Playing the Trumpet

Here's our guide to playing the trumpet. It is suited best for those beginning to play. This guide will get you started on the basic principles of trumpet playing.

Playing the trumpet is exciting to learn! Remember you are just starting out so your muscles will get tired. It's better to practice a little every day than a lot once or twice a week. Remember to rest when you feel your chops tired. As a general rule, rest twice as much as you play and avoid using excessive mouth pressure.

Left Hand

• Thumb on the 1st valve slide (most trumpets have a hook for the thumb)
• Index and middle finger wrap around the 3rd valve casing
• Ring finger in the 3rd valve slide ring
• Pinky under 3rd valve slide (or wherever is comfortable)

Right hand

• Thumb rests between 1st and 2nd valve slide(do not hook your thumb under the lead pipe)
• Index, Middle, and Ring finger rest on the valves (finger buttons)
• pink resting on top of the hook
• Do not hook your pinky inside the ring. This can cause valve damage from exessive and uneven pressure when pushing the valves down.

It's usually recommended to have as much lower lip as the upper one in the mouthpiece. There are individual differences in teeth, lips and skull so place the mouthpiece to the most comfortable and natural spot for you. If the mouthpiece is significantly more on either lip, it's recommended to adjust it a little bit more center. Sometimes it's advised to have a little more upper than lower lip in the mouthpiece (based on the idea that the mouthpiece "sits" on the lower lip so there is minimum pressure applied to the upper lip, allowing it to vibrate more freely).

Because everybody has individual teeth and lip shape, there are a number of embouchures developed. None of them are right or wrong, you'll have to find the way that feels best for you. There are some general rules though that apply to most of them.

You must keep the corners of your mouth firm so the air won't leak from there. When going up, it's generally a better idea to push the lips a bit more center than to stretch them. Stretching will thinner the lip tissue which will expose it to damage and will make the sound thinner. In the most used embochure (Farkas), you should keep the lips even (pushing your jaw out a bit helps to get teeth more in the same level) but some embouchures require rolling/curling the lips in (Stevens) or out (Maggio) but they shouldn't overlap. You can find a more comprehensive list of embouchures from here with more specific explanations. When you get a decent sound from the instrument, a good way to get familiar with the instrument is to play long tones. That way your lips and facial muscles (embouchure, "chops") get used to the vibration and learn how to get the desired note. You can use the fingering chart below for guidance.

There are a few things you should do regularly to maintain a well working intstrument. To keep all of the valves moving smoothly, it is important to put valve oil on them. Similarly, you can put slide grease on your slides to keep them from getting stuck. Both of these things should be done regularly to keep your instrument in great condition.

Another thing that is important for keeping your instrument maintained is cleaning the instrument. You can give your trumpet a bath in mild soap and water (make sure you take out the valves and the slides before you submerge the instrument). And use a cleaning brush to clean out the inside of the pipes. Yamaha has helpful guides on weekly cleaning and monthly cleaning of your instrument.