Sorry to hear you had a bad day, Steve. I know how frustrating that can be. Everyone on here, Greg included, have been there. I remember less than a year ago feeling like throwing my 30+ year old trumpet across the room and quitting for good. I was pretty close to doing so.

What was so frustrating was that I had gone from where I was before, barely above the staff to High C to High F (just below double G), then lost it and slid back down below High C again and felt like I lost what I had gained.

I took Greg’s advice and focused back on the very beginning and slowly worked up.

I think the course is great as it’s laid out and following it is beneficial.

But I am going to go out on a limb and suggest that it’s important not to think that there is something about how the WindWorks exercises are laid out that simply playing the exercises will build your range up to where it needs to be or build your flexibility, etc.

I believe the exercises and lessons, at least in the beginning, are focused on helping us discover for ourselves the sensation of the aperture corners and the proper sensations we’re supposed to be feeling as we tighten the aperture as we ascend.

Simply progressing slowly from one lesson to another isn’t going to result in your progressing and having your own epiphany / coffee moment and realizing what it’s all about.

In my opinion, if you haven’t had an “aha” or “wow” moment when trying to do a harmonic slur, flexibility or ascend and it hasn’t felt remarkably easier and/or sounded better / more resonant, freer, etc. then you’re not on the right track yet.

I’m just a hobby / amateur player who played a lot in high school and dreamed of playing professionally but didn’t have the chops and chose a different path in life.

Now, it feels great to finally have the feeling that I finally understand how to play this instrument that I have spent so much time, blood, sweat and tears over. And I am playing it in a way that I’m not tearing myself down everytime I practice but by playing more efficiently, my practice is much more effective.

I don’t have time to play through all the WindWorks exercises and other studies too. Sometimes I simply do a warmup, do some flexibility studies, harmonic slurs and play some music. But the mmmmmmmmmmmmwwwwwwwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhoooooooooooooo is key for me, as is the BCH and thinking about the air column, less is more, the 1% rule–trying to be more efficient and have a more resonant sound each time. I try not to battle the horn and myself and get in my own way; I think I used to do that and now I try to work with the horn, think about interacting with the air column as little as necessary and trying to stay out of its way / keeping it as untouched as possible.

When I do that, I have good days.

When I have limited time, expect myself to hit certain notes, don’t pay attention to how I’m feeling and try to force things, don’t play music that is pleasing to me or musical, I don’t enjoy it and wonder what I’m doing and why I’m doing it at all.

I’m busy, but I do (obviously…) have pockets of free time where I can practice and read/post on forums… I’ve been very passionate about this lately due to the great sensations and great progress that’s been increasing lately. I have a lot of momentum and I’m really excited for this weekend, when I can play during the day, without a mute and hear how things sound and feel freely. I have been focusing on some exercises which seem to be helping me build endurance, strength and dynamic ability (i.e. playing louder). I’m cautiously optimistic that tomorrow or Sunday may be a new high for me, but I must be careful to approach my sessions with patience and not rush or push to hard too soon. Fingers crossed…

You should take Greg’s advice and Skype with him–he’s been through this personally himself, I doubt there’s a better guide out there. I doubt you’ll get completely sorted out on one Skype call; however, I’m sure it will help you get on the right track and headed in the right direction.

I think each of our journeys is unique and we all have our own obstacles to overcome which are different, but there are some common problems we can help one another solve.