Posted by Mary Ann on May 14, 2003 at 12:56:32:
In Reply to: hot air posted by P.C. on May 14, 2003 at 11:41:46:
Klaus made a post some time back that someone called him crazy for, but he was right on the money. To play loudly on an instrument, you have to find the amount of air that makes it resonate. When it is resonating freely, you are very likely in the center of the slot for the note you're playing....and you don't have to force the tone out. By developing a feel for whether the instrument is resonating properly, you will be able to adjust not only your air but your tuning slide so that you get the best response. The best response is that combination of air flow and embouchure tension, that gets the instrument to resonate the best it can at the volume and pitch you are trying to play.
To start to get this feel, pick a midrange note, and "bend" it up and down in pitch (without jumping partials) as far as you can with your embouchure and air. Somewhere in the middle of the "bending range" you will be able to feel the instrument "wanting" to play that note, i.e., it will resonate more than outside this small band of the bending range. It really doesn't take a lot of time to get this concept, but it doesn't seem to be one that is taught very much, and most people have to sort of discover it on their own. A good teacher would be able to help you with this.
Mary Ann