Trumpet Practice Plan

Skills & Video Reference — Trumpet Practice Plan

Videos to watch when working on specific skills. Use them at the start of a phase or when something feels stuck. All links are to free, public videos (YouTube). Descriptions are brief so you can pick what you need.


Skill (from phase files) Video section
Steady air, long tones Long tones
Clean attacks, light articulation Clean attacks / articulation
Lip slurs Lip slurs
Breathing, air support Breathing / air support
Faster air, scale to high C, slur up and down High notes / range
Soft high notes Soft high notes
Double tonguing Double tonguing
Phrasing, dynamic control Dynamics, Phrasing and expression
Il Triello play-along, stamina Il Triello — listen and play along, Sustained high notes and stamina
Daily warm-up Warm-up play-alongs

Phase 1 — Foundation

Long tones

Video What it covers
Trumpet Warmup for Beginners — Play-Along Long Tones and Lip Slurs Beginner-friendly; play along with long tones and simple lip slurs. Good for daily warm-up.
The Best Ways to Practice Long Tones on Trumpet Why and how to practice long tones; what to listen for.
The Best Long Tones For Trumpet Players Specific long-tone exercises and tempo (e.g. 60 bpm, then slower).

Lip slurs

Video What it covers
Trumpet Warmup for Beginners — Play-Along Long Tones and Lip Slurs Same as above; includes easy lip slurs in the play-along.
How to Do Lip Slurs on the Trumpet What lip slurs are and how to do them step by step.
7 Tips for Practicing Lip Slurs / Flexibilities on Trumpet Tips for cleaner slurs and less tension.
Build Your Trumpet Range with These Lip Slurs Lip slurs that help build range (useful as you move into Phase 2).

Clean attacks / articulation

Video What it covers
Trumpet Tonguing Technique and Articulation Tongue placement, tension, and starting notes with air (Eat.Sleep.Trumpet).

Breathing / air support

Video What it covers
Basic Breathing Technique While Playing Trumpet How to take a full breath and use it while playing.
The “Hut” Breath Trick — A Quick Fix for Tension & Air Support A simple trick to reset breath and reduce tension.
The Diaphragm in Brass Playing How the diaphragm works when you breathe and blow (Dr. Larry Miller).

Phase 2 — Range extension

High notes / range

Video What it covers
HOW TO PLAY “HIGH NOTES” ON TRUMPET Core ideas for playing high notes without straining.
How To Play High Notes Easier on Trumpet Air speed, tongue position (“ee”), and avoiding tension.
How to Play High on the Trumpet (Range Building) — Part 1/3 Part 1 of a range-building series; fundamentals first.
Build your upper register — simple exercise One simple exercise to improve high notes.
Build Your Trumpet Range with These Lip Slurs Lip slurs that extend into the upper register.

Soft high notes

Use the “high notes” videos above and focus on playing the same notes piano: same air speed and support, less volume. The dynamics video below (Phase 3) also helps.

Double tonguing

Trumpeter’s Lullaby (and some Phase 3/4 pieces) have fast articulated passages that are clearer and easier with double tonguing (“ta-ka” or “tu-ku”). Work on this in Phase 2.

Video What it covers
Trumpet: Double Tonguing Introduction to double tonguing on trumpet.
How to Double and Triple Tongue on Trumpet Step-by-step double (and triple) tonguing.
Developing Double and Triple Tonguing on the Trumpet Building and refining the technique.

Tips: Start on one note (e.g. middle G), slow tempo; say “ta-ka ta-ka” first, then blow, then play. Keep the “ka” forward in the mouth, not in the throat. Keep air steady so both syllables are even.


Phase 3 — Repertoire

Dynamics

Video What it covers
Dynamic Range and Playing With Color On The Trumpet Playing with different dynamics and tone colors.
This Simple Technique is Ignored — Use It To Boost Your Trumpet Skills Practicing soft playing to improve tone and control.

Phrasing and expression

Listen to good recordings of your Phase 3 pieces and notice where phrases start and end, where they get louder or softer, and where the player breathes. The dynamics videos above support this. You can also search “trumpet phrasing” or “musical phrasing trumpet” on YouTube for more.


Phase 4 — Il Triello

Il Triello — listen and play along

Video What it covers
Il Triello — The Trio (Play with Me) — Andrea Giuffredi Play-along: play the solo part with the backing track. Good for tempo, style, and stamina.

Search YouTube for “Il Triello trumpet” or “The Good The Bad and The Ugly trumpet” for other performances and backing tracks. Listen to the original film soundtrack to internalize the melody and mood.

Sustained high notes and stamina

Revisit the Phase 2 — High notes / range videos. For stamina, practice playing the piece in sections, then half at a time, then the full piece; the Il Triello play-along above helps with full runs.


Warm-up play-alongs (any phase)

Video What it covers
Trumpet Warmup for Beginners — Play-Along Long Tones and Lip Slurs ~9 min; long tones and lip slurs you can follow every day.
20 MINUTE Warm Up for Intermediate Trumpet Players — PLAYALONG Longer warm-up (long tones, breathing, lip slurs, articulation); use when you have a bit more time or are in Phase 2–3.

Links were checked at the time this was written. If a video is removed or changed, search the title or topic on YouTube to find similar lessons.