93260528 embouchure

7/31/2019 93260528 Embouchure

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Embouchure 15

Despitewhatsomepeoplemightsay,Ithinkithasbeenshownthata“goodembouchure”onthehornissome

thingthatisextremelycriticalorsuccess,anditissomethingthatcanbetaught.Intheolddays,andthatwasn’t

thatlongago,itwasalmostalwaysassumedthatiyougavesomeoneahorntooolaroundwith,hewouldndhis

“natural”embouchure.Tosewhooundagood“natural”embouchurehadthemostsuccess.Otherswhodidn’t

weredeemed“unsuited”totheinstrument.Worstoall,manypeopleinthebusiness,teachersincluded,believedthatyoucouldnotchangeaperson’s“natural”embouchure.Storiesaboundedoplayerslosttoailedembouchur

changes.Youmightaswellhavehadcancerotheliporsomething.Fortunately,timeshavechanged.

Backinthedaysonaturalhornswhenhornplayersspecializedcompletelyashighorlowplayers,thelowplayers

usedthe“einsetzen”or “settingin”embouchure,andthehighplayerswereotenconvertedorversatiletrumpe

playerswhoavoredan“ansetzen”or“settingagainst”typeoembouchure.Teeinsetzenembouchurehadthe

mouthpiecesetabouthalwayupthelowerlipsothatitactuallywas“in”thelowerlip.Tisgaveanicesot,warm

soundandwasgreatorlownotes.Teansetzenembouchurehadthelowerlipallthewayinthemouthpieceto

supplystrengthandbrillianceortheupperregister.Bothotheseembouchureshadtheweaknessonotbeing

practicalor“ullrange”hornplaying.Usuallyaplayerwhowantedtoplaytheullrangewouldhavetoshitrom

onetotheotherasthepiecewarranted.WiththeadventothevalvedhornandRomanticcomposerswhowantedtousethehorninnewandexcitingways,itbecameclearthatallhornplayersinasectionwouldhavetoplaythe

wholerangeothehorn.

Whilemanyplayersromearliererasnevermadetheswitchtoatrulyall-purposeembouchure,bythemiddleo

thelastcenturytherewereattemptstoanalyzeandexplainhowonecouldbeanallaroundplayerbyollowing

certainrulesolipplacementandmuscleuse.Temostwellknownothesewasthegroundbreaking“TeArto

HornPlaying”byPhilipFarkasthatpublishedin1956.Iwouldrecommendthisbooktoanyseriousstudentothe

horn.“TeArtoBrassPlaying,”anotherohisbooks,alsohassomegreatinormationonhowcertainprinciples

applytoallbrassplayers.ImyselwenttoMr.FarkaswhenIwashavingsomeembouchureproblemsandhewas

greathelp.I’mnotgoingtorepeateverythinginhisbook.WhatollowsaresomeconclusionsIhavedrawnrom

myownexperiencesandromteachingstudentswithlipsoallshapesandsizes.

Justrememberthatallthetechnicaladviceintheworldwillnottaketheplaceoyourownskillinputtingallo

thistogetherinawaythatreallyworksoryou.Iyouhavegoodplacementanduseyourair,mostothesethings

allintoplacebythemselvesandallyouhavetodoisbecareulnottogetintobadhabits.

Te embouchure is all about getting good vibrations.High,low,loudorsot,theremustbeagoodvibration.Te

ollowinginormationsupportsthatconcept.

1. Tere is a general setting that, i nothing else, is the best jumping-o point or anyone serious about playing

the whole range o the horn.

Tissettingisoundbysettingtheoutsideedgeothemouthpiecejustabovethemusclelinethatseparatesthered

orinsideothelowerlipromtheacialskinoutsidethelip.Tismeansthatthemouthpieceistechnicallyinsidethelowerlipbutisasardownthelowerlipaspossible.Temusclelinekeepsthemouthpieceromgoingany

lower(ontotheacialskin)andprovidesanicegrippointortheembouchure.

