Juggling multiple instruments?

[ackmondual]

For those of you who play multiple instruments, any experiences and tips to share?

I'm playing euphonium as my primary instrument, but self learning flute since I have a hand-me-down instrument. I was thinking buying a trumpet since that's what I started off on, but would like to hear more and what instruments they deal with at the same time.

I'm not a professional. I'm playing mostly for fun, but also that when community band resumes, it makes getting back into that all the more smoothly.

[SMrtn]

Best thing I can say is good luck with it. It's tough being a multi-instrumentalist. You cannot serve two (or more) masters, and instrument learning is a hard taskmaster as you well know.
I play - or attempt to play - three instruments, a saxophone, trumpet, and violin. I was classically trained with violin as a youngster, and play competently on that instrument. Took up saxophone as self taught, and almost competent, and then I met senor trumpet. And that was the end of me. I haven't picked up my violin for many months, and almost the same with sax.
You may not be as I am, but once you become obsessed with one over another, you won't have time for the others. Ahh well, I'm resigned to it.

[THE BD]

If you want to do it, go for it! I regularly play both sax and trumpet, as well as other woodwinds and brass. I have gigs in a few bands where I go from one to the other in the same gig.

Important thing to remember is to give each instrument the respect and attention it needs and deserves with dedicated practice time for each instrument.
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Martin D Williams

Yeah, I did that!

[Brassnose]

I took up bass trumpet a few years ago and it has become my go to instrument. Just love it. And on top of that, playing the bass trumpet really helps my trumpet playing. I typically practice most on the bass trumpet and then switch to flugel or trumpet. Almost ready to switch within a gig ...

If I had the time I’d pick up tuba and electric bass (yeah, I know I should just use the time to practice ).
_________________
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

[kehaulani]

I would advise treating each instrument as a stand-alone. Don't ty to look for parallels between instruments, i.e. playing a large trumpet mouthpiece so then playing a large sax mouthpiece. Play whatever setup works on a given instrument, in and of itself.

Keep in mind that some instruments do one thing easier than on another instrument. Don't be deluded that this is easy and that is hard. All instruments have combinations of that. IMO they all have challenges and will catch up with you sooner or later.

Covering the range of a piano is simple while the same thing on trumpet is difficult. Playing with three fingers on trumpet is easy compared to playing with ten fingers on piano.

Take it with some patience and enjoyment. Good luck.

(I have played French Horn, Trumpet, Soprano. Alto and Tenor saxes and Flute, professionally.)
_________________
"If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird

Yamaha 8310Z Bobby Shew trumpet
Benge 3X Trumpet
Benge 3X Cornet
Adams F-1 Flghn

[delano]

[TrumpetMD]

It works for some, it doesn't work for other. I'm primarily a trumpet player, and double on piano. I have regular gigs on both trumpet and piano in a jazz duo/trio format. For me, a second instrument works out well. I alternate between the two during my daily practice (30 minutes on each, back and forth). I suppose it also simplifies things that I have the same playing goals on both instruments (playing jazz in duo/trio formats).

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.

[kehaulani]

[Didymus]

I started my music journey on recorder and I can still play it. I was one of the strange kids who went to the library and borrowed recordings of professional recorder players in historically informed ensembles, mostly so I could hear how the instrument was supposed to sound.

I played horn in junior high and high school. I never did like it as much as playing the trumpet, except for the challenge of hand-stopping. I never did quite get the right touch for that particular skill, but I enjoyed trying. I don't own a horn and I have not touched one since 10th grade.

During my very long time off the trumpet I learned how to play the piano. I'm not performance-quality in my playing, at least for the style of music I originally aspired to play. One thing I immediately noticed was that the piano had a much more forgiving learning curve that the trumpet, at least for me. IIRC, it took me several weeks to learn how to make a simple song sound decent on the trumpet, while I was making listenable music with the piano within 2 days. It's also much easier to maintain what skill I have at piano. At most I practice 15-30 minutes every other day and maybe I can get in a solid hour on Sundays.

