Jazz Trumpet Licks

This whole tone pattern repeats the same pattern going down in whole steps. I hear a lot of Jazz musicians use this whole tone lick in different variations, usually to start off a Jazz line and then branch off into something else.

Here is a sound sample played on trumpet:

How to memorize this whole tone pattern in 12 keys:

Since this is a whole tone pattern, you’ll only need to memorize it in 2 keys depending on which note you start on. You can see that this whole tone lick’s scale pattern is 1 2 3 1 4 1 6 and it just repeats that pattern going down in whole steps as far down as you would like to go. That is pretty much how you memorize this whole tone pattern. All the notes of this lick are not part of the whole tone scale. Just the first four notes are. Since the lick repeats itself going down in whole steps, I added it to the whole tone category.

Freddie Hubbard takes a great Jazz trumpet solo on Cantelope Island. If you are interested in getting the DVD it’s One Night With Blue Note. This is actually one of Freddie Hubbard’s most famous trumpet solos. One of the things I love about Freddie Hubbard is how much he really gets into his solos and moves around a lot. I believe that this is one of the things Freddie Hubbard is most known for in the Jazz world, a lot of movement while playing his trumpet solos.

Another thing about this Jazz trumpet video, is you can really hear how Freddie Hubbard uses a lot of space in the beginning of his trumpet solo and then gradually builds it from there.

You need to listen to this Roy Hargrove trumpet solo on this ballad arrangement of It’s Easy to Remember from his album Approaching Standards. You’ll notice how Roy Hargrove and his rhythm section really connect on the solo. Roy Hargrove also does a great job demonstrating how a ballad should be played by using lots of breaks and simple melodies. This is really a catchy trumpet solo.

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