Down to the Basement - Up to the Attic

Blowing your way around the horn

  

These are basic blowing routines.  Descending in to the low register to get the big, round, full, free,blow established - then ascending to the upper reaches by taking that vitalized wind delivery and putting an upper register focus and spin on it.  (Click here for a short description of Air Flow and Focus.)

  

*Chrome Figs Down - pdf

*Listen - mp3

More 'Basement/Attic' routines will follow.  Until they do, you can make up your own based on these patterns.  Here is another way to cover register, blowing your way around the horn:

Diatonic Fluency

Getting around in keys

*IV-I-V-I Progression       *Listen - mp3

Flexibility

I like to think of these as blowing patterns, not lip exercises.

We play a wind instrument, not a lip instrument!

Develop a performance repertoire of etudes - meaning those that you have worked up to performance proficiency.  Use these to make a balanced 15-minute routine.  The standard 'etue canon' would be Rochut, Kopprasch, Blazhevich, and J.J. Johnson.  Work to include the etudes of Tomy Pederson, Bozza, Maxted, and others.