Books by Brad Edwards

Simply Singing for Winds:
A Wellspring of Melodies for Building Tone and Technique

Click here to order Simply Singing for Winds (now available in medium bass clef and low bass clef)

You can never have too many good tunes to play! Simply Singing is nothing more than a big collection of tunes – both folk songs and original melodies. It is 114 pages long and is divided into five sections:

Building a Foundation
30 original “Foundation Pieces,” each in a clearly defined musical
style.

Singing Smoothly
63 legato melodies. Some arranged as duets. Some are sequences of
short melodic ideas. Most melodies are presented in two keys.

Singing with a Bounce
44 melodies in a detached style. Includes sets of short etudes
focusing on a particular rhythmic/metric element

Singing with Style
12 original pieces to strengthen a sense of common musical styles:
4 waltzes, 4 marches and 4 fanfares.

Fiddling Around
16 fiddle tunes adapted for wind instruments. Good for testing
technique!

Samples from the book: Simply Singing: Medium Bass Clef (pdf)

Samples from the book: Simply Singing: Low Bass Clef (pdf)

For now, this book is self-published. Click here to order.

Here's what people are saying about Simply Singing:

I find myself playing from your Simply Singing book on a daily basis. These exercises cover so many of of the basic fundamentals of playing at one time, and with a musical approach. The comprehensive layout makes practicing easier. I recommend this book to all of my colleagues and students.
Larry Zalkind
Principal Trombone, Utah Symphony
Acting Associate Principal Trombonist, Los Angeles Philharmonic

Simply Singing for Tuba is a well-organized, progressive collection of songs and etudes for tuba. Your commentary is helpful, and even the titles of each etude provide a little inspiration. Printing the etudes twice, in different registers, is a great idea. I have always enjoyed spending some time each day on simple, melodic material, and I find your book to be a nice additon to a practice routine.
Craig Knox
Principal Tuba, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
Center City Brass Quintet
Artist Lecturer, Carnegie Mellon University
Adjunct Professor, Duquesne University

I've finally spent some time with your new book, another excellent resource for us! I've particularly enjoyed using it for buzzing practice, sitting at the piano (actually, usually my keyboard on an organ setting) playing the chords (simple enough for me to handle!!) while buzzing. The duets have been good to play in lessons--good range and open intervals for intonation work, plus good music. I also find the technical material such as the numerous tonguing etudes and "Fiddling Around" section very useful. As with your "Lip Slurs" book, you offer very useful yet concise playing tips. I'm finding myself using the "Simply Singing" and " Lip Slurs" on a daily basis.
Matt Vaughn
Associate Principal Trombone
Philadelphia Orchestra

This book is a MUST HAVE for any player wanting to build a better sound and for all those advanced and professional players that want to KEEP theirs!
David Fedderly
Principal Tubist, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Faculty, Juilliard School of Music
(Note: Mr. Fedderly received both the medium bass clef version as well as an advance copy of the low bass clef version) which I hope to publish soon.

I hear the greatest singers in the world, singing great melodies, every night at the MET. It has transformed me as a musician and made me further realize how important melody is for development as an artist. With Dr Brad Edwards' new book, musicians have a "wellspring" of melodies in one book to use in practice.
Denson Paul Pollard
Bass Trombonist, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra

Simply Singing for Winds by Brad Edwards is a welcome addition to the educational repertoire of any low brass teacher and student. It is made up of short songs and duets that are effective in improving a better sense of pitch, lyricism, and the buzz. Dr. Edwards uses many techniques to make the excercises more useful, such as adding harmonic analyses, alternate transpositions, and tips for maximizing the benefit for the individual songs. The book is very helpful for teachers of younger students, with simple duets and easy melodies. Yet Simply Singing may be even more useful for players looking to polish their already refined playing with excercises designed to help them focus on the basics that we struggle with every day.
George Curran
Bass Trombonist, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

"Simply Singing" provides musicians with source material to improve all aspects of their musicianship - through the learning, knowing, and perfecting of simple tunes. Dr. Edwards says this is not a method book; he's right, it's way better than that! Simply put, Brad Edwards delivers another "must-have" book in "Simply Singing."
Dr. Michael Davidson
Trombone Professor, The University of Kansas

With his musical approach to technique, Brad Edwards is barking right up my tree!
I find it very valuable and will recommend it highly to my students. Thanks again for your excellent work.
Carl Lenthe
Trombone Professor, Jacobs School of Music
Indiana University

I just opened the envelope with your book and in looking through it am absolutely amazed at what you have compiled. It will be most useful at any number of levels and with any number of techniques. And it will save me an immense amount of time, not having to write out challenging things to buzz, play, sing etc. I can't thank you enough.
Mike Wheeler
Private studio instructor in Northern Virginia and former member United States Air Force Band in Washington, D.C.