Teupperlipallsintothemouthpieceinanatural,relaxedmanner.ondthisposition,havestudentsclosetheir

mouthswithoutanyexorotherpositioning.Tisisthesame“normal”mouthpositiontheywouldassumewhile

watchingtelevisionorreadingabook–notensionorthoughtinvolved.Catchtheoutsideedgeothemouthpiece

onthelowerlipmusclelineromaboveandthenjusttiltthemouthpieceontothelips.Makesurestudentsdonot

movetheirlipsduringthisprocess.Ihaveoundthatmanystudentswanttomovetheirupperlipupslightlyas

theyeelthemouthpieceapproach. It is very important that this does not happen.Atthispoint,iyouhavedone

thiscorrectly,youhaveoundthe“natural”startingpositionortheembouchure.Iyouhaveamouthpiecethatis

Embouchure

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16 Embouchure

bigenoughinside,thiswillputabitormoreotheskinabovetheupperlipinthemouthpiece.Tisisimportant.

Youdon’twantthemouthpiecesettingintotheupperlip.Letstudentseelthispositionwithoutplayinganything.

Tenhavethemjustblowairwiththissetting.Finally,havethembuzzacoupleoeasynotesbeoretheytryitwith

thehorn.Askthemithisisdierentthanwhattheyhavebeendoing.Usuallytheywillsaythatthemouthpieceis

“uphigher”thanbeore.

Whenyouareplaying,yourlipsshouldlookessentiallythesameaswhentheyareintheat-restposition.Anob- vioussmiledoesnotwork.Neitherdoesanobviouspucker.Maybethat’swhyFarkasrecommendeda“puckered

smile.”

Onelipshouldn’tdisappearorpoutout.Telipsandteethneedtolineup.

Teamountotheredpartothelipshowingoutsidethemouthpieceshouldbeaboutthesameasithelipswere

justsittingtheredoingnothing.

2. “wo thirds upper lip and one third lower lip” doesn’t really mean anything.

Although,asyoucansee,theillustrationbelowdoesshowaractionalliprelationshipsimilarto2/3upperand1/3

lower,thisratiocanbeachievedinavarietyoways,manyothembad.Iyouhaveathicklowerlipyoucouldbesettingwayintothelowerlipandhavethisratio.Youcouldberollingyourlowerlipoveryourteethandhavethis

ratio.Youcouldbesettingintoyourupperlipandstillhavethe“properratio.”Otherbadpossibilitiesexist.Don’t

beooled.Resultsarewhatcount.Te“ratio”iscompletelycoincidental.IneverusethisterminologyandIwish

everyoneelsewouldquitdoingitaswell.Itmeansnothing.

3. You need to have enough room in the mouthpiece to get the upper rim on the skin above the upper lip.

Althoughitispossibletoplaywiththemouthpiecediggingintotheupperlip,itisnotdesirableoranumbero

reasons.Inothingelse,itwilldecreaseyourpotentialendurance.Teredpartothelipisjustnotmeantorthat

kindopunishment.Asyougetolder,seriousinjuryispossible.“Settingin”alsotendstopintheupperlipmuscles,

orcingtheuseopressuretocompensateortheactthatyoucan’tworkthesemusclestohelpyoumovearound

onthehorn,especiallyintheupperregisterandwhendoingliptrills. Te upper lip muscles must be ree to move.Tesearethe“nesse”musclesoyourembouchure.Manypeoplewiththickerlipswhotrytoplayonsmallor

seemingly“normal”insidediametermouthpieceswillendupwiththerimdiggingintotheirupperlip.Teywill

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Embouchure 17

trytoplayonthesemouthpieces,thinkingthateveryoneelsecanorsomegreatplayerisabletodoit,andwill

experiencemuchpainandrustration.IknowthisbecauseIwasoneothosepeople.Whenyoutakeyourmouth-

pieceoaterplaying,looktoseewherethe“mark”isonyourupperlip.Itshouldbeupontheskinpart.

