34 Guided Practice Lesson 4.5

Objectives

Students will be able to:

• match pitch on the mouthpiece while maintaining a vibrant, consistent buzz
• use strong air support that continues to move between notes
• demonstrate consistency of tone and intensity when using various articulations in the same exercise

Materials

• Instrument
• Metronome
• Tuner

Activities

1. Mouthpiece Melody. Choose a simple melody (from the performance pieces in the book or other familiar melodies) and buzz the melody on your mouthpiece. Pay attention to centering each note and keeping the air stream consistent throughout the melody (except as you need to grab a breath).
2. Remington (Ascending and Descending). Remove the rests from the Remington exercises. Place emphasis on smooth movement between each of the notes and a consistent return to the same starting pitch. The use of either a tuner or a drone can be very helpful in making sure that this pitch is centered and accurate. Make sure your air remains continuous between all notes.
3. Dexterity Exercise #1. As you play through each exercise, add an articulation pattern (e.g., slur two, legato two, slur two, staccato two) to the notes. As you play through with different articulations, make sure the quality of the tone remains the same from one pattern to the next.
4. Dexterity Exercise #2. Make sure to keep attention on the accuracy and quick transition between fingerings/slide positions. Focus on using a legato articulation that allows for air to move between notes.