Texas Bandmasters Association
Bandmasters Review • December 2012
30
I have found that we can play about a fourth higher
at that point where the pressure reducer kicks in. If we
press at middle G, for example, we can’t seem to play
any higher than the C above. If we can delay pressing
to the G on top of the staff, we are limited to the high
C. The problem is that if we start pressing on the G,
every note above it is basically being played with a
tourniquet. The blood supply to the embouchure is
greatly reduced and it is as if the muscles are being
killed. Another benefit of the pressure reducer is that
if we do press as we go up from F to G, it encourages
us to release the pressure when we descend. We often
continue to press. This is why most trumpet players
have a permanent ring on their embouchures.
I teach students that there are four basic questions
they need to ask themselves if they want to improve.
1. Do they practice every day? 2. How much do they
practice? 3. What do they practice? 4. How do they
practice? The most important question is always the
first that they can’t answer correctly. Hopefully, with
some encouragement, we can get students to focus on
the quality of their practice.
There are many other triggers too numerous to
discuss in this short article. As teachers, our job is
to solve problems and find ways to help the student
overcome their limitations. How we effectively teach
students to train for a measured and accurate response
as opposed to a primal reaction is the key to success.
Choosing the right trigger for the student can make all
the difference in the world.
Trumpet Fundamentals
Will Strieder is Professor of Music at Texas Tech University. He studied at Northwestern University, where he received the Masters
of Music degree in Trumpet Performance and was winner of the Northwestern Concerto Competition. He also studied at the University
of Houston, where he received the Bachelor of Music in Music Education. He is principal trumpet of the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra
as well as second trumpet of the Houston Ballet Orchestra. Mr. Strieder performs at Texas Tech with the Faculty Brass Quintet and also
conducts the Trumpet Choir. He is active as a soloist and chamber musician throughout the United States, Mexico, Europe and China. He
has performed with groups such as the Houston Symphony, Houston Grand Opera, Santa Fe Pro Musica, Clear Lake Symphony, Texas
Opera Theater, Society for the Performing Arts in Houston, and the Millar Brass Ensemble. He has recorded
Incantations for Trumpet and
Piano, Rhapsody
for solo trumpet and harp, and Trio Italiano by Mary Jeanne van Appledorn with the Opus One recording label. Also, Mr.
Strieder recorded Fisher Tull’s
Concerto for Trumpet
with the Nurnberg Symphony Orchestra in Nurnberg, Germany on Albany Records.
Mr. Strieder has recently appeared twice as a soloist with UADY Chamber Orchestra of Merida, Mexico. His students have had success in the
education and performance felds. The trumpet studio at Texas Tech has attracted talented students from throughout the United States. These
students have been accepted into prestigious music festivals and graduate programs nationwide. In addition, many of his former students are
successful teachers and performers.
Special thanks to Mr. Strieder’s sons Sean and Noah for demonstrating their dad’s teaching techniques in the photos with this article.