In This Lesson You Will Learn:
- How to Improve Your Playing Endurance – Without the Burn!
- What You Need To Know About Range Development.
- The #1 Practice That Holds Players Back.
- The Two “F-Words” of Skill Aquisition.
- How to Define a Plan for Progressively Overloading Your Comfortable Playing Range.
Improving Embouchure Endurance
Without further delay, the #1 practice strategy that holds back players’ embouchure and playing endurance is:
(drum roll)
*BANG!*
Playing too much, too soon, and too hard.
OK, maybe that’s more like three things, but the point it that, when it comes to your embouchure, “pushing the envelope” is most often an ill-fated attempt – especially in the beginning. While slowly and systematically challenging the musculature of the embouchure is helpful, when it comes to increasing your endurance, a focus on improving your efficiency can be much more productive at the outset.
This is for two reasons:
First, becoming a more efficient trumpet player means that trumpet playing becomes easier. And the easier trumpet playing becomes, the greater your endurance will be with the chops you already have.
Secondly, by virtue of improving your basic playing mechanics and technique through the Practice Rotation, the embouchure will naturally strengthen as your technique develops.
The real task in practice then is not to constantly try and increase the embouchure’s strength threshold, but rather to ensure your time on the horn is helping you learn to play more efficiently.
Do you remember what you’ve learned so far about practicing to develop good playing habits? You know, working from the Primary Practice Space, setting your horn down a lot, ironing out your mechanics, taking it slow and steady from a place of comfort, etc?
Well, “good habits,” can be thought of as the seeds that grow “efficiency.” And once your habits are on track, efficiency happens. It’s just what the brain does.
So before going on, take a moment to acknowledge the fact that you are doing a great job.
Great job! 😀
The Two F-Words of Skill Aquisition
Are:
Fresh and Frequent practice.
For the most part, with the Daily, Practice Rotation, and setting the horn down like it’s your job, you’re already covering both of these F-words through your current Practice Plan.
Because of this, please take a moment to acknowledge the fact that you’re doing a great job.
Great job! 😀
While you can keep moving forward with your current plan to steady gains, if you want even greater leverage out of the two F-words of skill acquisition you can, but do not have to, break your practicing into smaller chunks throughout the day. Again, this is not necessary, but if you’re already comfortable practicing the horn a bit each day, any additional practicing will be a helpful bonus.
Another way to maintain the “freshness” of your embouchure is to stay aware of the embouchure muscles, and as best you can stave off excess fatigue by taking breaks before you get tired. By leaving some in the tank for the next practice session you’re not only managing embouchure fatigue, you’re also growing a strong kinesthetic sense, or “feel” for playing. With practice, you will learn how it feels to play easily, and begin to recreate that feeling each time you pick up the horn.
One more general point to keep in mind, especially if you perform with an ensemble, is to keep your playing intensity and volume to about 80-85% of what you’re capable of. Playing it a little safer on a rehearsal or gig will not only help you make it to the end, it also helps prevent what can be felt as a “trumpet hangover” the next day. If you do play a bit too hard and are feeling it the nest day, don’t freak out. Just take it easy for a few days until you feel fresh again.
Improving Range
If you’re not already obsessed with high notes, there will come a time when you want to improve your range, and doing this can be an easy, logical process – so long as you are not in a rush.
First of all, range is another one of those things that naturally develops as a result of improving your playing efficiency. Based on all of the aforementioned specifics of your Practice Plan (Daily, Rotation, setting horn down, slow and steady, etc), you’re already well on your way.
Because of this, please take a moment to acknowledge the fact that you are doing a great job!
Great job!!! 😀
Now beyond the sheer brilliance of the Primary Practice Space, Daily and Practice Rotation, you can take additional steps to ensure your range keeps improving over time. To do that, all you have to do is apply the idea of progressive overload to slowly and systematically increasing the comfortable playing range you regularly practice.
Say you’ve selected the Flexus lip slurs below as a part of your Practice Rotation. Based on the principles of ease and comfort, you decided to perform the lip slur to the top top space E in the staff as the highest pitch in your lip slur routine.
To continually improve your playing range all you have to do is take an exercise from your Practice Plan and commit to doing it slightly higher from that point on. Using the lip slurs as an example, after practicing to the top space E for, say, three or four months, it becomes fairly comfortable and consistent in that register. Once you feel comfortable you can add a slur that touches up to G on top of the staff and keep that going for a few months (or longer) before adding a higher tone.
Slow And Steady
Because many limiting habits come from pushing things like range, volume and endurance before the embouchure is ready, when progressively overloading your range you want to be especially conservative. Always keep in mind that we are after good, solid, playing habits that serve us in the long-term!
Fortunately, your Practice Plan is already set up in a way to accomplish this. Playing from the Primary Practice Space, staying Bound By The Sound, and setting your horn down like there’s no tomorrow keeps you on track and widening your technique “sweet spot.”
Because of this, please take a moment to acknowledge the fact that you’re doing a great job!
Great job! 😀
Before moving on to the final lesson, let’s define a plan for progressively overloading your comfortable playing range. The following video will guide you through just that.
Suggestions For Progressively Overloading Range:
When It’s All Coming Together ->
How Are You Using the Concept of Progressive Overload to Build Range and Endurance? Please Share with the Comeback Community Below!