Hear the note before you play it, and let the trumpet come to you

Decide how the note is going to sound and feel before you play it, and when it doesn't come out, keep the feeling and go again without changing anything.

How you hear it decides what your body does

How you hear something is going to determine what your body will do. If you hear a poor sound in your mind, your body will produce a poor sound. You have to hear a really clear image of exactly what you want it to sound like, and you need to have it in a musical context too.

The trap of the first note

I used to do the opposite, and it is awful. You play a note. You listen to the sound. You think, that's not what I wanted it to be. It's the first note of the day, and now you are asking how to make it sound better. You start changing things. You become a servant to the instrument.

A lot of people I come across start from a new mountain every morning like this. I have been there too. If you put the horn on your face, listen to the sound and then judge, you are starting from a place of doubt and playing catch-up to the instrument.

Decide first, then play

Take a third space C. I imagine the easiest, most comfortable way that note could be played. I imagine it as hard as I can. Then I pick the horn up, and I don't play where I think a C is. I play where I want the C to be.

If the trumpet plays an E or a G on a different partial, I blame the trumpet. "Why are you not doing what I told you to do?" Then I go in again with the same feeling. I'm right, and the trumpet has to fall in line with me.

It is like a marriage that you lead. This is where a C is, whether the trumpet likes it or not. Obviously there is a bunch of subconscious stuff going on behind the scenes. But the perception is that the instrument comes to you. It doesn't work initially. It works eventually.

Build the session on trust

When the instrument comes to you, you stop doubting yourself. So I build the whole practice session on trust. It starts there: I trust how this note is going to feel.

This matters because our chops are changing all the time. People say, "I'm having an embouchure change." I say I have an embouchure change every day. It is a different set of cells. So I can't let the way it feels on the day make the decisions. I have to be in charge.

When I live in that mindset, the trumpet just works.

Keep the sound loud in your head

To decide what you want, you need something to aim at. Take your favourite player and pump that sound into your mind. I listened to Wayne Bergeron every single day for about 8 years. I would go on YouTube, filter by upload date and listen to every single one of his videos.

You need to know exactly where the peak of the mountain is. If it is only approximate, it's not going to happen for you.

One thing to try this week

Before your first note tomorrow, imagine a third space C at its most comfortable. Pick the trumpet up and play that feeling. If a different note comes out, change nothing. Blame the trumpet and go again with the same feeling.

More trumpet advice

• Warm up for the day in front of you, not the same way every day
• How to build trumpet endurance: there is no way round playing more
• What to practise at home on the trumpet, and what you only get from playing with people