A practice routine is a tool to become an excellent and consistent player. It also gives a scientific way to understand how to improve specific skills. These qualities are essential for a long successful career. Claude Gordon believed anyone could be a “virtuoso” if he knew how to practice.
I began studying with Jeff Purtle in June 2016 having been a successful semi-professional player for 13 years. I read Roger Ingram's book "Clinical Notes" and recognised myself as someone who was beginning to feel no benefit from routines designed 13years ago to keep me gig fit. After reading about Claude Gordon's approach on Jeff's website I attempted to study Claude's books without instruction.
Freelance Trumpeter
Brass Teacher
Wincanton, Somerset
United Kingdom
Why did so many people come from so far away to study with Claude Gordon? What made him unique? Why do so many people owe their careers to this man’s teaching?
“Trumpeter Jeff Purtle dreamed of balancing a nice standard of living with an independent teaching career while impacting students from across the globe. As an early adopter of video conferencing technology, he recognized that geography was largely irrelevant to reaching these aspirations. Moving to Greenville, SC, he built a vibrant teaching business while residing in this beautiful, affordable city that is close to family.”
Excerpt From: David Cutler. “The Savvy Music Teacher: Blueprint for Maximizing Income & Impact.” iBooks. https://itun.es/us/bNUe9.l
Author of The Savvy Musician and The Savvy Music Teacher
Keyboards for Boston Brass
Professor at University of South Carolina
Park City: Beautiful site of the 2002 Winter Olympics and the annual Sundance Film Festival
Answers from the personal notes and lectures of Claude Gordon
"If you think for one moment that a gadget or a gimmick will make you a good brass player you are in deep trouble. And yet, you see them advertised over and over again in popular brass magazines.
Homestead
The demands of working in Hollywood and being homesick for Montana's blue sky and tall trees prompted the Gordons' to choose a permanent home site in the San Bernardino mountains. A small airport in the heart of the Big Bear Valley determined the location.
On January of 1999 the Claude Gordon Music Enterprise website was launched. The website went offline in late 2012 after the death of Eric Swanson, Claude's stepson, which was preceded by the death of Claude's second wife, Patty Gordon, in 2011. These are archived pages from the original site. Some of the content has been condensed, combined and summarized to show all the content on each page in an easy to find manner.
In this article two of the seven fundamental physical items of Brass Playing are going to be explained. This article is meant to accompany the article How To Practice. The article What To Practice also explains how to apply all the Seven Basic Items in a daily practice routine using the various known method books.
HarryKimTrumpet.com for a complete list of credits
Yamaha Artist Page: http://www.yamaha.com/artists/georgeshelby.html
Herbert Lincoln Clarke (1867-1945) was a legend in his own time. He is easily the best known cornetist of all times. From his meager beginnings of practicing on an old Ophicleide and joining the Queen's Own Rifle Regimental Band in Toronto just so he could have a cornet (a Courtois) he could call his own to practice, one would never suspect such a career lay ahead of him.
My name is John Mohan and I was a student of Claude Gordon from 1979 until 1995, although I only studied part-time between 1987 and 1990 due to my being on the road as Musical Director and Trumpet Soloist for two different international Circuses during that time. I consider myself extremely fortunate in having had the opportunity to study with Claude, as I feel that his tutorship is largely responsible for my success as a professional trumpet player.
Read what these great artists say about Claude Gordon, his books, and his teaching. It really works for anyone that wants to learn to play correctly and it is the fastest way to develop as a brass player with strong fundamentals essential for a career playing any style of music.
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I have known Claude for a number of years. I knew him as a great trumpet player and also a great teacher.
I think his new book should help everyone who is interested in being a good, strong trumpet player.
Claude Gordon trumpets are very special to me. I have exclusively played a CG Selmer trumpet since December of 1984, when Claude picked one for me, and I still love it. My goal with this page is to help players find these exceptional trumpets. They were modeled after the best Meha Besson Trumpets of the past, as played by Claude Gordon, Conrad Gozzo, and great players of that era. The leadpipe design on the CG Trumpets was designed by Claude in his work with Dominic Collichio, the famous custom trumpet builder of Hollywood, California.
