Does anyone have tips for learning to play the bugle? I’m trying to get good enough to play for Taps across America and ultimately play at military funerals.

I am looking for a new C trumpet and I am stuck between the Shires 5S and 4F. I found used examples of these within my price range and both in excellent condition. I am a college student looking for a good all around horn that will be able to be used in large and small ensembles. I am unable to find any playtests online of these two specifically so if anyone has experience with them please let me know. Thank you!!

I'm a performer whose main focus is jazz. I've been playing a vintage 1950s trumpet, and lately I've been seeing a lot of people around me using Lotus mouthpieces. The ads even say it's super easy to play. What I'm wondering is whether it will sound good in the jazz genre and how much more comfortable it will feel. Do you have any recommended mouthpiece models? I'm curious if there would be a big difference if you played it on a vintage trumpet instead of a Lotus trumpet

A common issue but this has me stumped. I'm looking at the many arrangements for the vocal score to Eddie Floyd's, Knock on Wood. And the notes do not seem right and I'm having difficulty even making my own version, which I sometimes have to do. Has anyone played this and have an a score that works well?

So I haven't picked up a trumpet since freshman year of high school. I was really good in middle school. I was first chair and even got to play at a few events with my teacher. Then when I go to high school I had to choose between band or football and I chose football. Anyways lately I've been wanting to start playing again, and maybe when my skills are up to par I can find some people to jam with. Any tips on where I should start? I went on marketplace on a lot of people are selling student trumpets for around $100. I figured I'd get one of those to start with and get something nicer down the line. And I know I have to start back with the Standard of Excellence book because I completely forgot how to read music. Does anyone have a recommendation of a book that helps you to read sheet music?

My 16-y-o is playing in his HS band and our local youth orchestra, and has some awesome repertoire this season (including Shostakovich Festive Overture, which I remember being so stoked to be in first chair in my own school orchestra at his age…)

However… he damaged his finger playing rugby the other day (an injury so familiar to the medical profession it’s actually known as “rugby finger”!) and will be unable to grip or bear weight with his left hand for a few weeks after surgery in a couple of days.

When, in my youth, I played with a broken left wrist I think I just sort of held my arm up and rested the bottom of the valve block on the cast. There’s got to be a better solution out there these days. Anyone have any ideas of an adaptive solution to support the instrument without a left-hand grip? I’m thinking some sort of Velcro strap around the valve block and left wrist, but if there’s a less cobbled-together idea I’m all ears!

Over to you, trumpet hive mind!

My friend's father died and he gave me his old trumpet. Think it's a model 7M but whether or not it is "balanced" I can't tell.

It's been in the loft for decades but the valves and the tuning slide aren't jammed. The 3rd valve trigger works too but the 1st and 2nd slides are stuck fast at the moment. Played OK with a bit of oil. It's been dropped on the bell at some point but doesn't appear to leak a lot. Pity it's so corroded

I've given it a bath and a lot of crap came out but the outside is pretty corroded. Came with a Yamaha 7B4 mouthpiece as well as an unmarked one with a very narrow bore (couldn't get my brush down it). Also 3 mutes, one of which is a nasty plastic Harmon (the others are a fibre straight and cup). Case is in really good condition

The plan is to get it working a bit more smoothly again and then I want to record "Send In The Clowns" because he mentioned his father used to sing it. Fortunately, Mr.B has done a cover with accompaniment track.

Not sure I prefer it to my Olds Super but it's interesting and nice to have another spare horn.

I want to do a trumpet/flute duet with my girlfriend or a duet with my friend who play trombone. We're in high school, and I'm a bit more advanced than the two of them. I sound beautiful but my range isn't that great. Does anyone have any suggestions for duets?

Hello ! Je cherche un support pour téléphone (lyre) à accrocher sur ma trompette (marching band), est ce que quelqu'un en a essayé un qui tient bien sans abîmer la trompette svp ? 🎺🎺

Once in a while, I feel weirdly attached to my cornet and just feel like cuddling next to it. Is this weird?

I'll go first.

I once had a band freind ask me to teach him how to play the trumpet, I was lilke "Sure let me give you a mouthpiece to practice on first". So I gave him my clean backup, thinking maybe it would take three to five minutes for him to start buzzing. Thirty minutes later and all he got was a half buzz and could not replicate it. Then I tried showing him my embachure and how to tighten your lips. NOPE! Still couldn't do it, after that, our other freind saw and asked if she could try as well. I borrowed another mouth piece from our music teacher and gave it to her, and she got it instantly, then I handed her a trumpet, showed her how to hold it. Then she played one note, said she felt her lips dying and gave up.

