Posted by Jared on November 14, 1999 at 12:34:10:
Hey there. My name is Jared and I'm 16, I've been playing tuba for a little bit less than a year now and I am running into a problem. In class Materials I do fine because the range is from a D on staff to a G below. I can handle this range no problem, its anything above that D bothers me, I sound like a dying cow taking its last few breaths and after 5-10 mins of playing these notes my JAW HURTS like you wouldnt belive. IT hurts at the hinges and it feels like I just got through eating that cow that died. Now I know what my band director has told me "Your tightining up!! So... don't!" My question is - how do I go about not tighting up.. how do I play high notes? Help!
-- Jared