STAMP, James - Warm-ups + Studies

trumpet and other brass instruments

Level: easy / advanced
Composer: 1904-1985

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Basic Concepts Most students of James Stamp have always believed the Stamp Warm-Ups were more effective when played in his presence and under his tutelage than when played in private practice sessions. The Stamp exercises, perhaps more than other brass methods, emphasize musical principles as much as physical concepts to accomplish the desired technical results. Perhaps the most famous Stamp aphorism was that if it sounded correct (i.e. «in-tune») then one was doing it correctly. Or, conversely, if one did not play correctly it would not sound correct. Indeed, everything that has been said or written about Mr. Stamp and his teaching/playing concepts reinforces this basic idea. To implement his concepts, James Stamp would play the Warm-Ups/ Exercises on the piano keyboard while the students would simultaneously play them on the mouthpiece or the instrument. This method imposed a certain discipline and minimized the need for an inordinate amount of verbal instructions and analyses since any problems would become known almost immediately and consequently could be addressed early in the training process... The CD accompaniments Original music by Thomas Stevens Adapted for electronic sounds and recorded by Tom Dambly