Posted by Joseph Felton on March 31, 1999 at 10:46:40:
In Reply to: Re: Mouthpiece Question posted by Jay Bertolet on March 29, 1999 at 19:06:41:
I suspect that we agree much more than we disagree. As I progress as a player I realize more and more how much of a head game tuba playing can be. There are no secrets only minor revelations and issues of degree and relativity. As I progress I realize that much of my improvement has been based more on how I look at playing rather than actually doing something physically different. Perhaps Roger has always had a consistent embouchure and his big "secret" is that in the extreme registers it helps to pucker the lips or roll them in? Perhaps you began already understanding the need to move around to reach the extremes and your "secret" is that a more consistent embouchure brings the entire range of the horn closer together and makes difficult passages markedly easier? I see no reasons why these two perspectives *have* to disagree. Ultimately it is a matter of balance and what is most effortless and efficient for you. Unfortunately, because this is such a subjective area it is extremely difficult to tell someone
what to do with their face. My big "secret" at the moment is that if I spend lots of time doing the flexibility exercises my embouchure gets more and more efficient and playing gets a lot easier very quickly. At the moment this sidesteps the issue of consciously thinking about what to do with my face and allows me to focus on the product a la Jacobs philosophy. Having said that.. it wouldn't terribly surprise me to discover that I still haven't discovered the "secret" to playing and at that moment I will either replace this "secret" with something else that makes more sense or alter what I already have. My ideas on playing have changed too many times over the years for me to be confident enough to declare anything a truism. On the other hand, I am also unwilling to throw away any idea without attempting to see where it fits into the big picture. I think there is a grain of truth in any advice and the real key is to spend lots of time with your horn trying to find the balance the works for you.
Very Humbly,
joseph