Here is yet another invaluable collection of studies that belongs on the music stand of every serious wind musician. I used to have to look far and wide to supply my students even a handful of these tunes, and now they are all right here at my fingertips! As always, Prof. Edwards' liner notes are incredibly useful for students and teachers alike, and his original exercises are a welcome departure from the norm. Thank you!!
Anthony Mazzocchi
Professor of Trombone, Montclair State University
Facilitator, The Academy—a program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and The Weill Music Institute in partnership with the New York City Department of Education

Like his previous two books, this present beauty has become a staple in my teaching. Very few books are so expertly crafted, so thoughtfully compiled, and so darn effective!
Bravo and thanks, Brad, for the hard work done on our behalf."
Tom Gibson
Kennesaw State University
Mercer University
TromboneLessons.com

Lip Slurs:
Progressive Exercises for the Development of
Tone and Technique.

Lip Slurs is an 84-page comprehensive supplement for any trombone (or euphonium) player wishing to build technique and improve tone quality. The difficulty ranges from basic to virtuoso.
It includes three main sections:
1. Slow Slurs - To build tone, improve range and develop control.
2. Fast Slurs - To build facility throughout the range of the instrument.
3. Lip Slur Melodies - Etudes reminiscent of the Bordogni vocalizes with an interesting twist: all the legato phrases can be played completely with natural lip slurs.

With permission from Ensemble Publications, I am able to reprint some sample pages from this book.
All these files are in Adobe Acrobat Format.

Slow Lip Slurs	Fast Lip Slurs	Lip Slur Melodies
p.16 p.27	p.38 p.52	p.65 p.69 p.82

Here's what people are saying about Lip Slurs:

This is the bible of Lip Slurs. If you ever get bored of your routine, simply get a copy of Brad Edwards' Lip Slur Book and these exercises will last you a lifetime. I have always said that it essential to visit lip slurs everyday you pick up the horn. This is the perfect book to keep you going.
Joseph Alessi
Principal Trombone, New York Philharmonic

In his book "Lip Slurs," Brad Edwards has taken an important part of the trombone player's daily routine and added clarity to it. His approach is sensible, the exercises are comprehensive and the result is undeniably positive. Kudos to Brad Edwards for this excellent addition to the trombone repertoire; he has brought the concept of the lip slur forward to the post-modern trombonist who may have mistakenly thought that he already understood the subject well enough.
Douglas Yeo
Bass Trombonist, Boston Symphony Orchestra

I was really impressed by the insight and organization of your Lip Slurs book. With every page I practiced and played, I was amazed at the variety of patterns that you discovered. Not only is your book a perfect challenge for any serious trombonist, it also allows each one of us the opportunity to excel in this vital technical area of trombone playing. Bravo for this first rate etude book. I predict that Lip Slurs will quickly find its way into the personal libraries of trombonists everywhere.
Milton Stevens
Former Principal Trombonist, National Symphony Orchestra

I looked at your lip slurs book and I think it is fantastic! Very well done. Lots of variety, well laid out, good explanations and the etudes are great - very clever. I intend to recommend them to my students.
Matt Vaughn
Associate Principal Trombonist, Philadelphia Orchestra

Lip Slurs is published by Ensemble Publications (available through Hickey's Music).

Introductory Studies in Tenor and Alto Clef -
"Before Blazhevich:

This 56-page book uses a mixture of exercises and short etudes to help teach tenor and alto clef quickly and effectively. Using a system of "guidepost notes," students learn a few easily recognizable pitches and then progress smoothly to more challenging material. The first main section of the book focuses on tenor clef (75 exercises); the second on alto clef (36 exercises). Six final etudes use all three clefs.

Special sections are devoted to the skills of reading B-flat treble clef and bass clef transposed as tenor clef down an octave. Unlike other popular methods, these original exercises and etudes avoid rote learning and "playing by ear."

Most of the etudes include pedagogical commentary and also serve as good musical character studies. Melodies sometimes take unexpected turns to keep students on their toes. Can also be used as sight-reading practice for more advanced students. Effective for bassoon and cello as well.

Clef Studies is published by Ensemble Publications (available through Hickey's Music).

Here's what people are saying about Clef Studies..

I plan on making this book my primary method for the teaching of tenor and alto clef. What I like most is Brad's use of a "Guidepost" system that most of my students will understand and remember. Other great aspects of the book are the pacing (it progresses quite nicely), the written commentary, and the use of new unfamiliar melodies. Congratulations on adding a new and relevant book to the resources for trombone.
Keith Jackson
Professor of Low Brass, West Virginia University

Great book, well organized. A very interesting and useful step by step method to learning clefs. Particularly useful is Brad's idea of guidepost notes. Highly recommended!
Don Lucas
Trombone Soloist and professor at Boston University