Diary of performing mastership: the sphere of universal skills of modern trumpeter
Authors: Kontsevych O.Yu. 
Published: March 2020

At the present stage of development, the musical society has the centuries-long artistic experience. The evolution of educating professionals in the performing sphere has contributed to the creation of musical masterpieces in different genres. The birth and decline of numerous musical styles and trends has led to new requirements for trumpeters and their capabilities. Of course, the development of trumpet playing has always been accompanied by the new techniques and methods aimed at implementing the composer tasks. However, we can often observe the use and borrowing of the same performance techniques and methods aimed at overcoming common difficulties, for example, in academic or jazz music. Modern Ukrainian primary and secondary educational institutions maintain their position to educate narrow specialized trumpeters, while European countries are increasingly frequently raising universal performers. The trumpeters having one-vector performance skills, for example, academic or solely jazz ones, narrow own performance capabilities. It limits their professional performance in their subsequent solo and orchestral practices. This suggests the need to create the methods for training special universal skills for trumpeters, which will expand their capabilities and ensure the ability to play different music. The article explores the universal performances abilities of a modern trumpeter. The capabilities and skills are singled out, combinations of which allow the trumpeter to master the professional performance of both academic and pop-jazz works. The classification of techniques and skills laying the foundation for broad specialization and professional experience of a trumpeter is proposed. The characteristic of the technological component of the universal trumpet skills is provided. Based on the research of scientific explorations and practical achievements of modern trumpeters, a list of the masters is specified, who are the bearers of universal abilities, the names and achievements of these professionals are presented in the article. Background. By analyzing and comparing the researches and publications of some authors, we distinguish the components that can provide the trumpeter with a universal ability to work with academic and pop-jazz material. The education of modern trumpeter specialists is based on the scientific and methodological works of the leading specialists: J. Arban, E. Bolvin, S. Watterman, I. Gishka, K. Gordon, T. Dokschitzer, K. Caruso, G. Clarke, Ch. Colin, D. Muedinov, H. Orvid, J. O’Neill, O. Stepurko, etc. Each author uses his own methods aimed at gaining or developing some particular practical skills of the trumpeter. However, such works are characterized by a clear orientation, which is projected solely on academic or pop-jazz specifics. The works of J. Arban, G. Clarke, T. Dokschitzer are devoted to the development of solely academic features of the performing musician, while S. Watterman, E. Bolvin, J. O’Neill and O. Stepurko take care of the jazz image of their fans. Thus, a completely newest step in the trumpet art would be a creation of a fundamentally new methodological concept in formation of specialists that would be based on production of symbiosis patterns and combination of universal skills in playing the academic and pop-jazz music. Objectives. The purpose of the paper is to distinguish and study the universal performer skills of the trumpeter, which will allow using the experience of a specialist in academic and pop-jazz art work in many various aspects. Methods. The following methods of research have been used in the paper: historical – when reviewing the methods and algorithm of training trumpeters in Ukraine and in the world; comparative – when analyzing and comparing the well-known theoretical works on the method of teaching playing the trumpet; empirical – when analyzing the thoughts expressed by prominent performing trumpeters and educators having the universal capabilities of academic and pop-jazz performances; inductive and deductive – when studying the issue on acquiring universal performance skills that will expand the specialization of the trumpeter and promote mastering the skill of performing academic and pop-jazz works. Results. At the beginning of the paper, we have considered the concepts of universal skills and performances of trumpeters. The achievements of the most prominent performing musicians having the universal capabilities of playing academic and pop-jazz music have been distinguished. The main part of the paper studies the process of acquiring universal skills by the trumpeter, which is defined as: 1) experience, and 2) technology. In our opinion, the basis of professional experience of the trumpeter’s universal art is: a) fluency in traditional and non-traditional techniques of playing the trumpet; b) practicing the different styles of music and performance; c) experience in improvisation and arrangement. The final part of the paper provides a list of universal skills of the trumpeter: a) the endurance of the lips muscles; b) the knowledge of the articulation and fingering combination theory; c) the use of high-tone sound focus and epithelium muscles flexibility control; d) the manipulation of the sound tone; e) the technique of playing the extreme limits of the range; e) the skill of long-term playing in the extreme limits of the high pitch sound-dynamic zone. Conclusions. Musicians-trumpeters, working in a narrow specialization, understand well that the level of performance technology has grown so fast in the recent years that performers should seek alternative methods to master it. Nowadays, the trumpet performing art needs new ideas for its improvement and development. Therefore, when educators-trumpeters base their school on the narrow specialization skills, i.e. performance in academic or pop-jazz manner, the music industry lacks valuable professionals. Thus, we have outlined the need to expand the mastering of the trumpeter’s special skills, which will allow performers acquiring a wide range of skills, achieving mastery and showing themselves in a wide range of orchestral and ensemble groups. The universal skills, considered herein, should be recommended for the trumpeters to introduce into their own system of personal training. Skilfully mastering them, the trumpeter will open the world of new performance opportunities.