Looking for an endurance-building practice routine

[Blackquill]

Endurance is one of my weakest areas, so I thought I'd ask what (and how) to practice for the next month to build (specifically) endurance. (no rehearsals or gigs until next month)

I know practicing soft Clarke exercises is one good thing to do. Would it be beneficial if I did that for 30 minutes a day for the next 30 days? (I only practice about two hours a week normally, so this would be a bit of an upgrade in terms of time) Any specific tips? Or are there other things I could try doing?

Lately I've been practicing Mystery to Mastery (Gold Medal Stage), Iron's lip slurs, long tones, and single tonguing scales in the Arban's book. I'm a college-level player. I've practiced Clarke stuff in the past, but not lately. I'd prefer not to buy a new method book... well, if I did buy one, I'd have to plan on using it beyond these 30 days, of course.
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Trumpet is for extroverts only... no, wait... Trumpet is also for introverts who need an avenue for extrovertism!

[spitvalve]

I started doing a lot more soft practice in my playing a couple of months ago. I've also used my practice mute (Stomvi UpMute) to work on optimizing my air flow, and not spending so much time working on range.

The result is that I survived my grueling annual church Christmas gig last night in better shape than I've finished in the last 25 years--and that included playing thirty minutes worth of Christmas carol preludes with no rests, an orchestral feature, a long flugelhorn/piano duet, and of course, finishing with the Hallelujah Chorus on piccolo. For the first time in many years I still had chops left at the end of the night. Usually I'm fried during the half-hour prelude and it's all I can do to hang on for the rest of the program. Last night I felt better prepared--and this was after practicing with a canker sore on the inside of my lower lip for three days before the gig.

The key to endurance, in my opinion, is softer practice for longer sessions (resting as long as you play) and only a small portion of practice dedicated to high range and chop gymnastics.
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Bryan Fields
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1991 Bach LR180 ML 37S
1999 Getzen Eterna 700S
1977 Getzen Eterna 895S Flugelhorn
1969 Getzen Capri cornet
1995 UMI Benge 4PSP piccolo trumpet
Warburton and Stomvi Flex mouthpieces

[Doug Elliott]

Endurance training on the horn is just like any endurance training... Easy and continuous for a long time straight. All easy, nothing strenuous in any way. Take a long rest AFTER it, not during. In fact, it's OK if that's the only playing you do for the day. Do it every day for at least two weeks, maybe a month.

[Dayton]

Bill Knevitt's "5 Ways to Build Ultra Endurance on Trumpet" is worth considering. It has daily routines built around five categories of exercises. I have found the fifth category, which he calls the "Sigmund Hering Routine", to be particularly useful.

You can find it here:
https://qpress.ca/product/5-ways-build-ultra-endurance-trumpet/

[abontrumpet]

[Billy B]

Two hours per week will get you nowhere.

Try two hours per day.
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Bill Bergren

[jhatpro]

Go to qpress.ca and download a copy of Paul Baron's "Trumpet Voluntarily."
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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

[zaferis]

Dig up the free Marine Corps Band Sousa marches, 1st/Solo Cornet parts.. turn a metronome on, go.. all repeats, don't stop.. if you make it through one, turn the page to the next.. do it again.

Train like an athlete. You can't have max days every day. Build a cycle of effort days - 3-7 days.. Give your muscles time to recover and build

And short more frequent sessions vs. one long one during a day can be more productive. 20-30 minutes warm-up/drill work, break, 20-30 minute technical session (scales, Clarke, tonging, agility, range.. etc), break, 20-30 minute solo. etude, excerpt session.. as a minimum this would be a killer productive plan.
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Freelance Performer/Educator
Adjunct Professor
Bach Trumpet Endorsing Artist
Retired Air Force Bandsman

[Rapier232]

Consider the Compression Training System, by Larry Merrigliano (not sure on that spelling). It’s a device just to exercise the embouchure muscles. It’s silent and can be used anywhere. It works.
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"Nearly as good as I need to be. Not nearly as good as I want to be".

Smith-Watkins Bb
Will Spencer Bb
Eclipse Flugel
Smith Watkins K2 Cornet
JP152 C Trumpet
Besson Bugle

[Craig Swartz]

IMO, too many of us place more emphasis on training the embouchure area in our quest for "endurance" than we do on the breathing apparatus. Again, IMO, if we cannot take a large part of our effort from the small muscles of the embouchure area and place them on the larger and more used muscles that go into breathing, both inhaling and exhaling, we are neglecting a major component in playing.

