Dokshizer The System of Composite Exercises For Trumpet

Timofei Dokshizer

qPress Music Publishing

Table of Contents Forward Preface Practical Recommendations How to Use the System Trumpet Pedal Register

1 2 3 4 8

Composite System: Low level of difficulty 1 2 3 4 5

10 17 23 29 35

Composite System: Medium level of difficulty 1 2 3 4

42 50 57 65

Composite System: High level of difficulty 1 2 3 4

71 78 87 94

Foreword Timofei Dokshizer was a trumpet virtuoso, People’s Artist of Russia, and professor, whose profound artistry and creativity set a standard of excellence for other trumpeters to follow. He is responsible for a tremendous expansion of trumpet repertoire, both through his own arrangements and through compositions written especially for him. Throughout his illustrious career he has left a remarkable legacy as a performer, educator and recording artist, and is now considered to be one of the world’s most respected and renowned musicians. Mr. Dokshizer was born in Ukraine in 1921 to a family of musicians. In 1932, the Dokshizer family moved to Moscow, where young Timofei was placed in the orchestra of the 62nd Cavalry Regiment. During the first year of his military service, Mr. Dokshizer was sent to study music under the tutelage of Ivan Vasilevsky, soloist of the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra and teacher, at the Glazunov Music College in Moscow. Mr. Dokshizer continued his studies at the Central Music School in Moscow (Special Children’s School for Gifted Pupils) in the class of Professor and famous Soviet trumpeter Mikhail Tabakov. In 1941, at age 19, Timofei Dokshizer became laurate at the All-Union Brass Instruments Performers Competition. In 1947, Mr. Dokshizer won the International Competition in Prague. During this period, Mr. Dokshizer gave concerts and worked in the orchestra of the Bolshoi Theatre. In 1950, he graduated from the Gnessin’s Music Institute under the supervision of Mikhail Tabakov. In 1957 he received a degree in conducting from the Moscow Conservatory under the class of Leo Ginsburg. Timofei Dokshizer opened new horizons for trumpet playing. In his hands the trumpet acquired true solo significance. “Timofei expresses every phrase in such a unique way that he can easily make famous vocalists and instrumentalists jealous,” wrote a Bulgarian newspaper. “His performance positively overcomes the possibility of the instrument,” wrote John Berrow on the pages of Brass World.

This work, “The System of Composite Exercises for the Trumpet” is designed for mastering the art of performance for trumpet players. Popular for years among foreign professionals, this publication is intended for professional performers, students, music lovers and young students beginning from their 3rd or 4th year of study. This publication, as well as its previous versions, has been edited by the famous trumpeter and professor Vladimir Dokshizer, at the request of Timofei Dokshizer.

Anna Dokshizer

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Preface Each day trumpet players are faced with questions such as, "what do I begin today's practice session with?", "what is going to be my strategy for today's practice?", "how long should the practice session be and what do I play?", "which skills are developed by certain exercises and which results should be expected from what I’ve practiced?" The answers to these questions should be discovered by each player on his own, since the art of performing is strictly individual, and is tied to the naturally given capabilities of a trumpeter and the specific state of the playing apparatus, most importantly, the lip muscles. When taking in consideration these two factors - natural given capabilities and specific condition - each performer, with a goal of reaching the best results in his work, needs to be able to determine daily for himself his strategic work load, the length of his practice session at home, and the particular material for the practice session. Modern practice proves that these tasks need to be determined as a composite, meaning developing several playing techniques at the same time, without wasting extra time and effort to do so, which is especially important for the long term professionalism of the player. The main goal of this book is to help each trumpeter analyze and organize his labor, to deviate from the traditional strategy lacking prelude playing on the instrument, as well as to avoid replacing the system of composite exercises with simply warming-up. By warming-up, you can prepare for playing, but warming-up does not develop skills, just the opposite. You can perfect your skills only with a complete system of composite exercises. Perfecting individual manners of playing is the work that received a great deal of interest, for example, the sound of the higher register or legato through intervals. This method of working on details is much welcomed, if the performer includes them into the main work on the development of technique and musical thinking. During lectures in different countries Timofei met with trumpeters who adored their instruments and dedicated 8-10 years of playing, but did not reach a high level of performance during that time. The period of 8-10 years is enough to develop exceptional musical skills. Evidently, the reason for the unrealized possibilities should be looked at because it demonstrages an inability to perfect a method of learning and individual practice. A composite approach to organized practice sessions opens a path to achieve higher professional skills. The offered system of preparation for the trumpeter takes into consideration all of the playing methods. The practice sessions based on the system should not be limited to music offered in this book. The important factor is the principle of the composite method, but material can be used from any literature for trumpet. This system will always be alive if it will absorb all the new exercises that are born with time, and that is what develops and improves the player. The learning of it should be done in accordance with live conditions, certain feelings of the player, personal outlook, understanding of professional goals, and control of personal work load.