4. I your lips are lined up evenly you will get a natural aperture or each note. You don’t need to “hold open”

an aperture in the center o your embouchure.

Mostpeoplehaveanaturaloverbite.Tismeansthatyourlowerteethlineupslightlybehindyourupperteeth.In

ordertohaveyourlipslineuponeovertheother,youmustbringyourjaworwardsothattheteetharelinedup,

too.Aslightangledownwardorthemouthpieceisnormal, but it must be dened by the teeth.Tisputsaneven

pressureonbothlipsandgivesyourlowerlipachancetobetherealstrengthandanchororyourembouchure

Whenthelipsvibrateinproximitywitheachother,anaturalapertureisormed.Getamirrorandcheckitout.You

donotneedto“holdopen”anapertureorholeinthemiddleoyourembouchure.Tiscutsdownonvibratinge-

ciencyandproducesanairysound.Itwillalsocauseproblemsintheupperregister.Youshould,however,bevery

awareotheproximityoyourvibratingsuracesandbeabletomakethevibrationlargerorsmalleraccordingto

therangeanddynamicyouareplaying.“Bringingin”thevibrationromthesidesasyougoupisagoodidea.Ijus

objecttotheideao“holdingopen”anaperturebecauseoralotopeoplethismeansmovingtheupperlipupa

bitbeoretheyset,andthiswillpintheupperlipandreducecontrolothemuscles.

Averycommonthingtowatchorisaslightupwardmovementotheupperlipjustbeoreyouplacethemouth-

piece.Tiscanbeverybad.Lettheupperlipallintothemouthpiece.Itmayseemstrangetopeoplewhohave

beendoingthis“lit”justbeoretheyplay,buttheoverallimprovementromnotdoingitcanbesubstantial.

5. You need to keep control o your chin muscles, which actually helps you ex your lower lip.

Yourchinshouldneverbesotortakeontheappearanceo,asPhilFarkaswouldsay,apeachpit.Techinmus-

clesprovideoppositionorthelowerlipmuscles,justasthecornermusclescontroltheamountopucker,and

balancethepullosomeotheinsidecentermusclesothelip.Evenonthelowestnotesyouneedtokeepcorner

controlothelips,ortheywillvibraterightoutothemouthpiece.Asyougointotheupperregister,youwantto

exyourlowerlipsothatitbecomesrmerandeectivelygoeshigherintothemouthpiece.Tis,asopposedtotryingtojamyourlowerlipintothemouthpieceasmostpeopledowhentheyrsttrytoplayuphigh. Learn to

fex the lower lip up as you pull the chin down. Tisstrongexalsoprotectsyourlowerliprompressure.Watch

goodbrassplayers.Teykeeptheirchinsexedandundercontrol.Tisex,combinedwiththeslightorwardjaw

position,givesuswhatFarkascalled“thebrassplayer’sace.”Teuseoamirrorplacedonthestandoraclip-on

mirrorcanhelpsolvethebunchedorweakchinproblem.Bywatchingyourselinamirrorwhileplaying,youget

aninstantvisualeedbackthatwillhelpyoulearntheeeloaexedchin.Asusual,ndanotewherethechinis

properlyexedandworkinbothdirectionsromthere.

6. All the muscles around your embouchure need to be kept in place as you play.

Iwetalkaboutthechinandthe“corners”othemouthalot,itisbecausetheseareperhapsthemostcriticalo

theacialmusclestobeabletocontrol.Teyarealsotheonesthataremostotennotunderpropercontrol.Tere

aremanymoremusclesintheace,however,andallthesemusclesplayapartinholdingtogetheragoodembou-

chure.Temusclesoutsidethemouthpieceneedtokeepairpocketsromdeveloping,and,intheupperregister

theyneedtobecomethe“unnelostrengthandenergy”thatsupportsthesmallerexesinsidethemouthpiece

Iyouwatchagreatbrassplayerplay,youseelittleornomovementontheaceoutsidethemouthpiece,butthat

doesn’tmeanthereisnoexingotheseacialmuscles.Justtheoppositeistrue.Youdon’twanttoover-tenseand

createundostrain,butyoudoneedrmnessappropriatetotherangeyouareplaying.

