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June 09, 2005
Mouthpiece Buzzing
One of the most important exercises for any trumpet player is to buzz. Buzzing is simply playing the mouthpiece only while not inserted in the trumpet. Buzzing improves playing in a number of ways. The first way is that there is no back pressure when playing since there is no trumpet being blown into. This forces the player to get in the habit of using more air to maintain tone - a habit that will greatly improve playing.
Perhaps more important, buzzing helps improve intonation by forcing the player to really find the right note on the mouthpiece without the help of the trumpet. For example, a player may be playing a note considerably off pitch into the mouthpiece, but when the vibrations enter the trumpet, the trumpet is able to take the off-pitch input and translate it into the correct note. Not a good sounding note, but the right note nonetheless. Beginning students are often completely unaware that they are far off pitch. If, while the player was blowing, the trumpet could be removed from the mouthpiece and the player was left buzzing only, the difference in pitch would be noticed immediately.
So, practice buzzing music before picking up the trumpet. Get the first pitch right with the horn as a starting point, then buzz the music, working hard to play each note accurately on the mouthpiece. Then add the trumpet. Your sound will be improved immediately. Incorporate buzzing into your daily practice sessions.
There's an interesting device that allows you to keep your mouthpiece on your horn while buzzing. One advantage to this is that you can also finger the valves while buzzing.
Posted by Damian at June 9, 2005 10:10 AM
