A regular (or semi-regular) fitness routine can be very helpful for brass players, whether it be running, swimming, biking, or some kind of light weight training combined with aerobic exercise. Listed below are what I [...]

On a recent trip back home to NC I found an old practice journal from my first year in college.  Looking back through this notebook was really kind of fun, and got me thinking about [...]

As beginning players form the skills necessary to play brass instruments, they can get into a range of bad habits, that if go unfixed, can lead to serious playing problems later in their career. It [...]

Why Use A Metronome? Using a metronome to keep the beat while you practice can benefit your playing in many ways. The most important reason is that its always right. Musicians, even the best musicians, [...]

In 2010 I released an online course entitled “High notes, low notes, and everything in between“. The course consists of lessons – or modules as I call them here – and is aimed at advancing [...]

Fill your Christmas stockings! For gift ideas, why not start here? A letter from a ‘brass meathead’ to Santa: Dear Santa, This year for Christmas, I’d like: * To play higher * To play louder [...]

Get great deals on the Zoom H4n portable digital recorder Lately I’ve been listening to some of my lessons from graduate school, specifically the two years spent working on my master’s degree with Doug Hill [...]

With the exception of trills, turns are probably the most encountered ornament in horn music – think of Kopprasch and Maxime-Alphonse, to name a few. Many excellent resources deal with the performance of both turns [...]

Strong listening skills are extremely important for both performers and educators. Try some of the following exercises to aid in developing your ability to listen actively. You can practice active listening almost anywhere, and the [...]

Just imagine – you’ve spent countless hours practicing your lip trills, starting slowly and speeding up, and practicing “flips” so that you can begin a trill immediately – you are now ready to play these [...]