Group 1
Please read the assignments below before watching!
Description
In this Three-Week Intensive, tonebase trumpet lead Ethan Chilton provides the ultimate blueprint to playing a lip trill. Building up from the foundational movements required of the tongue and facial muscles, this class provides all the concepts and practice you need to master your first lip trills. Ethan utilizes practice exercises from Earl Irons to help build flexibility, and Arban to work on gradually increasing the speed of our note changes. There are two video assignments, which Ethan responds to with personalized feedback!
What to Expect:
- 🔗 Guided Exercises: Each week, enjoy a new video where Ethan outlines a structured theory of practice, and demonstrates simple, concrete exercises designed to amplify a specific skillset.
- 🎶 Expert Guidance: Led by Ethan Chilton, professional LA-based trumpeter who built the tonebase trumpet library, these sessions offer a unique insight into the tools and concepts that working trumpeters rely on to develop and refine their flexibility.
- 🤝 Community Interaction: Share your experiences, receive feedback from peers, and engage in a supportive community of fellow music enthusiasts and aspiring performers.
Who Should Attend:
🎺 This course is tailored for a trumpeter at any level looking for some structure toward their pursuit of improving or refining their lip trill. No pre-requisite knowledge is required, though basic proficiency with the trumpet is highly recommended.
What is Covered:
📚 Participants will explore concepts in the structure and anatomy of the tongue and face, how to identify by feel the relevant muscles, how to avoid bad habits when performing flexibility exercises, ways of troubleshooting stubborn lip trills, and how to work gradually up to a full-speed lip trill. At the end, you’ll be asked to submit two short optional video assignments for direct feedback from Ethan.
No special equipment is needed to get started; just bring your enthusiasm, a working trumpet, some curiosity, and whatever recording tools you have—your journey to a lip trill begins here!
Timeline
- Sign-Up : August 19th - August 25th
- Course Period: August 26th - September 15th
- Optional check-In via Zoom: September 10th
Scores and Assignments:
developing_a_lip_trill_tonebase_trumpet_scores
Lessons
Lesson 1: Understanding the Tongue
Week 1: August 26th - September 1st
For your first week, start with two lessons! Ethan provides an overview of the first primary driver in lip trilling: the tongue. Ethan uses anatomical models, syllables, and simple exercises to help us find the right spot on the tongue. By focusing on subtle, efficient tongue movements, musicians can perform smooth, fast lip trills, enhancing their overall tone, flexibility, and endurance.
Lesson 2: The Embouchure’s Role in Lip Trills
Week 1: August 26th - September 1st
The embouchure, which is the second driver of a lip trill, is responsible for two main actions: slight engagement of the "smile muscles" (including the levator and zygomaticus muscles) and a microscopic upward movement of the jaw. These movements create firmness and tautness in the corners of the mouth, aiding in raising the pitch. Common issues include loss of tautness, insufficient air flow, or incorrect aperture settings, which can be addressed by adjusting muscle engagement, air support, and tongue positioning.
Lesson 3: Practicing Flexibility with Irons
Week 2: September 2nd - 8th
This week, we'll develop control over the tongue and embouchure by practicing slow lip slurs from Earl Irons’ 27 Groups of Exercises. Begin with Group 1, focusing on pulling the horn away and compressing with the diaphragm. Think in long phrases rather than individual notes. We'll then move to Groups 5 and 7, practicing softly with a metronome. Use the troubleshooting guide from last week if needed. Practice strictly but limit sessions to 5-10 minutes daily to avoid fatigue. Continue with other groups as needed, and submit an optional video check-in demonstrating evenness in Group 5.
Lesson 4: Arban Lip Trill Exercises
Week 3: September 9th - 15th
This week, build your lip trill skills using the Arban method. Warm up with exercises 16-21 on page 42, then focus on exercise 22 on page 44. Use the troubleshooting guide as needed, take breaks, and stay within your comfortable range. Exercise 23 is more challenging – so focus on tongue engagement and rest as needed. Ethan also demonstrates exercise 26 for a different approach. End your sessions with a warm-down of pedal tone arpeggios!
Final Assignment:
Record a performance of just 2 or 3 lines of Arban exercise 22. You may opt for a preliminary exercise (16-21) instead. Ethan will be responding personally to every video that’s posted and offering some feedback. Videos must be uploaded by 11:59 PM PST on September 15th to be considered for feedback.
Scores and Assignments:
developing_a_lip_trill_tonebase_trumpet_scores
How to Submit A Video Assignment
Upload your finished video you youtube.com as Unlisted.
Then, copy the link and paste it into a comment below, with a brief description of what you played and what improved while going through this course!
Please reach out to Ethan via e-mail if you have any further questions!
7 replies
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- short excerpt from Arban 22
- bpm slowed way down to ~ 70 (thinking tortoise vs the hare)
- obviously haven't mastered "rolling my R's"
- sometimes I can get them out, but other times it's like BB King sang, "The trill is gone...."
- this lip trill workshop has been very good!
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Ethan, this is really a great course and I intend to complete it on my own time. I've only had time to go through the first part but it reminds me of how important it is to practice lip trills which I used to practice quite regularly but I haven't done in quite a while. Just based on the limited time I've had to practice the first part I know this is going to make a huge difference in endurance and range in my playing. I do plan to post a video at some point once I get through the third section but it may be a while!