Teamazingthingaboutmanyothesemuscle“problems”orissuesisthatiyoutakeabigenoughbreathjust

beoreyouplay,thenaturalthingoryourbodytodoistoholdthemusclesinplace.TisispartowhatIcallthe

“natural process o horn playing .”Giventhatwesetourselvesuporsuccess,thebodywillndthewaytodoit.

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18 Embouchure

7. Set on your lower lip frst when you bring your mouthpiece up to play.

Althoughitmayseemnaturaltosetontheupperliprstandthenbringthelowerlipin,itiswisetolearntoset

romthebottomsothatyougetusedtotheeelingoastrongandsupportedlowerlip.Manypeoplewhosetrom

thetoparenotgettingagoodsettingonthelowerlip.It’sgoinginasanaterthought.Teupperliphasthenatural

supportotheteeth.Telowerlipneedsthesupportotheteethtoo.Telowerlipneedsyourattentiontomake

sureyouarebringingyourjawout.Telowerlipshouldeelliketheanchorotheembouchure,nottheotherwayaround.Tisalsohelpsyougettheupperlipintherightposition,sincewearegaugingthepositionromthebot-

tomsetpoint.It’seasiertoestablishallthisbysettingromthebottom.

8. Higher vibrations are smaller vibrations and vice versa.

Asyougohigher,youmustndawaytomakethevibrationsmaller.Manypeopletalkaboutmakingthe“aper-

ture”smaller.Tisisne,especiallyiyouthinkobringinginthesidesothenaturalapertureasyougethigher.

Justdon’ttakethistoanextreme.omeitisjustasimportanttothinkosimplybringingyourlipsclosertogether.

Don’tjamthemtogether,justbringthemintocloserproximity.Iyourlipsarelineduprightandnotoverlapped,

thevibrationwillcontinueaslongasyoudonotovertightenorcompletelypressthelipstogether.Tereisamagic

spotoreverynote.Bynothavingyourupperlippinneddownandbybeing abletoex the lowerlipup,youshouldbeabletobringthelipsclosertogether.Butinanycase,youshouldbeabletoeelthatyouareincontrolo

themusclemovementandyouarenotjustpressingharder.Highplayingisnotamatterostrength.Itisamatter

otouch.(Justdon’torgettheairspeed.Wehavebeentalkingalotaboutlips.Don’torgettheair.)

8. Don’t roll out your lower lip too much as you go down into the low register.

Aslightrollingoutothelowerlip,morelikeaslightpuckering,canhelpalittleasyougolower,butitshouldnot

appearasarolled-overliporaoldoskinunderthemouthpiece.Tisotenhappenswhenyoulosecontactwith

yourteethagainstthelowerlip.Oneothebiggestmistakesyoucanmakeistoletyourlowerlipoatawayrom

yourteeth. Itneeds support just liketheupper lipgets automatically.Relax theupper lipmuchmorethanthe

lowerlipasyougolowerinpitch.Remember,youwillneedtoexthatlowerliptocomebackupinpitch,soiyou

sotenittoomuchandlosecontactwiththeteethitwillbeimpossibletogettheexbackoraquickmovementupward.Temoreyoucankeepyourlowerlipthesame,thebetter.(Aslightroundingoran“O”shapecanhelpin

thelowerregister.)Keepcontactwiththelowerlipandthemouthpieceandteethasyougolower.Tecornerso

yourmouthprovideoppositiontotherelaxedlipmusclesandprovideconstantcontrolotheembouchure.Iyou

tongueaseriesolownotesyoushouldeelthecornersholding.

Indthatmanypeopleareactuallylooseningtheirlipstoomuchastheygointothelowernotesonthehorn.Re-

memberthatiyouhadaguitaroranotherstringinstrument,thereisonlysomuchyoucanloosenastringbeore

itquitsvibratingalltogether.Useglissandostondtheleastamounto“loosening”youneedtogettothelower

notes.Tisgivesyoucontrolothenotesratherthanjustguesswork.