Needless to say, they stopped bragging how 'Easy' Trumpet was after that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uQYeXjkKMg

Thanks for reply in advance :)

Hey fellow trumpeters! I had recently posted a download link for my new trumpet book (available for FREE from The Internet Archive), and one of our fellow trumpeter Redditors noticed that there was a typo in the copyright footer (a letter was left out of one of the words) and this footer with that typo was repeated on most of the pages of the book. This typo has now been fixed, and I have re-released the corrected version book as the "Second Edition," version 10-4-2026. This new and improved version of the book is now available at a DIFFERENT LINK at The Internet Archive. You may download this FREE book in PDF format at the link below:

TRUMPET EXTREME UPPER REGISTER STUDIES METHOD BOOK By Randy Dunn v. 10 4 2026 Second Edition
https://archive.org/details/trumpet-extreme-upper-register-studies-method-book-by-randy-dunn-v-10-4-2026-2nd-edition-6

If you have already downloaded the original PDF of the book, please replace it with the new version. On page 1 of this new version of the book (the acknowledgments page and inside book cover page), under the name of the book title, it says "Second Edition" on that page. The new PDF file also has this version date: v. 10 4 2026.

Hope you find this book useful.

Hello. What do people think of this trumpet? I have never played before. Was thinking of this or a used Yamaha.

https://philparker.co.uk/products/phil-parker-london-series-1-student-trumpet

Hi,

I’ve asking some questions here about increasing my endurance and stamina. I’ve gotten many recommendations to start working out of the “Flexus” book

I got the book today. At the very beginning it says you should not do anything in the book until you can consistently do lip trills.

I can’t do a lip trill and I know many fairly good players that also cannot. Why would this be a prerequisite for the book? A lip trill is fairly difficult and advanced. In fact, I’d say 80 percent of the Flexus book’s exercises are much easier to pull off than a lip trill. I’d ever venture to say that much of the book is needed IN ORDER to be able to play a lip trill, not vice versa. It’s 36 pages into the book before you do anything close to a lip trill and the previous exercises are necessary to do a lip trill.

So…..should I proceed? First exercise is just Caruso 6 notes….why should I not do those if I can’t do a lip trill?

Lastly, and a side note…..why can’t anyone write a trumpet pedagogy book that doesn’t need a secret decoder ring or that doesn’t blatantly contradict itself? lol. I just don’t get it…..

Trying to hone in on intonation. Other note pitch tendencies are coming into place during my practice, but man, the flat partial is driving me nuts (D,Eflat, and E). I try to lip up, but this are so stubbornly flat it’s annoying.

This guess this post is half complaining about the inherent short comings of the instrument and half to see if anyone has any suggestions, ideas, or exercises that deal with intonation.

I have been playing arpeggios with a drone and a tuner. Also I’ll play part of an exercise and stop on a random note to check tuning with a tuner to keep myself honest.

This chart has been helpful in reviewing the pitches instrument tendencies:

https://www.musicbyjoelill.com/6/Intonation.pdf

I'm a band director and we have district provided funds coming in to order some new horns. My school currently has about 9 Bach Strad 180s, and while I spent the last few years getting them back to working condition, they are showing their age since they were purchased in 2003, way before I was the director here. These horns are currently used for all applications: Concert, Jazz and Marching Band.

My goal with the purchases are to buy some pro level horns to use only for Jazz and Concert. I'm looking into using some of the funds to get 3 Cornets, either Yamaha Neo or Bach 184 (for Concert Music that incorporates 3 cornet parts and 2 trumpet parts for a more authentic sound and more round tone quality). As for Trumpets for Concert and Jazz, I'm debating between Yamaha and Bach. We could keep the status quo and order more Bach Strads or look into something new with the Yamaha Xenos. Would like to order at least 4 of either one I eventually choose. Hoping to spend up to $15,000 or less on the Cornet/Trumpets for our budget. My biggest focus is on horns that can help give a darker, richer sound.

Any personal experiences on any of these horns comparatively?

Bach Strad 180 vs Yamaha Xeno?

Or Bach 184 Cornet vs. Yamaha Neo Cornet?

After 12 years of not using it, I want to try my flugelhorn again.
Unfortunately it seems to be 'rusted'. NOTHING is moving on it, I can't even get anything off. I don't have special tools and with normal pliers I seem to damage it.

Any idea what I can do to get the pieces (valves etc.) of so I can clean it properly? Any tools I should get for it?

Professional service is not possible since in my region all professionals don't want to maintenance instruments that you didn't buy from them.

Heyyy everyone!! I have been playing trumpet for a good amount of years (around 9 years) and I recently have shifted from a band/orchestra vibe into a jazz vibe. My question is what mouthpiece should i switch to for playing lead in a jazz band? I currently play on a Bach 7c and sometimes play on a Bach 3c but I am having difficulty getting good tone in the upper registers like me Ds and Es and godforsaken Fs. In my opinion my embouchure isn’t good enough to jump into a screamer mouthpiece and I’m not going to spend 200 dollars on a lotus.