How high is your range, and also, how do you increase it? The highest I can play is on top of the staff (F???)
My range is a high C, a D on a good day.
The first, and most important, practice every day. Going just 2 days without playing can weaken your chops. It doesn't even need to be a lot, just play a little bit then stop.
Actually, I think I'll just give you my personal method. I do this every day, right before a practice session.
1.) Blow through the mouthpiece, making a sound using minimal air.
2.) Play a G on the mouthpiece, go to an A, then a B, finally a C and hold it for a bit.
3.) On the mouthpiece, play a C scale
4.) Put in your mouthpiece, and blow through your horn for 1 minute, making no sound.
5.) Play arpeggios, starting on a C arpeggio, ending on a G arpeggio.
6.) Play lip slurs, going no higher than an E at the top of the staff.
7.) Play a G above the staff, go a half step up until you reach a C. * If you can't hit the G, start as high as you can, and attempt to work your way up.
8.) Slur a chromatic scale from C as high as you can.
9.) Tongue the highest note you hit as many times as you can, until you can't do it anymore.
Just a few notes, I understand this a very long thing, but since I'm very competitive I work my hardest. You can easily condense this to take a minute or so.
If you don't want to use that, then here's two pieces of advice I can give you:
1.) Always add weight to your playing. Thinking you can only hit an F? Go for the G anyway. Go for the A. When your lips are tired, keep playing. Think of it like working out. If you just lift a 10 pound weight, it'll start out giving you muscle, but after awhile it won't do much.
2.) Mouth pieces are a huge part of it. A standard 7c mouthpiece isn't very nice for playing high. If you've ever heard a screamer play a G above the staff, above the staff, chances are they're using a 14A4A, a mouthpiece designed specifically for assisting in playing high. You can use that, or you can use a 3c, perfect for high school band. Your school probably has one of those you can borrow.
I could go all day talking about this, but I think this a decent place to stop.
