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Of the brass instruments, trumpet is the lightest, smallest and therefore easiest to hold for students*, yet a glance into most classrooms will reveal numerous students with improper hand positions. These positions can in turn lead to tension, contortion, and the increased use of pressure on an instrument that is already prone to those issues. A sequence for teaching and learning hand position and playing position on trumpet includes:
- Without instruments, students stand with arms relaxed and hanging by their sides.
- Without changing hand position, students raise their hands to mouth level about a foot in front of their faces. Hands should remain relaxed, wrists remain straight, and fingers should curve naturally into the shape of mirroring “C’s.”
- Students should lower their left arms until the “C” has moved into a more horizontal position. With the right hand vertical and the left hand horizontal, this reflects the proper position for the instrument.
- Picking up their instruments, students can insert their left hand ring finger in the 3rd valve slide ring (adjusting it in or out as necessary) and wrap their remaining fingers on that hand around the valve casing.** The pinky can rest along the third valve or outside of the ring. If an instrument has a first valve saddle or ring, the student should place her thumb in it.
- Students should position their right thumbs directly below the lead pipe and in between the first and second valve cylinders with their index, middle, and ring fingers resting on the first, second, and third valves respectively. The placement of the thumb helps to retain the natural curvature of the fingers.
- The pinky of the right hand should float above the ring soldered on the lead pipe. This detail is often the most overlooked or ignored by students. The rationale for the pinky placement is two-fold. First, an immobile pinky potentially causes tension in the other fingers when they move, whereas a freely floating pinky will move sympathetically with them, resulting in more natural motion and positioning. Second, trumpet players will often try to compensate for embouchure and air issues through the use of increased pressure; the use of the pinky ring encourages them to pull the instruments into their faces. The ring is used when a player must play one-handed for brief periods as for mute changes, page turns, or when using the left hand for effects.
Once students’ hands are placed properly, the teacher should remind students of proper posture, have them bring the mouthpieces to their embouchures and play their first pitches. As with the initial sounds on the mouthpieces, the pitches themselves are not as important as just producing a supported sound. Typically, students will produce either a low concert Bb or concert F, but some will produce a much higher pitch. With good fundamentals of embouchure, air, and instrument position, the teacher can work with individuals to refine sound.
*[cite]Some teachers advocate that young students begin on cornet due to its shorter length from mouth to bell, providing students with a closer grip to the face and less awkwardness with holding the instrument at the correct level. The more rounded tone of the cornet may also speed the development of good tone concept, although that may represent more a matter of opinion(?)
**Students with larger hands may find it more comfortable to place their middle fingers in the slide ring, index finger by the valve casing, and ring and pinky fingers gripping the valve casing below the slide. This is probably not a consideration for young students, but may be important for adult students. As long as the ring in the finger can extend the slide and the student does not evidence tension or discomfort, this reflects an acceptable left hand position.