9. Moving the jaw down as you go lower is OK. Just don’t overdo it.

Iknowtherearesomepeoplewhoclaimthattheydon’tmovetheirjawdownwhentheygolower.I justhaven’t

metthem.Tisisanaturalprocessthatworkswellinotoverdone.Itseemstolowertheteethagainstthelipand

allowalargervibration.Teonlyproblemsarisewhenyouhavetomakelargeleapsbackandorthromlowto

high.Tisiswhyyouwanttominimizethemovement.Practicedoingjumpswithincreasinglylargeintervalsand

seeiyoucanndthemostefcientmovement.

10. Tink o rolling your upper lip under a little as you go higher.

ohelpmakethevibrationsmallerandthelipscloserasyougoupinpitch,youcanthinkorollingyourupper

liptowardyourteeth,asiyouweremaking“chickenlips.”Iyourembouchureissetupright,itwillbepracti-

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Embouchure 19

callyimpossibletoactuallydothis,buttheconceptmayhelpyoucompact theupperlipalittleandgetthathigher

smallervibration.Iusuallyaskstudentstothinkopointingdownorreachingdownwiththeirupperlip.Tisis

asubtlemove,soyouneedtogetacrosstheconceptobringingtheupperlipclosertothelowerlipinsomeway.

Sometimesweneedmorethanonewaytogetapointacross.Whateveryoudo,don’tpullupyourupperlipupas

yougoup.Asamatteroact,don’tdothisatallinanyrangeexceptperhapsalittleinthelowerregister.Icallthis

“rabbitting”theupperlip.Itdoesn’tworkanyway.

11. Remember that whatever embouchure you use, it will work better with proper air ow: No embouchure

will work without air speed.

Ialwayshavetomakesurethatstudentswhoareworkingonembouchureissueskeepconcentratingontheirair

ow.It’seasytogetdistracted.Whenyoumatchupproperairspeedwithagoodembouchure,thingsstarttoall

inplacealmostautomatically.

12. I you are working on an embouchure change, be patient.

It’snotun.Startwithyourmidrangeandworkoutwardsinbothdirections.Simplelongtonesandscales,orpart

oscales,arebest.akeplentyorests.Fatiguewillbringbackoldhabits.Useamirrorornonverbal,subconscious

eedback.Movegraduallysothatyoudon’tallbackintobadhabits.Gobackintoyourarchivesandplayeasypieces,range-wise.Feeltheairow.Tinkpositively.Rememberthatyourplayingisgoingtobe somuchbetter

onceyougetthroughthetransition.Alotostudentsdon’twanttochangebecausetheyareplaying1sthornin

theirschoolbandoryouthorchestraandtheywouldhavetomovedowntoalowerpart.(Yes,itiseasiertodoan

embouchurechangeonalowerpart.)It’shardorthemtoacceptthesituation.Youmustaskthemitheyreally

wanttoplaytheullrangeothehornand/oritheyhaveanyhigherplayingaspirations.Ithisisarealproblem,

workonthechangeduringthesummeroratatimewhentheirmusiciseasiest.AtonecollegewhereIwasteach-

ing,Ihadtogetpermissionromtheorchestradirectortohelpastudentbecausethedirectordidn’twanttolose

theplayertoalowerpart,evenoralittlewhile.Tiswasacollegereshman!Wewentaheadwiththechangesand

ayearlaterboththestudentandtheconductorwerehappierandthisstudentwentontoplayproessionally.

Manyyearsago,alotopeopleinthebusinesseltthatitwasnotpossibletochangeone’sembouchureandmakeitbacktoplayproessionally.Tankgoodnessthesekindsosuperstitionshavebeenlaidtorestbymodernteaching

techniques.IamoneothesurvivorsandIwouldn’thaveitanyotherway.Iyouhearthiskindotalkyoumust

ignoreit.Mostothestudentswhocometomehaveembouchureproblems,ionlysmallones.Somearesimpleto

xandsometakemoretime,butwiththehelpoaqualiedteacher,youcanreachyourullpotentialasaplayer.

