchback, and there were a number of them, and also I remember Phantom as just going up to E) and in most other shows, somewhere around an F to a G. Starlight Express has a written Double B and The Producers has a sixteenth note run up to High C that has Up 8va in the ink, though after playing it once I was told by the Music Director to never take it up again (the band for that production played in a small room off stage and that room had no sound absorbing material except a heavy curtain on one wall and my bell was pointed directly toward the side of the MD's head and only about 6 feet from him).
I will add this: Through out my career we who were chair holders on the shows always had to deal with trumpet players who wanted to be subs but just couldn't hack it because they were obsessed with high notes. Many of them could play higher - a lot higher - than us full-timers could. But they were "musically challenged" (no pun intended). Bad tone, bad intonation and not accurate. But they could peel paint off of walls with amazing high notes. Well, most of them could. The saddest cases were the ones who obsessed about high notes at the cost of all reasonable playing ability, yet couldn't even play them well.
Claude Gordon often said to me, "Don't worry about the high notes. High notes are inevitable if you are practicing correctly! They'll develop right along with the rest of the machine."
My own experience as a player and now a teacher confirms that he was right.
Best wishes,
John Mohan
Skype Lessons Available - Click on the e-mail button below if interested |
Awesome commentary as always John! I will not toss my hat in the poll, but rather will say that, on more than one occasion, I have replaced players who can make higher-frequency sounds on a trumpet than I can... 😇
(Oh, and I’ve played lead on The Producers twice, but I cannot effectively execute that 8va run, quite unlike Mr. Mohan) |
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GardyParty_11 New Member
Joined: 08 Nov 2017 Posts: 9 Location: USA
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Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2018 11:53 pm Post subject: |
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I find myself playing a lot more piccolo trumpet these days. A school group I played in earlier this semester did the Millar Brass arrangement of Wagner's Meistersinger, so I'm working to expand my accessible and reliable range just in case I need F#'s and G's in the future like I did a few months ago. Also, it would be cool to have Brandenburg chops on demand. |
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nieuwguyski Heavyweight Member
Joined: 06 Feb 2002 Posts: 2349 Location: Santa Cruz County, CA
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Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 12:33 am Post subject: |
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I played the lead book on a big band dance gig tonight. The highest note was an F in the Nat King Cole arrangement of "Walkin' My Baby Back Home."
My vote in the poll was that F.
I just wish all the gigs I play with this band limited the lead trumpet range to F's. _________________ J. Notso Nieuwguyski |
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jhatpro Heavyweight Member
Joined: 17 Mar 2002 Posts: 10204 Location: The Land Beyond O'Hare
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Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 2:31 am Post subject: |
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I asked our tuba player what his range was and he said "about 15 yards." His horn looks like it, too. _________________ Jim Hatfield
"The notes are there - find them.” Mingus
2021 Martinus Geelan Custom
2005 Bach 180-72R
1965 Getzen Eterna Severinsen
1946 Conn Victor
1998 Scodwell flugel
1986 Bach 181 cornet
1954 Conn 80A cornet
2002 Getzen bugle |
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Blackquill Regular Member
Joined: 03 May 2018 Posts: 74 Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
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Posted: Mon Dec 24, 2018 10:47 pm Post subject: |
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This may sound strange, but on a regular trumpet I can only play a high C (concert B-flat) almost always, but I can play high D only sometimes. On a picc, though, I can play a high E (concert D) consistently. _________________ Trumpet is for extroverts only... no, wait... Trumpet is also for introverts who need an avenue for extrovertism! |
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