As an illustration, years ago as a HS band instructor, it became obvious that students involved in DCI came back with much better playing concepts and ease in overall playing than the students who were just doing the normally-expected practice (or not...). Then, years later, in the college studio, I was fortunate to work with a fellow staff member from Japan who had grown up in one of those band groups there where students enter at age 9 or so. (If you haven't seen Youtubes of these "Japanese Elementary Band Competitions", take the time to watch a few. She had a wonderful sound and great endurance regardless of how much time she was able to practice on her own, week to week.

Anyway, the one thing that was evident in both of these extremes is the emphasis placed on proper breathing throughout their studies. Not just spoken about, but actual, long and focussed exercise. As one gains in the capacity to breathe as is necessary to perform well on a wind instrument, everything becomes easier and more efficient, and the tone will reflect this, as will the ability to play longer, higher, louder, softer, etc.

Perhaps a trip to "The Brass Gym" with Pat Sheridan and Sam Pilafian
( https://patricksheridan.com/products/the-brass-gym ) will help out. Good luck with your endeavors.

[JWG]

I add two further ideas to the wonderful suggestions above:

1. Use Warburton's P.E.T.E. opposite of your practice sessions (for example, if you rehearse or practice in the evenings, workout on the P.E.T.E. in the mornings). I will often use a P.E.T.E. while working at my computer and while watching TV and it does a great job of strengthening the embouchure muscles that control one's aperture to increase range and endurance.

2. Purchase a mouthpiece identical to your normal mouthpiece but with a much larger throat and practice your fundamental exercises upon it. This will also strengthen the foundational aperture muscles of your embouchure like a P.E.T.E. but will to train you to better control your breath/wind as you blow through a mouthpiece with far less resistance. Most trumpet players will initially expel their breath exceedingly fast when using a large throat mouthpiece, like when trying to play a trombone or tuba. However, just like low brass players, high brass players can learn to withhold their wind and control their breath to play more and more measures on a single breath like Herbert Clarke exercises recommend.

In addition to strengthening one's embouchure muscles to gain endurance, one needs to accept the physics concept that a trumpet already contains all the air molecules it needs to start and sustain a standing wave and make a sound. Your trumpet neither contains a vacuum nor meaningfully expands and contracts like a ballon to alter its air volume. A trumpet merely lacks a pair of lips to initiate a standing wave within the air inside it and then vibrate sympathetically with that standing wave on each pitch/tone to sustain each tone. Thinking about the physics of the trumpet in this way has helped me master the skill of endurance when needed.
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Bach 183S (undersprung valves & straight taper pipe) with 1.5 Flip Oakes XF

[kalijah]

[JayKosta]

[Rapier232]

[abontrumpet]

Look. There's a lot of stuff out there, but ultimately things like PETE, CTS, etc., are for those that are already practicing and dialed in and are looking for that edge or next 1%. You're not there yet.

You rightly identified that practicing 2 hours a week isn't going to improve your endurance. To get better at running, runners run. Trumpeters should trumpet. Easy miles, continuous. Just like many are saying.

[Rapier232]

[stuartissimo]

For myself, the biggest increase in endurance came not from heavy and long practice, but from learning to play more efficiently. Practicing a lot (and playing fundamentals for that matter) only started to have benefits after I learned to play with a good technique. Before that, I could spend practicing as long as I liked and only get frustration in return.

It also helps to really understand what a specific exercise is supposed to achieve, and how to play it properly (and if you do, the specific variant matters less). Just playing a line of notes over and over without paying attention to the how and why's isn't going to do much either. If you have a teacher, they will likely be able to help you with that.

Work smarter, not harder.

N.B. That goes for any training apparatus too; unless you understand your own embouchure and how the apparatus is supposed to be use in order to achieve certain benefits, just blowing into it every so often isn't gonna do much, if anything at all.
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1975 Olds Recording trumpet
1997 Getzen 700SP trumpet
1955 Olds Super cornet
1939 Buescher 280 flugelhorn
AR Resonance mouthpieces

[abontrumpet]

[stuartissimo]

[abontrumpet]