Is it a Piccolo or is it a Trumpet? Can I become a screamer overnight? Sorry to say these were the first things that I thought about when I first heard of a Piccolo Trumpet. So what is it, really? In my mind, the Piccolo Trumpet is to the trumpet, what the piccolo is to the flute. It’s the smallest of the different trumpets you can find and much brighter in tone.
What the heck is a “Water Key”? I’m pretty sure that’s not plain water that’s coming out. “Spit Valve” makes more sense, but it’s not a valve. What gives? What are all these parts and why are they important to the sound? Trumpets, Flugelhorns, and Cornets have a surprising number of parts. Would you like to know all their names to amaze your friends and bore your not-so-friends? Here is the anatomy of a trumpet for your dissection fun.
As a kid, I remember watching the TV show “The Green Hornet” and the wailing, fast hitting trumpet sound of the theme song. I had no idea what a trumpet was or who Al Hirt was back then. I remember that trumpet song though. Fast forward a few years and I’m sitting in the admissions office with my mom for my new school, entering the 5th grade. I knew I wanted to join band. I had every intention of playing the drums, for some reason I thought they were cool. When they asked me, “What instrument do you want to play?” I said “Trumpet”. It just came out. And so, began my journey of discovery of this great instrument, lifelong bandmates, and the fascination with famous trumpet players.
We’ve collected various sources of trumpet sheet music and trumpet songs that you can use to see, hear, and play along to. You can play these with your cornet and flugelhorn too as some of these trumpet songs have softer melodies that sound better with a cornet or flugelhorn.
If you are thinking about investing in a professional trumpet, you’ll want to first think about what you want to accomplish, what are your goals? Are you upgrading from your first trumpet? Are you looking for a trumpet that will enable you to play your best? Are you a professional trumpet player looking for a different sound? Are you looking for the best way to take your sound to the next level? Are you a “come back” player that used to play, and want to take advantage of a better trumpet than you used to have? Are you playing a type of music that doesn’t fit your current trumpet? All great questions.
Frugal what? Flugel bugle? What a funny name for a jazz horn. What is it and why is it called something so funny? The flugelhorn is part of the brass family of instruments. These musical instruments were traditionally made from and continue to be mostly made from the metal brass. The name is thought to come from the German word “wing” which makes the name flugelhorn “wing horn”. The flugelhorn is closely related to the trumpet and cornet.
At the 2020 Super Bowl halftime show, there was one song where dancers held trumpets and trombones. They weren’t playing, but the distinctive trumpet sound was clearly heard coming from the band. This probably wasn’t the reason, but your child has decided they want to play the Trumpet. Great. But when you show up at school, the band teacher puts a Cornet in their hands. What gives? Why?