Best of Belwin Jazz: First Year Charts Collection for Jazz Ensemble: 1st B-flat Trumpet Book

A genuine mix of jazz traditions and contemporary energy. Swing charts sit alongside Latin grooves and bluesy ballads; holiday and pop arrangements feel modern and approachable without sacrificing jazz vocabulary. The music sounds authentic to the styles it explores, never condescending.

First-year jazz ensemble trumpets who have solid fundamental technique on their instrument and are ready to apply it to stylistically specific contexts. This collection works equally well for a high school jazz 1 ensemble or an advanced middle school program with committed young players.

• Listen closely to the rhythm section's interpretation of the suggested voicings and chord rhythms; your articulation and phrasing should land cleanly with their groove, not against it.
• Study the written-out solos before attempting improvisation on any section marked for solo work; these give you vocabulary and phrasing models specific to each style.
• In ballad charts, shape your phrases by listening to how the piano and bass breathe; resist the urge to play straight through without lift and release.
• Lock your section's attacks and cutoffs by checking in rehearsal that all three trumpet parts are synchronized, especially on quick ensemble figures in swing and Latin tunes.

Build a jazz ensemble concert by programming 3-4 of these charts as your core repertoire, mixing tempos and styles to create momentum and variety. The written-out solos mean less rehearsal time spent on solo preparation and more time spent on ensemble cohesion, making this collection ideal for groups new to the jazz ensemble format.

• Playing swing eighth-note feel with proper articulation and space
• Executing Latin rhythms and clave-based grooves
• Phrasing and interpretation in ballad settings
• Reading and executing written-out jazz solos
• Blend and section precision in three-trumpet voicings
• Responding to and locking with rhythm section grooves