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Practical Recommendations Individual natural given factors and the specific state of the player In order to learn how to structure your daily practice sessions on your own efficiently and effectively, personal factors of the performer, and the specific state of his playing apparatus need to be taken into consideration. Individual factors: These are natural musical, specialized, physiological specialties that are needed for playing a certain instrument. In the case of a trumpeter, individual factors may be exposed through the easiness or tension of the instrument's sound, endurance or weakness of the lip muscles, sound of registers, the pace technical progress, the skill of endurance (keeping an achieved level of playing for a certain period of time). Specific State: this is the physical state of the playing apparatus - player's lips, breathing, tongue, and fingers as he begins to play. Specific state of the player, independent from his individual factors, could be varied: lips - tired, inflamed, rested, slightly swollen, endurance, relaxed tongue - motionless, light, heavy, fluent, etc, breathing - not deep, weak, stable, uneven, active, etc, fingers - motionless, fluent, tense, stiff, etc. The specific state of a player's apparatus can be best determined by the condition of lip muscles. Lips, more than any other factors combining the apparatus, can determine the degree of a player’s exhaustion, and what's especially important, can determine the future work load. If certain sensations show that the lips are tired, then it's better for the player to avoid the same lessons or spend the lesson time by playing easier material, without high register or loud sound. If the player needs to keep playing with tired lips, this demonstrates a weakness in the way the practice session has been organized, so the player needs to set his goal to renew flexibility of the lip muscles without adding exhaustion. For that, it is better to play easy exercises - warm-ups, which should be placed in the beginning of each composite, or special exercises for relaxation of lip muscles built on playing pedal sounds. Relaxation of lip muscles normalizes blood flow and helps return to the normal playing state. If the lips are rested, then you can have intensive practice using the full composite program including the performance of complex exercises and pieces for the development of sound, technique, and high register. One should organize their practice sessions so that the lip apparatus is ready for the playing load at the right moment for the performer. This is where the wisdom of the player is most exposed, which is worked on through constant practice. The method of structuring daily practice, based on the consideration of individual factors and the specific state of the performer, allows us to create optimal conditions for the successful development of skills as trumpet players.

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How to Use the System The offered musical material gives the opportunity to conduct composite lessons - both full and concise. The composite includes: warm-ups, vocalises, and sequences. Warm-ups - trumpet gymnastics, the easiest exercises of the composite lesson. Warm-ups literally “warm up” the muscles of the performing apparatus, "wake up" the breathing of the performer, and prepare the musician for their playing load. Warm-up, with pulling the mouthpiece away from your lips, should be considered a specialized gymnastic: varying the playing position of the lips with their full relaxation improves blood flow and renews its tolerance. Besides, during the process of warming-up, after each time you pull away the mouthpiece, the player has the opportunity to correct his position on the lips, work on the precision of the attack (cleaning the hissing from the sound), and free oneself from the uncommon attack TVA, TUA. If the attack is precise, it should overcome "attack delay", which is similar to stuttering. My preferences for attack are the syllables TA, TU, and TI. Warming-up before the lesson and work could, if necessary, be repeated during the course of the day. Buzzing - before warming up, preparation exercises without the instrument - imitation of sound using only lips, put in playing position, or extraction of sound on the mouthpiece. Buzzing should be used strategically after a lengthy break in playing, before the beginning of a regular lesson. Before starting to play you can spend time on lip or mouthpiece buzzing for about 3-5 minutes a few times a day. Musical material can be used as warm-up exercises from the composite system. In some instances, buzzing can be used instead of warm-ups, however, buzzing does not replace practice using the trumpet! Vocalises - Melodious interval exercises are the most important part of the composite lesson. Vocalises develop simultaneous attack, sound, breathing, hearing, register, sound, endurance of lip muscles, synchronization of moving skills of the entire apparatus of the player. Before, some of the listed skills were developed through playing restrained long tones. These exercises have not lost their significance today. The use of dynamics in long tone practicing is necessary for initial sound development, breathing, and endurance during the beginning years of learning, and after a long hiatus in playing. However, static, lack of movement of tense muscles, which can occur during playing long tones, may lead to abnormalities in blood flow and can contribute to tiredness of lips. In modern performance experience, instead of long tones, intervals of legato vocalises are used more widely. These are more effective in terms of development of performance skills, which are the basis of mastership of the trumpeter. During the recovery process of playing after a long break, legato intervals are alternated with playing long tones.

