Re: Reality Check


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Posted by Million teachers on November 11, 2003 at 11:12:01:

In Reply to: Reality Check posted by Anonymous Ohioan on November 09, 2003 at 12:49:58:

My first suggestion would be to consult teachers in your area who are brass players but not tuba. I've learned more about my french horn embouchure from studying tuba than I ever did from quite a few french horn teachers. I recently made a very major change, based on what I've learned playing tuba, and it is making a HUGE difference in my horn playing. A very good brass instructor can help you on a brass instrument even if it is not the teacher's primary instrument. Is there a good trombone teacher around?

It all depends on learning style, but if your teacher does not _show_ you what he does to get a certain sound/technique/whatever....not much is going on there. I had more than one teacher who would verbalize all over the place, give me "exercises" to do (some of them pretty off the wall) but never show me what was supposed to be going on inside the mouthpiece. Pretty darn useless teaching, if an incorrect embouchure is simply applied to more and more "exercises."

Articulation and tone are pretty much across the board in brass instruments. I guess I wouldn't really want to go to a trumpet teacher for tuba, but you never know....if tuba, the largest mouthpiece, helped my horn playing, with that tiny mouthpiece, who knows?

Take in specific problems that you've written down in between lessons, and make sure you focus on those problems in your lesson. If the teacher doesn't help you with them, you're wasting your money.

Mary Ann


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