High C — DHC

 

Okay…

 

probably the most important article I’ve ever written….

 

here goes…

 

there are many ways to play…

 

there are many combinations of aperture / tension /

compression / jaw etc

 

and so…

 

its too complicated to isolate one item from another and try to aportion percentages of personal use so one can ‘identify’ a particular embouchure method’ [farkas / callet / stevens etc ]…

 

however…

 

many many many players use waaaaaaaaaay too much lip to lip compression [which of course works to a degree] in making any given pitch change…

 

So……

 

STIFFNESS AND LIP TO LIP COMPRESSION [LLC]

 

For every note there’s a minimal and a maximal LIP to LIP compression setting for the lips…

 

Meaning…

 

if the compression between the top and the bottom lip is too much, the note will flip up to the next harmonic / slot / note up….

 

some use this as an actual method of slurring up, often exascerbated by the ee—aww =or= tuu—eee syllable method of pitch change [bad]

 

as you hopefully know by now our method of increased internal air support thru a ‘fixed’ aperture [range comes in chunks]works more efficiently…

 

yes there’s also lip tension within the flesh which affects this…but

…I don’t want to get into that here

 

if the compression between the top and the bottom lip is too little the note will slip / fall down to the next harmonic / slot / note down….

 

yes there’s also jaw opening / closing / teeth position which affects this…I don’t want to get into that here…

 

LIP TO LIP COMPRESSION – TOP LIP TO BOTTOM LIP

 

as always…there are gradations of such compression [fingers to thumb analogy]….and…for our purposes here I am going to use a number system to help you understand my thinking…

 

Example….

 

The note mid C…

 

when bang in the center of tuning its possible to play this note with lips compressed into a tightness between 5—to 7/10 before the tuning gets sharp , the compression becomes too much, and the note will slip up to an ‘E’ the next open fingered note up from Mid C…

 

so remember —between 5…increase lip to lip compression—7

 

Conversely…

 

when bang in the center of tuning its possible to play this note with lips compressed into a tightness between 5—down to to 3/10 before the tuning gets flat , the compression becomes too little, and the note will slip down to an ‘G’ the next open fingered note down from Mid C…

 

so remember—between 5 decrease lip to lip compression —–3

 

How can one tell when there’s too much compression on any given note?

 

The thing is…on any given note at approx mp – mf dynamic…if the tone is pure with an open / resonant softish sound – you pretty much have lip to compression right or averagely applied…

 

PLAY AS IF PLAYING THE FLUGELHORN…

 

PLAY LIKE A FLUTE…

 

if the tone is impure by ANY amount with a tightish sound that maybe is a little hard / harsh in timbre – you probably have too much compression applied…

 

 

why does this matter to stiffness?

 

if you continually play / practice endurance exercises with a compression that is too much—- lets say at 7…especially if you are using it to help a pitch change upwards >

 

now don’t forget – the note at 7 compression won’t change tuning / it won’t be too hard / harsh *but it isn’t as easy on the lips / chops as it could be*

 

< then tension / stiffness builds up and eventually stops some of the higher vibrations at the highest part of your current range from happening…

 

do this over a long period of time and of course disaster happens.

 

but Rod…surely if I’m getting a decent tone and doing okay range wise that’s also fine isn’t it?

 

well…if you find that progress is a little slow and band isn’t as always as good / resonant as it might be as increased dynamic makes the hidden stiffness come to the fore I believe this LLC is something that maybe needs to be looked into…

 

if you find thru experimentation that when you want to make a pitch change (say from an E top space on the stave to a G on top of the stave) and you use extra compression to make it happen – you can assume that you aren’t using the best method of increased internal air pressure with a close enough lip set point / pure tone to make your pitch changes.

 

IMPORTANT POINTS.

 

too much un-needed compression eventually overtime leads to:

 

1. a really secure feeling chop set that nonetheless is too stiff at the top to vibrate easily

 

2. stiffness coming to the fore especially when the dynamic is increased or extra on face time is encountered.

 

3. you tend to ‘lip’ your pitch changes upwards instead of ‘riding’ the airstream up…

 

some things that lead to players using excess lip to lip compression…

 

1. rushing between attempts

 

2. not allowing the proper blood flow of proper rests to return the lip back to a state of readiness for another attempt.

 

3. I played that line yesterday I must either improve on it or at the very least achieve the same. [trying to avoid see-saw]

 

4. not quitting early enough

Hopefully…some of this helps….