Kelly Deklinski, Reporter

Tim Leasure's clinic on his approach to trumpet playing and teaching was a ninety minute session that no student or educator should have missed. Leasure prefaced his clinic by explaining that he had prepared his material with young trumpet students in mind, but after receiving a wealth of information on a variety of topics it was clear that what Leasure had to say was important to everyone in the room. Several attendees diligently took notes on everything from practice to endurance to teaching, but for those of you who were unable to make it, here's a synopsis of the main topics of discussion.

Leasure identified four main areas that he focuses on in his trumpet studio. The first of these, and most important, is the development of a good ear. Leasure recommends listening to as many fine musicians as possible, both live and recorded, and if you have the opportunity, play with fine trumpeters as much as possible. Duets with your teacher or colleagues are especially good for this. To develop a better ear for intonation, always practice with a tuner, and do some research on the harmonic series (5th harmonics tend to be flat while 6th harmonics are often sharp). He also recommends a series of exercises developed by John Schlabach (Ohio University), where the player sings patterns while fingering them. For more on this, see “John Schlabach: On Connecting the Ear and Trumpet Playing,” in the June 2002 ITG Journal.

The next topic discussed was about learning what makes the trumpet “tick.” Leasure uses a “sound focused approach” for playing and teaching rather than a “tongue focused approach.” In other words, he suggests focusing on air first by slurring most passages before adding in the appropriate articulations. Leasure prefaced the next topic, developing a consistent approach, with a quote from Bryan Edgett. “All musicians want confidence - the knowledge that they will play well - when they perform. Confidence comes from consistency…(and) consistency comes from correctness over time.” (For the complete quote see “The Solo Recital: A Systematic Approach to Preparation and Performance” in the January 2004 ITG Journal). Leasure suggests that understanding the purpose of both the warm up and daily routine is crucial to this development. Leasure's own warm up is approach based rather than technique based, meaning that it focuses on breathing, long tones, breath attacks, initial attacks, mouthpiece buzzing, and tone enhancing exercises rather than technical exercises with tonguing, flexibilities, and finger dexterity (he reserves these for later sessions in the day).

The last major topic of discussion was the development of a consistent daily routine. Sound practice habits and organization are two key ingredients to excellent playing. Leasure suggests shorter practice sessions during the day. Practice difficult passages slowly and don't forget to work on the transitions to and from these sections. Go for accuracy and evenness before speed. Lastly, record your practice sessions and performances. Learn to become your own best teacher.

After effectively explaining his own philosophy of playing, which was developed through years of experience in both teaching and performance, Leasure took questions from the audience. Several attendees had specific questions about personal trumpet issues, and Leasure answered them with great care and consideration.