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JAZZ CALISTHENICS: WARM-UP ROUTINES TRUMPETERS, PART TWO
FOR
BY BARRY RACHIN
I
n the late s, the South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela was the featured artist at a late-summer jazz concert in Providence, Rhode Island. Scheduled as the last act, the trumpeter disappeared into a camper parked alongside the stage once he arrived and began warming up while a large ensemble of drummers, guitarists, and sound crew set up their equipment. To say that Masekela warmed up before the show was a gross understatement. The trumpeter played almost non-stop for half an hour, negotiating an endless array of chords, scales, arpeggios, and jazz licks. A self-taught musician, Hugh Whole tone scales Harry Glantz, principal trumpet with the New York Philharmonic from to , wrote a collection of etudes titled 48 Studies for the Advanced Trumpeter. On page (study xxvi) is a brief arpeggiated exercise (see Example 1) that can be played slowly as a flow study. The notes in each sequence outline a series of augmented chords, gradually ascending through the scale in thirds. Played on a regular daily basis, this classical exercise is an excellent tool for improving tone and physical
Masekela had devised his own personal warm-up routine, an approach that favored his high-energy, visceral style. The July weather was unseasonably muggy, and yet, the trumpeter had played an entire set before ever setting foot on stage! That blisteringly hot night, Masekela played and sang his heart out. The band’s energy level never wavered and, judging by the crowd’s enthusiastic response, the South Africans stole the show. As explained in the first part of this series (see the October issue of the ITG Journal), each player must develop and fine-tune his or her own warm-up regimen. stamina while developing a sense of comfort with whole tones and intervals of the major third. Why is this particular scale important for jazz players? Whole-tone scales can be substituted over dominant-seventh chords in dozens of inversions and rhythmic permutations (see Example ) that add harmonic color. The goal here is two-fold: to gain familiarity with the fingerings and unique tonality of this particular scale and to begin working out patterns that can be used when improvising in a jazz setting.
Example 1. Harry Glantz, 48 Studies for the Advanced Trumpeter, excerpt from Etude XXVI
Example 2. Examples of whole-tone scale patterns
22 ITG Journal / March 2020
© 2020 International Trumpet Guild
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