In our many years of service to brass communities around the world, these  might be the 3 most significant questions that are posed by players young and old. You probably have asked these questions yourself, and the answers are waiting for you here.

One is a brass instrument, one is a string instrument. Both are pretty rock-and-roll, but that is not the similarity we are talking about. Think sound production and you are getting close. Watch this Denis Wick Quick Clinic with DW artist Chris O'Hara and gain a new understanding about your trumpet and your mouthpiece too!

With horn players, what we put in the bell is very important. It starts at the very beginning with how to hold the instrument. The right hand position can make or break things like tuning, tone quality, projection, how easily the instrument plays, and even the range.

While muted passages become more common as players advance, the need for a mute in band or orchestra can happen after only a couple years. As with the position of the hand, the mute choice makes all the difference in how the horn plays.

Music is imaginary. It is created in our imagination. "If we want to have the greatest amount of success manifesting our imagination into reality, we need a strong connection to the physical world." Enter the mouthpiece. What you buzz is what you hear. "Buzzing is like singing for your lips." Continue the discussion in this video clinic title Buzzing - the Secret to Brass Playing Success with long time Denis Wick artist, Victor Haskins. Make sure to follow his YouTube page and access a huge library of performance and career advice for brass players.

The rim is the part of the mouthpiece that physically contacts our face. As a result, it is the part of the mouthpiece that effects our comfort most. So what makes a rim comfortable?

Laughter is the best medicine, and an excellent teacher. Laugh and learn while you explore these 9 pieces of performance and career advice. All that extra laughter is good for the chop muscles too!

A great band director is the start to a great music education. However every great band director knows a great private teacher will lead their students to the next level. These private teachers are carefully chosen by band directors because they can mold the future success of each of their students and encourage the growth of their band programs. 

So what is a band director looking for in a great private teacher?

In his web series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, Jerry Seinfeld says of performing: “I don’t accept the judging of process. It doesn’t matter [how you prepare]. We’re all trying to get to the same island. Whether you, swim, fly, surf, or skydive in, it doesn’t matter. What matters is when the red light comes on.”