Trumpet - Starting, Care and Maintenance
How to blow (Toh, Tay, Tee)
When playing a trumpet you can change the sound it produces just by how your lips vibrate when blowing-no fingers required. To produce low notes, vibrate your lips slowly; the higher the note you want to play, the quicker you will need to vibrate your lips. When you are blowing be sure not to press the mouthpiece firmly to your lips.
| How to blow | Pitch | Tone | Frequency of vibration |
|---|---|---|---|
| toh | low |  |
 |
| tay | medium |  |
 |
| tee | high |  |
 |
Changing the sound by adjusting the shape of your mouth (Playing "Toh, Tay, Tee" in turn)
Care and Maintenance of a Trumpet
Care and maintenance after playing
First remove moisture from the slides
Remove each slide carefully while holding down the corresponding piston, as shown in the diagram. A popping sound indicates that you are not removing the slide properly. Extract the moisture from the slide which you have removed. Remove the moisture from the body of the trumpet as well, via the water key.
*Although brass and nickel-silver-the materials which are used for slides-are extremely resistant to corrosion, there is a danger of progressive corrosion if moisture remains in a slide for a long time.
*When removing a slide, be careful to hold down the corresponding piston.
Lubricating with valve oil
Undo the cap screw in the valve casing and slowly extract the piston upwards halfway, without allowing it to rotate. Now apply two or three drops of piston oil to the piston. Retighten the cap screw and move the piston up and down two or three times to work in the oil.
Valves can become sticky if not properly lubricated, so be sure to clean and oil them regularly.
Removing dirt from the surface of the instrument
Before replacing the instrument in its case, wipe its surface lightly with a polishing cloth to remove dirt.
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