My bucket list of instruments to try to learn to play includes bassoon, ondes Martenot, hurdy-gurdy, musette de cour, and baroque cornetto. I'm told that the cornetto has a fingering scheme which is very similar to the recorder. And yes, there are affordable versions of all those instruments available in this day and age. Except for the bassoon. Incredibly, I know where to get a better deal on an ondes than a quality bassoon. I kid not about that. The catch is that I may have to wait up to 2 years for the ondes to be made for me, unless I find an earlier version of the maker's instrument on an auction site like reverb.com.
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Enjoy the journey.

[dershem]

Each instrument has something different to teach you. From trumpet, I get strength, because you can't play without chops. Trombone gives me ears, because it's so easy to be off-pitch - you have to always listen actively. Tuba gives me air power, because filling the horn with air (*and making it resonate - not pushing it through) requires a steady air stream. Horn gives me focus, because the partials are so close together you have to be on top of it mentally to make it work. Picc gives me headaches.
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BKA! Mic Gillette was my mentor and friend.
Marcinkiewicz Mic G. trumpet, Custom Marcinkiewicz mpc. (Among others)
Marcinkiewicz Rembrandt flugel, Benge 8Z cornet, King 2B, Bach 36, Benge 190, Getzen 3062... many more. All Marc. mouthpieces.

[JensenW]

I also play multiple instruments. I play the organ for pleasure, and of course perform for the wife. I am studying electrical guitar for two years now. The guitar is a beguiling instrument, seemingly simple, and incredibly complicated. There are a lot of guitar players, few real masters. And of course, I am trying to make a comeback with the trumpet.

I am retired, so have time to devote to practicing two instruments. That is the main issue with multiples is practice time. I practice guitar for between one and two hours a day. Trumpet practice time is limited by my endurance. But as that increases, I suspect the time for trumpet will also end up being between one and two hours as well. Especially for trumpet, this time is usually broken into twenty minute periods separated by an hour or so.
_________________
Wade
Yamaha YTR 737

The goal is to be a better trumpeter today than I was yesterday.

[Brassnose]

I totally agree with dershem. Bass trumpet playing taught me more about listening and intonation in the last three years than all the trumpet years before. So, quite similar to dershems trombone example. I don’t play picc but still get headaches sometimes
_________________
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

[delano]

[etc-etc]

[kehaulani]

This about fingering.

You could have as gnarly a finger combination to play on trumpet as the same on piano but double the fingers. Same finger combination X 2. That would make it doubly hard for me.
_________________
"If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird

Yamaha 8310Z Bobby Shew trumpet
Benge 3X Trumpet
Benge 3X Cornet
Adams F-1 Flghn

[deleted_user_02066fd]

Many, many years ago when I was taking lessons with Carmine Caruso, he told me that flute was a good double for a trumpet player. As the years went on and I took flute for my mus ed degree I began to play it rather well. I performed in public several times on flute over the years. I enjoyed it and when I was still playing trumpet regularly it didn't interfere with my trumpet playing. I did end up selling it at a pawn shop along with several other instruments when I retired from teaching!

[theslawdawg]

I have played both trumpet and guitar continuously for over 35 years, and on gigs with both during many of those years.

My only tip is to pick just one instrument you want to be a gear junkie with.
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My go-to Trumpet and Flugel: Thane.
Greg Black MPs

[delano]

Mr. K, the problem is sure not your counting.

[cbtj51]

I played Euphonium and Trumpet for many years. Euphonium developed my use of air and had a positive effect on my trumpet playing. Transitioning from one to the other made me focus on embouchure development and seemed to help on both ends of my range. The only caveat that I found was the necessity to give somewhat equal playing time to keep both working well.

Mike
_________________
'71 LA Benge 5X Bb
'72 LA Benge D/Eb
'76 Bach CL 229/25A C
‘92 Bach 37 Bb
'98 Getzen 895S Flugelhorn
'00 Bach 184 Cornet
'02 Yamaha 8335RGS
'16 Bach NY 7
'16 XO 1700RS Piccolo
Reeves 41 Rimmed Mouthpieces

[etc-etc]

I found out that playing trumpet develops your breathing technique much further than playing saxophone. With 10+ years of trumpet, saxophone is much easier to double on.