Re: euphonium range help


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Posted by Jay Bertolet on July 19, 2000 at 21:35:07:

In Reply to: euphonium range help posted by Tired Chops on July 19, 2000 at 19:31:42:

First of all, any problem like this should be discussed with your private instructor because he/she can hear you and diagnose the problem correctly. That said...

I'll wager that the problem is with you unless you were unlucky enough to play on two consecutive horns, made by different manufacturers, with the same problem note. If you are the problem, my advice to you would be to really isolate that particular note and try to be as aware as possible of exactly what you are doing when you play that note. My experience has been that when we do things differently on a particular note from what we do on all the other notes, the one note is usually a problem. Understand that consistency of approach offers the best chance of yielding consistent results. So try to play some very simple tunes or pieces that you know REALLY well that will allow you to concentrate fully on what you do when you play that particular note. Then, just be sure your approach to that note isn't different than you would approach any other note. This phenomenon can occur when a note is easy to play out of center on one horn and then you carry it over to other horns you play because you've learned the habit. Its kind of like a Pavlovian effect: If you get an electric shock everytime you press a button, you're going to be reluctant to press the button. Further, when you do press the button you are likely to flinch whether the current is there or not. In the case of your problem note, this reaction can lead to inconsistent embouchure positions in anticipation of a problem note and that can actually cause the problem by itself.

My opinion for what its worth...


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