Applications

The Brass for Beginners® curriculum can be used effectively in the following educational environments:

  • General music
  • Beginning band
  • Brass methods
  • Community music schools
  • Music services/music education hubs
  • Montessori and parochial schools
  • PTA-sponsored after school enrichment
  • Lifelong Learning
  • Summer music camps
  • Therapeutic day schools
  • Special educational needs & disabilities (SEND)
  • Private instruction

General Music

“Brass for Beginners is a perfect fit for the elementary general music classroom. The natural trumpet allows for ease in playing, including for those with differing cognitive and physical abilities and/or lack of prior brass experience. The materials are engaging from beginning to end; the use of historical fiction hooks students, facilitating engaging and meaningful discussions of social-emotional topics while promoting creative thinking, inspiring students to compose music that fits stories from the text. I fully recommend Brass for Beginners to any general music teacher looking to provide students an extraordinary hands-on brass experience.”

Stephanie Abudayeh
K-5 General Music Teacher /Vocal Music Department Chair
Evanston/Skokie, IL District 65

Beginning Band

"At Evanston Township High School, we have reaped the long-term benefits of the Brass for Beginners program for years. Top brass players in each of our ensembles trace their foundations back to this fabulous approach. They enter ETHS with a good tone concept that is free of tension and consistent in range across the instrument. We are so grateful for the strong start they receive through Brass for Beginners."

Matthew Bufis
Director of Bands
Evanston Township High School

Brass Methods Courses

"My collegiate Brass Methods students have all experienced ease and rapid success moving from the BfB trumpet to modern trumpet, horn, trombone, and tuba. Their range on the modern instruments develops quickly and they are able to find and match pitches faster. By training students to learn the harmonic series from the very beginning without using valves, it gives them the opportunity to focus on the fundamentals of brass playing, developing an efficient, beautiful sound, relying solely on aural skills to find desired pitches. Building a solid foundation of how to create sound easily and hearing pitches without any assistance from valves is beneficial to playing any brass instrument. Furthermore, my students have enjoyed learning the history of lip-blown instruments through BfB's engaging textbook and online resources."
Anna Mayne
French horn, Brass Methods, and Music Appreciation Instruction
Northeastern Illinois University, Chicago, IL

Community Music Schools

“Brass for Beginners is far and away the most effective method I have used for group instruction of young brass players. By mastering the fundamentals of tone production before introducing valves or slides, my students were able to progress further than their peers who were being trained in a more traditional program. Having taught the Brass for Beginners curriculum in private lessons and in a classroom setting, I can confidently say that this method has applications in a wide range of educational settings. ”
Dr. Craig Levesque
Brass and Composition Faculty
Rider University, Princeton, NJ

Lifelong learning

"Why should only young people have an opportunity to discover the joys and challenges of playing brass? Having taught several adult students in a private setting, and having presented hands-on workshops in senior centers and lifelong learning programs, it has become apparent that the natural trumpet is an ideal vehicle for learning the basics of brass for adults. The instrument is perfect for those with limited strength or mobility, and the increased use of the respiratory system has clear health benefits. Furthermore, lifelong learners gravitate towards subject matter related to history, so the BfB curriculum, tracing the history of lip-blown instruments alongside the evolution of humanity, proves both stimulating and engaging."
Chris Hasselbring
BfB Founder and Trumpet Faculty
Music Institute of Chicago