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Legato intervals are called vocalises based on the analogy of similar exercises, that develop a singer's voice. For brass players and vocalists, breathing is the source of all sounds. Sequences - Exercises that develop performance technique for the trumpeter. Short sequencelike phrases based on different methods of playing, can quickly restore lost skills and serve as effective learning material for perfecting artistic virtuosity. Material is memorized easily and is not a big load for the lips. Exercises from "sequences" are meant for prepared capable performers and students, that are already trained by technical methods such as Arban’s Complete Conservatory Method. Each part of the system (warm-up, vocalises, and sequences) has its own practical direction and only as a whole, in various combinations, they consist of material for composite lessons - both full and concise.

Full Composite System In the full composite system, a lesson warm-up should take anywhere from 5-8 minutes; vocalises including long tones 25-30 minutes; sequences - 20-25 minutes; average duration of the lesson is from 45 minutes to one hour in length. Such can be considered an effective beginning to the player's workday. The full system is available in three levels: 1. Composite of low level of difficulty - five variations. 2. Composite of medium level of difficulty - four variations. 3. Composite of high level of difficulty- four variations. From the musical material offered in this book, each performer can choose the appropriate composite for a specific session that will correspond to their capabilities and performance level. With this in mind, the beginning (but not for beginners) composites are always good for highly capable players to play if their current state of playing is weaker than usual. For musicians that have not yet reached a high level of mastery, they don't need to limit themselves to playing only the beginning composites, they can also try playing more complex variations. A player can enhance the material of the composite, using their own judgement, with exercises from different composites, more complex or less complex. Include the composite performance of etudes, concert pieces or separate fragments from concert pieces. When choosing the material for a lesson, you need to use the principal of an alternation of exercises that develop different sound and technical skills: after vocalises and long tones play interval and technical sequences, after playing in the high register switch to the lower register, and after difficult exercises play less complex ones, etc. Change of mood and character in the playing load increases the effectiveness of the lesson and the player's efficiency. Material of full composites is presented in maximum length, their performance gives a definite load to the lips and requires the player to know his limit, know how to coordinate other playing

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tasks during the same day, as well as the following days. Consequently, it is not recommended to play all the material of the composite in one lesson without considering the specific state of your lips. In normal systematic lessons it is better to follow one rule: "It's better to play less than to overplay". The full composite system should be played 1-2 times a week, in some cases more often, if it does not cause exhaustion. The use of full composite should alternate with the concise version. It is highly recommended due to the fact that alternation between intensive playing with less complexity, prepares the player for more intensive lessons.

Concise Composite System A concise version of the composite is easily constructed by the player himself, by choosing 1 or 2 exercises from two parts of the system. For example, Vocalises - Sequences, Warm-ups Vocalises or Warm-ups - Sequences. If the goal is to warm-up, play only Warm-ups, only Vocalises or only Sequences. The use of different musical material demonstrates the performer's good self-control and professional handling. The length of the concise lesson can be somewhere from 30 to 40 minutes. Concise composite lessons are mostly used in the following situations: 1. When lips are still not rested from previous playing. In this case it is better to construct the lesson from warmups and sequences, in order to lessen tiredness and possible lip swelling through active exercises. 2. When lips are weakened with irregular lessons, one has to start work with warming-up, playing simple vocalises, and at least some technical exercises. 3. When the performer is planning to dedicate the main part of the lesson to learning an etude, specific musical piece, orchestra part, or perfecting certain skills. Concise composite lessons protect your lips from over exhaustion and create pleasant conditions for more active ways to adapt to musical literature. For maintaining strength in the lips, one needs to use all available options: varying musical material, alternating intensive work with more simple work, by playing a full composite system one day and playing concise or only warm-up another day, and sometimes, even to miss one day of playing for full relaxation of over exhausted lips.


