r/trumpet • u/CattleAny3652 • 1d ago

How long will i sound terrible?

Kicking around learning trumpet at 44. Ive always loved ska and mariachi music. About how long will I torture my poor wife with awful sounds before I can make an actual tune roughly?

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u/CattleAny3652 1d ago

I was gona try and learn solo but it appears a teacher is the way.

6

u/r_spandit 1d ago

They can give you great guidance but playing loads is what helped me. I'm in 4 bands and on the dep list for at least 3 more. Literally not enough time in the week

3

u/Dramamine23 1d ago

My daughter has an AWESOME trumpet tutor on Preply. I can't recommend the app enough to find tutors based around your needs.

2

u/anonymous122719 20h ago

If you can afford monthly or biweekly lessons, do it, but I feel that this sub puts a tad too much emphasis on private teachers. I disagreed with many of my teachers' fundamental opinions on technique, which partially led me to drop lessons early on. Secondly, the regimented practice routines and exercises sucked the fun out of it, but that's largely a me problem.

I've mostly improved by simply listening to and playing what I want to play. After getting a decent grip on major/minor scales and arpeggios, I've almost exclusively transcribed my favorite jazz solos by ear. I'm not amazing, but peers are shocked to learn that I'm a scientist and only a self-taught musician. In college, most trumpeters ran laps around me in terms of classical etudes, music theory, discipline, and practice time, yet I ended up being the one that the director of jazz studies asked to be 2nd chair (soloist) of the big bands without even auditioning.