This routine was last updated on March 25, 2006

WARM-UP

Caruso 6 Notes, followed by Caruso interval slurs (just 2nds so far): I added this to my routine (replacing chromatic long tones) in May of 2004, after attending a masterclass with Randy Brecker. His live demonstration of the Curoso exercises, and the explanations behind them, provided me with enough interest to give them a try. It's June 13, 2004 as of this writing, and I can already feel some benefits. Mostly, I feel this exercise is helping me to develop a more steady airstream. When I do try to play higher and louder, my notes seem to have more power than before I started the routine.

Balanced Embouchure (BE) exercises: Hold-Till-Empty #2, Roll-In #1-3, Roll-Out #3-4

The warm-up takes about 15 minutes and I typically start it at 7:30 in the morning. It is important to include periods of rest in your playing routine. A general rule is to rest as long as you play. So, prior to continuing with the rest of my routine, I'll rest at least 15 minutes.

FLEXIBILITY & TONGUING

Slurs: I play all of the slurs in the "Flexibility - One" section of Flexus. I start these slurs with a BE roll-in embouchure (or as close as I can get) and I focus on using very little mouthpiece pressure. After these slurs, I move on to the Flexando's, followed by the Arban's slurs on page 44 (#22). After all of that, I return to Flexus for a few of wide interval slurs (Flexibility - Three).

Tonguing: I single tongue study #2 from "Technical Studies For The Cornet" by H.L. Clarke. I try to go as fast as I can, with a steady beat and a clean-sounding attack. I typically start at C below the staff and play ascending exercises up to a starting not of A in the staff. I then repeat the exercises, this time with smoothed double tonguing (duh guh articulation). I usually end my tonguing exercises with Arban's expanding interval routine on page 125.

For all of the above, I only play as high as I can go without using excessive mouthpiece pressure. Once I'm unable to comfortably hit a note, I take a break and move on to the next exercise. Occasionally I try to continue where I left off, but usually my chops were right the first time. That is, they already knew I couldn't play any higher ;-)

The above exercises take 15-20 minutes. Since I start early, I'm able to get my warm up and chop-building exercises out of the way well before work begins! Well, actually, work often begins around 6am, but that's another story...

EAR TRAINING

As discussed in the ear training portion of this site, I believe ear training is an extremely important, but often overlooked, portion of any practice routine. I try to spend 15-20 minutes each day with a variety of ear training activities.

Simple Song Playing: I use my simple song randomizer to produce random starting notes and song titles. I then try to play the songs by ear, from the starting notes. When playing by ear, it is important to relax. Allow yourself to make mistakes. Don't get stressed out and criticize yourself, regardless of how many errors you make. I find, the more you worry about precision, the less precisely you'll play. Everyone should read The Inner Game of Music, or the book that started it all.

Interval Exercises: I use my ear training tool to play random intervals, both melodically and harmonically. I listen and try to play the notes on my horn. I also spend some time singing back the notes. After intervals, I spend some time working on random melody (call and response) exercises.

Play-along with recordings: Put on some music and try to play along. Obviously, the same can be done with solos. Pick a phrase and try to play it back. At the same time, try to figure out what key tunes are in, try to figure out the changes, etc… all by ear.

IMPROVISATION

I try to spend 10-20 minutes a day improvising (in short sessions). I find that when work gets frustrating, all I need to do is pick up my horn and start playing along with jazz recordings. After a few minutes of improvising, my mind is clear and I'm ready to get back to work. After work, I try to improvise for at least 30 minutes, but there are plenty of days where I have no extra time at all. I have a bunch of Aebersold play-a-long's, but I much prefer improvising with actual jazz recordings.