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Trumpet Pedal Register Pedal tones are the notes that are located beyond F# below the staff. The acoustics of trumpet construction in the pedal tone area do not allow the quality of sound to match all other registers. Still, due to special adjustment of of the lips (specifically, their relaxation), it became possible to execute pedal notes in some situations with a sound close to that of the usable range of the trumpet. This allows the use of pedal notes as special exercises for development of additional muscle skills for the lips. Pedal notes were first used in the 20th century; their role as a supportive remedy for lip muscle relaxation is undeniable. Pedal notes improve the sound of the entire trumpet range, including the high register. However, we shouldn’t overestimate the meaning of pedal notes. Paying too much attention to pedal notes may distract the player, as well as his time and effort from thorough and harmonized perfection of his skills. Pedal notes: • • • • •

Give maximum relaxation to the lips, normalize blood flow, and positively influence the recovery process. Provide minimum pressure of the mouthpiece on the lips, gives maximum relaxation to the lips even to the point of airy cheeks. Massaging lips, straightening wrinkling or scars resulting from your teeth. Straighten and improve the sound of the entire trumpet range and improving compression in the higher register. Prevent throat and larynx tension, enlarge the size of mouth cavity and assist easy execution (with imaginative pronunciation of vowels 0-0, A-A, U-U).

One should remember that when performing pedal notes and during consequent relaxation of the lips, the usual position of the mouthpiece on the lips should not change. This should be especially noted while playing exercises that connect pedal notes with the upper register and vice versa. Playing only pedal notes should be at the minimum. After intense and tiresome playing, pedal notes relax the lip muscles, soften their possible inflammation, and relieve exhaustion within 3-5 minutes.

Symbols - inhale while keeping the mouthpiece away from lips - inhale through the nose, without pulling the mouthpiece away from lips - repeat the last part of the measure
 - play written notes with free measure or length

Timofei Dokshizer


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Note from Ron Modell I felt very honoured when Mr. Dokshizer asked if I would edit his new text. The major task for me was to try and keep as close to his original ideas, which were sent to me in Russian. A great deal of gratitude goes to Anna Dokshizer, his lovely granddaughter, Vladimir Dokshizer, his brother, and to my dear friends Dr. Richard Cox and Vincent Cichowicz. Between the five of us I believe we have captured Mr. Dokshizer's very important thoughts on the proper procedure of a daily practice routine. Respectfully,

Ron Modell


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Composite System

Low level of difficulty Warm Up

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11

Vocalise

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Sequences

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Warm Up

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Vocalise

Sequence

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22

Warm Up

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Repeat a half tone lower

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Vocalise

Sequences

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Variations

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Warm Up

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Vocalise

Also Play in A

Sequences

Also Play in A

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Variation

Also play in C

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Also Play in A

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Warm Up

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Vocalises

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Major Scales

Variation: Double Tongue

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Composite System

Medium level of difficulty Warm Up

Vocalise

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43

Sequences

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Also Play in A

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Also Play in A

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Also Play in A

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Warm Up

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Vocalises

To be played in C, A, D, and Eb

Also play in C

Also play in A and C

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Also play in A

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Sequences

Also play in A and C

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Whole Tone Scales

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Warm Up

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Vocalises

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Repeat in C

Sequences

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Warm Up

Vocalise

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Sequences

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Trills

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Composite System

High level of difficulty Warm Up

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Vocalise

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Variation: Inhale through the nose

Sequences

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Variations: a) divide the exercise in two and play the halves-right or left-separately, from top to bottom; b) play legato over four bars; c) play with double tongue.

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Warm Up

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Sequences

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Also play in A and C

Also play in A

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Warm Ups

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Vocalises

Also Play in A

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Sequences

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Also Play in A

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Warm Up

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Vocalises To be played in A, C, and Eb

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Sequences

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