Re: Re: mouthpiece antics


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Posted by Klaus on January 01, 2003 at 11:51:21:

In Reply to: Re: mouthpiece antics posted by An easy test on January 01, 2003 at 10:19:15:

I do not agree with you on this one MA.

A US pro trumpeter, who also is a dentist, has researched the relations between dental structure, mouthpiece placement, mouthpiece pressure, and the efficiency of the blood circulation in the lips.

His conclusion was, that players with the most perfectly normal, uninterrupted, and un-skewed structures in their front teeth also were those that most likely would resort to excessive mouthpiece pressure and hence inhibit the effective blood circulation, that is so important for regeneration of the muscles during playing. Hence these "dream-smilers" often had less endurance.

I know exactly of the point, where my embouchure really took of in the right direction. I was past most of my education and had been hired to rebuild a band, that was badly run down. To get at least a bit of performance done within that organisation I played together with the best players in a small group.

At one of the first concerts I heard a major explosive sound within my head, but played on. Only afterwards I realised, that my two central upper front teeth, which my snobbish mother had ordered braced into line, had jumped back to their original position.

The only problems caused by that re-jumping was a bit of pain in the gum-flesh, that had been trapped between the teeth. And a lot of work to make my embouchure truly non-pressure. But I really have benefited from that work until this very day.

The dentist/trumpeter mentioned above even had developed an attachment to normal front teeth, that would make their surface less plane.

As for placement of the mouthpiece placement all my own experiences and all what I have seen from other players dictates a placement right in the center, as high on the upper lip as possible.

Klaus


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