Practical Transposition Exercises

[Jay Lichtmann]

Practical Transposition Exercises for the Aspiring Trumpeter/Band Director:

Exercises based on Holst 1st & 2nd Suites for Band:

http://www.wwjdo.com/_sites/sheetmusic/transpostionforedmajors.pdf


As adjunct trumpet faculty at The Hartt school for over 30 years I taught my share of both performance majors and music education majors. The majority of these ed majors were looking forward to a career as band directors at the high school or middle school level.

I created these practical assignments with the intent of sharpening their transposition skills. I used two jewels of the concert band repertoire by Gustav Holst: the “1st Suite in Eb for Military Band” and the “2nd Suite in F for Military Band” as material. I required each student to either purchase the score or to check it out of the music library.

I outlined approximately 25 studies on each suite and would usually assign several per lesson; they are all short licks. I would ask my students to read from the score and to play the licks quickly & confidently. Just pick up the horn and rip off the lick, show the band how it’s done!

The idea behind this book started with my own experience as a student in a band conducted by a very good trumpeter/band director.

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I graduated high school in 1976, in a northern suburb of Los Angeles. In those years the band programs were particularly strong. My high school band director, Charles “Chuck” Davidson, besides being our band director, was an accomplished trumpet player.

When Mr. Davidson conducted our band he would have a trumpet next to the stand which he would pick up to great effect. Pointing his bell at the offending party he would say something like: “no trombones, it goes like this” and then he would play their lick perfectly. Or: “Flutes, I said staccato! Play it like this. He would then rip off their lick, in the proper octave for a trumpet, like it was nothing, .

As a student sitting in the band you were immediately impressed with the fact that he could play everyones licks at any time, like it was nothing. That kind of ability commands a lot of respect!

As I look back on it now I realize that, in practical terms, Mr. Davidson gave the impression that he was “able to play everyone’s part” simply because HE COULD TRANSPOSE!

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As a trumpet player, transposition always took up a great deal of time in my practice routine. It was stressed in my musical education (as a pupil of two former Vacchiano students), and I always appreciated how much more confident as a player it made me feel. I knew I could easily switch to different keyed trumpets as needed which could potentially make your job monumentally easier (or more thorny)! I really felt that it improved my sight reading and general musicianship, further giving me confidence as a player.

So naturally, I stressed transposition in my own teaching, and when I started doing music notation work I created exercises for my students that I eventually posted on the website of the University of Hartford. Early on in my notation work I created “Transposition Studies.” These were simple melodies with indications for transposition:

http://bit.ly/2Mv2HuP

I also had an idea for a book on technical exercises in all keys:

http://bit.ly/2KaNfCv

Finally I created a “primer” that focused on one transposition (Trumpet in A on a C Trumpet) Utilizing reading exercises soprano clef:

http://bit.ly/2MBrH3T

I also copied and adapted a few exercises from “The Orchestra Trumpeter - “School of Transposition” by the great German trumpeter Richard Stegmann (Former Principal Trumpet of the Berlin Philharmonic):

Stegmann #29

http://goo.gl/YXiOb

Stegmann #48

http://goo.gl/17GcC

Stegmann Carmen Etude

http://goo.gl/M0W5W

Stegmann #32 Thinking in Keys

http://goo.gl/ztTEJ

Additionally I created this web page that uses the vocalises of Giuseppe Concone with transposed accompaniments.

http://www.wwjdo.com/concone/
_________________
In his retirement he had become that most dreaded of former athletes, the one who always remembered how much harder it was in his day "when ships were made of wood and men were made of steel."
Samuel Abt on Eddy Merx

[Dayton]

So much great material here! Thank you for sharing it with us!

[MalinTrumpet]

Jay:
You know my thoughts about this.
BRAVO!
LCM

[Didymus]

Hello Prof. Lichtmann,

Can you please repost the links to the Practical Transposition Exercises? The original links do not seem to work.
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Enjoy the journey.

[Jay Lichtmann]

Practical Transposition Exercises for the Aspiring
Trumpeter/Band Director:

http://www.wwjdo.com/_sites/sheetmusic/transpostionforedmajors.pdf

Here are both pages combined.
_________________
In his retirement he had become that most dreaded of former athletes, the one who always remembered how much harder it was in his day "when ships were made of wood and men were made of steel."
Samuel Abt on Eddy Merx

[Didymus]