Transposition and trumpet mute?

Question

I'm planning on buying a trumpet mute, but i dont know if the mute is going to affect the frequencys of the instrument so: If i use a trumpet mute can I eliminate the transposition of the trumpet notes?

Answer 1

no.

the mute will make you sharp, but not a semitone.

Answer 2

dittos to everything hombre said,...but add this general rule;

"when the mute goes in-the tuning slide goes out"

which means that responsible musicians sit down with a chromatic tuner and all their mutes & gets to know how sharp that particular mute makes their instrument.

Answer 3

Nope.  Bb trumpet is still Bb trumpet.  However, you may find that there are subtle pitch variance on certain notes - horn player especially find this.

Answer 4

No... you won't have to transpose. However, not all mutes are created equal. I happen to prefer Tom Crown straight mutes, Humes & Berg (especially for a "traditional" big band sound) or Denis Wick cup mutes, and Jo-Ral harmon mutes.

Here is a great article on mutes:

"The criteria for selecting a mute for any player are: good overall intonation, the mute should be playable in all registers, should have good response at any dynamic level and have a characteristic muted sound.

Straight mutes generally fit any Bb or C trumpet bell. The mute should be playable to the low F-sharp. If the low register does not respond, the corks should be sanded down gradually until the low F-sharp responds. Because the B-flat trumpet can play a whole tone lower than the C trumpet. corks on a B-flat trumpet mute have to be a little lower, allowing the mute to go farther into the bell.

A mute that is slightly sharp overall is better than a mute that is generally in tune but with several bad notes.

Cup mutes tend to be in tune or slightly flat, depending on the mute, the trumpet, and the player.. The cup mute should have the cup relatively close to the bell, about an eighth to a quarter of an inch of space, depending on the softness and the “cup” sound desired. Some mutes have an adjustable cup; others have to be permanently adjusted by sanding down the corks a little at a time to achieve the right fit. When so adjusted, the cup is only good for trumpets of similar bell sizes.

Wah-Wah mutes tend to be sharper than straight mutes. Some Wah-Wah mutes are too small. They have insufficient interior volume to play well in the low register, often not being usable below low B-flat concert. Using the Wah-Wah mute without the stem also creates problems with some brands of mutes. One should be able to play to the low F-sharp on the B-flat trumpet with the stem-cup removed. An extra piece of brass or cardboard tubing 1/4 to 3/4 inches long, to extend the interior tube of the mute will help if the low register does not respond. Harmon or Wah- Wah mutes should fit any standard B-flat or C trumpet bell. Some bell curves may make it difficult for the mute to stay in the trumpet Wah-Wah mutes that fall out can be treated by rubbing a very small amount of violin bow rosin on the corks

Different types of metal definitely affect the mute’s tone quality and response, much as different metals used in a bell affect a trumpet’s tone quality and response. It is very difficult to describe what these differences are, however. One person’s “dark” is another person’s “dead”; another person’s “bright” is someone else’s “tinny.” To me, the Tom Crown all-aluminum straight mute is bright, the brass-end mute less bright or somewhat dead, and the copper-end or the all- copper mute is dark."

Suerte!