[TPIN] Lip bends and pedal tones

[Larry Beck]

I've used pedal tones as a warm up exercise and it seems to accomplish what I want, loosening up the chops, getting the air flowing, and allowing me to do a "check up" of essential areas, like embouchure, breathing, centering the pitch, etc. I just bought David Hickman's Embouchure Studies book, the one where he introduces lip bends and pedal tones, and am wondering about the pedagogy behind lip bends and pedal tones. I am a big fan of a book called "Stretching" by Bob Anderson and stretch out each morning, doing what he and David Hickman both call resistance exercises. A long, slow stretch, rather than the bouncy one's we learned in junior high school. It works for me, but why? What is it about these types of exercises that help develop a beautiful sound?

Off topic: Not mentioning Philip Smith as one of the greatest principal trumpets ever is seriously overlooking the most beautiful sound I've ever heard come out of a trumpet.

Off topic #2: I'm sure any IB teacher would appreciate a thorough history of the trumpet, from conch shells to Monette.

Larry Beck
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Tualatin Valley Brass
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