13. One or two small caveats.

Tereareaewteachersouttherewhoseemtobemorepreoccupiedwithaproperlookingembouchurethanthe

resultsthatstudentsaregetting.Resultsarewhatcount.Youmust,however,behonestwithyourselaboutwheth-

eryouaregettingtheresultsyouwant.Iyouarenotsureaboutwhetheryoushouldmakeanembouchurechange

ornot,itmightbewisetogetmorethanoneopinion.Idon’tliketogetmixedupwithotherteachers’students

andtheirproblems,butIwillventureanopinionitheanswerisairlyclearcutandIhaveseenthepersonplay

withtheadmonitionthatstudentsshouldtrytoworkthisoutwiththeircurrentteachers.Sometimesthough,you

justneedtogetsomedierenthelp.Ineedtoseeandhearsomeoneplaytomakeanevaluation.It’snotpossibleto

makeavalidjudgementwithoutthatpersonalcontact.Youcan’tdothisworkininternetorumdiscussiongroups

either.Iamcurrentlyusingvideoconerencingtogivelessonsandconsultationsontheinternet,butevenwiththis

technologytherearelimitations.

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20 Embouchure

Embouchure Photos

AboveLet:PlayingasecondlineG.Noticethatyoucanseebothlipsonthesidesothemouthpiece.Tisisproperjawposi-tion–slightlyorward.Evenwiththebeardyoucantellthechinisexedandtheupperlipisinsidethemouthpiece.Tereis verylittletension,buttheaceisrm.

AboveMiddle:PlayingapedalC:Tereismorelipvisible(especiallytheupperlip),thejawandcornershavedroppedalittleandtheembouchureisnowmorerounded,butthepositionothemouthpiecehasnotchangedandthelipsarestilleven–thusthereisstillpressureonbothlips.Keepthechinandcornersrmsoyoudon’toatthelowerlipawayromtheteeth

whenyouplaylow.Aboveright:PlayingahighA.Notmuchdierence.Tecornersareabithigherandthereisslightlymoretensionnoticeableinthewholearea,butthebasicembouchurestaysthesame.

Let:Herethelowerlipistuckedovertheteethandhasstartedtodisappear.Tesettinghaslostitsanchorpointandhasmoveddowntotheacialskinbelowthelip.Tismakesagoodvibrationdifcultbecausetheupperlipwilloverlapthelowerlipandcutothevibration.

Center:Itmaybedifculttosee,butthemouthpieceisnowactuallysetintotheupperlip,whichisjustpeekingoverthetopothemouthpiece.Temusclesotheacearepulledup.Tiswill“pin”theupperlipmuscles.

Right:Tisisthemovesomepeoplemakeastheybringtheirmouthpieceuptoplaythatpullstheupperlipupandintoabad,“pinned”position.Tisphotoisexaggeratedbutnoticethemuscle-pullbetweenthecornersandthenose.Eveninsmallamounts,whenseenasthesetismade,thisisatelltalesignopullingtheupperlipuptooar.

ClockwiseromUpperLet:(1)Lipsinnormalrestposition.Notenoexingoanykind.Tisiswhereyoustart.(2)Mouthpiecesetonlips,stillinnormalrestposi-tion.Noticehowyoucanstillseethelipsatthesidesothemouthpiece.(3)Settingthemouthpieceonthelowerliprstwiththelipsinnormalrestposition. Notice themouth is closed. Tis makes sure that you get the upper lip into the mouthpiece cor-rectly.(4)Anotherviewosettingonthelowerliprstandrollingthemouthpieceontotheupperlip.Hereyoucanseehowtheoutsideedgeothemouthpieceisset justabovethemusclelinebetweentheacialandlipsuraces.Whenyoudothis,makesureyoudon’tpulltheupperlipupjustbeoreyouplay.

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