Mouth trumpet
Encyclopedia
Mouth trumpet is a vocal technique that imitates the sound of the trumpet
.
The mouth trumpet sound is produced by using the vocal cords
to produce the desired pitch
and passing the sound through the lips that are held together with just enough tension so that they vibrate at the same frequency as the vocal cords, producing a trumpet-like sound.
In effect, mouth trumpet is like playing a trumpet backwards. To play a trumpet, the player vibrates the lips against the mouthpiece by blowing a stream of air through the lips. The desired pitch is produced by varying the length of the air column in the tubing of the trumpet by the use of three valves. The vocal cords are not normally used in playing the trumpet. To produce the mouth trumpet sound, the pitch is produced by the vocal cords before it reaches the lips and the lips then buzz to add the trumpet effect.
Lip trumpet is another trumpet imitation technique (also known as lip buzzing) in that air is blown through squeezed lips to make them squeak (like with the real trumpet) to produce a tone without vocal cords. The pitch is controlled by lip tension and position. The timbre can also be varied by tongue position. Particularly difficult is here to control the lip humidity which strongly changes the available pitch range. Both techniques can be combined to play 2 note polyphonic.
Similar play techniques were employed in jug band
s to blow the jug
, stove pipe and partly watering can.
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
.
The mouth trumpet sound is produced by using the vocal cords
Vocal folds
The vocal folds, also known commonly as vocal cords, are composed of twin infoldings of mucous membrane stretched horizontally across the larynx...
to produce the desired pitch
Pitch (music)
Pitch is an auditory perceptual property that allows the ordering of sounds on a frequency-related scale.Pitches are compared as "higher" and "lower" in the sense associated with musical melodies,...
and passing the sound through the lips that are held together with just enough tension so that they vibrate at the same frequency as the vocal cords, producing a trumpet-like sound.
In effect, mouth trumpet is like playing a trumpet backwards. To play a trumpet, the player vibrates the lips against the mouthpiece by blowing a stream of air through the lips. The desired pitch is produced by varying the length of the air column in the tubing of the trumpet by the use of three valves. The vocal cords are not normally used in playing the trumpet. To produce the mouth trumpet sound, the pitch is produced by the vocal cords before it reaches the lips and the lips then buzz to add the trumpet effect.
Lip trumpet is another trumpet imitation technique (also known as lip buzzing) in that air is blown through squeezed lips to make them squeak (like with the real trumpet) to produce a tone without vocal cords. The pitch is controlled by lip tension and position. The timbre can also be varied by tongue position. Particularly difficult is here to control the lip humidity which strongly changes the available pitch range. Both techniques can be combined to play 2 note polyphonic.
Similar play techniques were employed in jug band
Jug band
A Jug band is a band employing a jug player and a mix of traditional and home-made instruments. These home-made instruments are ordinary objects adapted to or modified for making of sound, like the washtub bass, washboard, spoons, stovepipe and comb & tissue paper...
s to blow the jug
Jug (musical instrument)
The jug as a musical instrument reached its height of popularity in the 1920s, when jug bands, such as Cannon's Jug Stompers were popular. The jug is just that: an empty jug played with the mouth...
, stove pipe and partly watering can.
Mouth trumpet artists (external links)
- Raul MidonRaul MidónRaúl Midón is a singer-songwriter and guitarist from New Mexico, based in New York City. He combines his distinct voice, strumming, beats, and vocal mouth trumpet sounds to create a one-man performance. His unique style shows influence of virtually every musical genre which came before him,...
RealPlayer video - Yancarlos Sanchez- video
- The Bilgewater Brothers
- Watermelon Trumpet