Q: What is the purpose of the warmup?
A:The purpose of the warmup is to prepare the lips for the demands required of them in the session immediately following that warmup...So, for example, if you are going to be practicing rather leisurely you could take a longer time playing them, or if you are going to be playing very loudly or very high you might need to do wider crescendos and or higher ripples...The whole point is for the warmups to be flexible to the needs of the player, rather than being a rigid routine(which could cause anxieties when a player has less time for a warmup--as sometimes happens when players who are used to a lengthy warmup have to play with little or no warmup at all and they panic)...With these warmups, you should be able to play in as little as 2-5 minutes(sometimes even less), when necessary and then consciously focus on continuing the process during actual playing....

The other thing that these warmups attempt to do is to set the body up for  playing... Thus, one should always use good posture and proper hand positions(no slouching, please) either when warming up or when playing.

And the warmup is the time to focus on breathing, muscle use, airstream focus and other aspects of playing which should, through practice, become more automatic in performance...

Q: What specific things to strive for in lip-buzz?
A: There are several different ways to buzz: the *horseflap* or very slow, gentle buzz, really helps to get the blood to begin to flow into the lip tissues...

The sharp *quack* buzz is good for focusing pitch and accuracy...

And the melodic buzz is good for ear training as well as strengthening the lips...

Q: What sound should one aim for when buzzing the mouthpiece?
A: Depends on the type of buzz being used...could be slow and gentle(like a tuba note) or angry and harsh(like a bee buzzing) for the higher melodic buzz...

Q: "elephant farts" (great name!) - do you advocate playing them very strong?
A: No. I don't...And the reason for _that_ is that playing them very strongly can bruise the lips(by causing them to bang hard against the edges of the teeth and the metal of the mouthpiece)...and my entire focus is that of preventing injuries from occuring(though I spend much time in correcting those that have already happened)...It's much like (medical analogy, again) a physician who tries to teach good nutrition and good body form to athletes to prevent injuries before they happen, but also is capable of teaching the athlete how to heal the injury if it _does_ occur...(and, by extension, teach proper position and movement to prevent reoccuring or future injury)...

So, once again, these *elephant farts* should be very nice and loose(and slow in vibration)--their purpose is to  1.  Get the blood flowing; 2. Get the air flowing; 3. Warm, loosen, and limber the facial muscles; and 4. (When needed) refresh(this is done by helping blood to flow through the tissues, thus washing away the by-products of metabolism, namely the ash that comes from burning the muscles' fuel...)

Q: Toners - what volume here, and do you emphasise air speed when shifting to upper note?
A: Start mezzo piano to mezzo forte and crescendo, but only to forte(especially to begin with--again, we're looking to begin the process of playing, not injure delicate tissue)...

And, yes, most definitely INCREASE the air speed(and the abdominal support) to change harmonics....

At first, beginners may use far too much movement of the facial muscles--that's okay;  beginners at anything often tend to exaggerate(muscle control begins with larger muscles, then spreads to smaller muscles with time, and development)--think of starting to ride a bicycle, or even writing with a pencil: at first, children use a very thick pencil, and write in very big letters; gradually they develop more control and are able to write smaller, with smaller writing utensils, and eventually learn to write in *cursive(or sometimes even more advanced calligraphy!)

You do, also, want to bring the chin muscles up as you ascend(though the jaw needs to remain as open as possible)--this creates the *bunched chin* which Rune has described so well to the younger players...Again, you are training the muscles to do the job they'll need to do when playing(which must be unconscious at the point of performance)....These specific muscles(for the toners) are mostly the *mentalis* muscles of the chin, which, when well-developed produce a sort of triangle, with the base as the chin, and the two diagonals leading from the outsides of the chin, up, towards the center of the bottom lip....

Q: Tonguing - do you use the tip of the tongue between the teeth all the time?
A: No. I don't use the tongue between the teeth always...for example, one cannot legato tongue this way(legato must be articulated on the roof of the mouth)...I _DO_, however, insist on this process during the tonguing portion of the warmup, which, btw, is part of the *lip* warmup moreso than the *tongue* warmup(which I believe belongs in the regular practice session, unless a particular passage is very difficult, in which case it gets added onto the end of the warmup, before the rest of practicing/performing...)

The reason this is considered part of the *lip* warmup is that the tongue placed on the inside of the bottom lip, where it meets the lower edge of the top teeth, allows for tremendous pressure to build up within the oral cavity....(remember bodily support of the air)

When that tongue is removed, and the air is released, there is a tremendous burst of air power against the lips, which must hold strongly to keep from collapsing...Hence, a lip exercise....

Q: Is this in your opinion considered controversial, that is, have you met reaction?
A: Yes, of course, there are those who adhere to the *always touch the tip of the tongue to the back of the top teeth theory*...I don't....

There are so many colours available to us as trumpeters: in timbre, in dynamics, and, yes, in articulations....

We can play very marcato attacks with abrupt releases(as should occur in these tonguing warmups), or at the other extreme, we can play such delicate legato with tenuto releases, that the sound is like that of a flowing stream over the stones in its bed....or any range of articulation/release in between, including double, triple, and doodle tonguing....

What a wonderful diversity!  Why limit yourself to one style of tonguing?  This is what separates the artists from the journeymen; attention to detail....

Back to the tonguing...for very strong, marcato attacks, it IS best to strike upon the inside of the lip--as it is for very delicate, but clear(rather than legato) attacks, especially in the very high register...but at other times, it's, of course, important to be able to tongue on the teeth, or the roof of the mouth, or even(for a VERY vulgar effect) through the lips themselves(though I don't recommend this for most types of playing/players at all)....

It is also helpful to keep the tip of the tongue as far forward as possible after the attack(to prevent the pitch from dropping from the lower lip's collapsing inward)...This is also helpful when arching the tongue--if the arch is farther forward than the soft palate area, there is less likelihood of *headrush* occuring, since forced air is not being directed up into the delicate nasal sinuses(again, prophylaxis against injury)...

Is this controversial?  You tell me...Is is worthwhile to learn to play with flexibility and versatility, without the risk of injury(and the possibility of an end to playing)?  I think it is...

Q: If going high ( Flex no. 4) do you feel that flexibility can be better done later in practice?
A: Honestly? I usually play the ripples up to at least g'''(the g above high C above the staff) when I do my warmups, and generally recommend that my students play to their highest, comforable note...and then make three attempts at the next series _above_ that *comfortable* note...

ALWAYS TRY THREE TIMES!(it's a sign that's been on the walls of my studios for years along with: *I _CAN_ DO IT!*)...More than three tries without success, and you're starting to beat yourself up--not a good thing!....less than three tries and you're giving up too soon....

You'll be surprised at how quickly this begins to yield results....

Q: This is a point that Allen Vizzutti make, and apart from some easy flex'es he do not use them as part of his warm up.
A: That's your choice, of course, but you might like to try the *ripples* as the flexes on the warmups(these are done very quickly, as *lazy* octave slurs in which you _want_ to hit every harmonic in between, without stopping on the highest note, but coming right back down again)--these are _very_ good for developing that lower lip!