On a Bb trumpet, which tuning slide should I use and what notes should I use it for?

Question

I recently started playing a Bach Strad 180-37. My old trumpet did not have a thumb throw and the 3rd slide was impossible to move so I never bothered with using it. Which slide should I use and what notes should I use it on?

Answer 1

Sit in front of a tuner for ages on end, and you will have your answer.

A quicker way is to know that generally, the 3rd valve slide is used on low D and C#, especially on sustained notes. If you try to do this in a fast etude, you'll trip all over yourself.

The first valve slide is used for the upper register when you tend to go sharp. Again, it is not very practical to use the slide because it messes with your embouchure when you move your thumb around. If you have a good ear, you really don't need slides- you can lip the notes down.

You can get both of them to move by getting some very fine steel wool and gently rubbing it around the valve. after that, get some slide grease and you should be good to go with two more tuning tricks in your bag.

good Luck and have fun playing!

Answer 2

Trumpet Tuning Slide

Answer 3

It sounds like no one has ever taught you exactly how the architechture of the trumpet makes it work, so I'll give you some basics of tuning.

-The main tuning slide tunes everything. Only try to tune with it when you have no valves pressed (aka when you are "open").
-The slide that is attached to the first valve tunes only notes that use the first valve.
-The slide that is attached to the second valve tunes only notes that use the second valve.
-The slide that is attached to the third valve tunes only notes that use the third valve.
-Anytime you move a slide that is attached to a valve (which is everything except the main tuning slide), you have to press that valve while you move it or it creates an air pressure problem inside the instrument and that's why you hear a little pop. It's not going to make the trumpet fall apart right in your hands or anything, but it is damaging over time so you should always do it correctly.

-Making an instrument longer lowers the sound, therefore you pull out a slide when you are sharp so that it brings the pitch down a little.
-Making an instrument shorter raises the sound, therefore you push in a slide when you are flat so that it brings the pitch up a little.

-You mainly use that third valve slide (the one with the thumb throw) on combinations of 1st and 3rd valves, like when you play D. You kick it out on that note, then pull it back in as soon as that note is done. You have to use a tuner to know how far to kick it out though. If you aren't sharp, you don't need to kick it out at all.
-You can use it when all the valves are pressed as well, but check the tuner. It may not be sharp for you. Everyone is different.

-You can also use the 3rd valve as an alternate fingering for any note that requires the 1st and 2nd valve, such as E. The only reason to do this is if you can't get that note in tune using 1st and 2nd. The way to figure that out is tuning the partials (partials are basically all the notes using that fingering). Tune open with the main tuning slide, then tune the notes using 1st with the 1st valve slide, then tune the notes using 2nd with the second valve slide. Then play notes using 1 and 2. If they are sharp, you can use 3 instead and kick out the 3rd valve slide if you need to. If they are flat, stick with the normal fingering and lip it up.

I hope this helps. If you need any more help, you can email me. My screen name on here is my yahoo email address.

Answer 4

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RE:
On a Bb trumpet, which tuning slide should I use and what notes should I use it for?
I recently started playing a Bach Strad 180-37. My old trumpet did not have a thumb throw and the 3rd slide was impossible to move so I never bothered with using it. Which slide should I use and what notes should I use it on?

Answer 5

Uh, well, there is one main tuning slide, that should never be kicked out after you set up your tuning. Other than that, the only slide you should be able to kick out is the one near your right pinky. It should only be used for certain notes, and I believe that they involve the third valve. Other than that, you don't need to kick out any slides at all while you play (only on certain notes).

Answer 6

Bb is only used for bands, but for an orchestra or string orchestra, A is used because it's an open string for the string instruments who mostly hold a big role in symphonies