TRtrumpet Posted July 10, 2006 Posted July 10, 2006 Do you play with your mouth-piece directly on the CENTER of you mouth? Is it bad to play slightly to the side. People have been telling me that I do this and I didnt even notice until I played in front of the mirror. So basicly I just want to know if this is a bad thing. I tried playing right on the center and my tone went out the window... should I just keep playing how I am or try to adjust to the center? Any help would be mucho appreciated... lol. Thanks. Quote
trumpetman1288 Posted July 10, 2006 Posted July 10, 2006 I play slightly off center as well, but I do have rather large chops. My director tells me I should have been a baritone player and that I would probably have shined more with it, but that's another story. It all depends on what you really want out of yourself as a trumpet player really. At a college level, they may make you fix your embochure and play in the center, but for high school, if you are slightly off, it's no biggy. I have a buddy that plays way over to the side...probably right in the middle of center and the corner of his lips. He is one of the best trumpet players I have heard with an awesome sound, great articulation and everything, but it's weird to look at. If you want to center your embochure though, that is going to take a long while, at the shortest a month to get it centered and to have you play the way you normally do. It also takes a lot of patience to do so, but if you are determined, it can be fixed. Just play infront of a mirror whenever you practice and make sure you have it where you want it to be. At first it might not be so fun because you cannot play as well as you normally do, but try lip slurs, long tones, and all the other fun stuff, and I think in about a week or two, it will start to show some progress. Hope this helps! Quote
TRtrumpet Posted July 10, 2006 Author Posted July 10, 2006 THANKS. That did help alot. I think im just gonna keep playing how I am. Its not even very far over its just slightly off center so I might as well just keep playing how I am. Quote
VRHSRangerTBone Posted July 10, 2006 Posted July 10, 2006 Yes, I play bass trombone, but it kinda works the same way. My private lessons teacher told me one time that Donald Knaub, basically one of the best bass trombone players who has ever lived, does the same thing for low notes. He'll play centered and normally for his normal range, but when he starts belting out low notes his embouchure shifts to the side. As you might infer, this makes for some great humor as he shifts back and forth between his normal range and his low range. He's one incredible bass trombone player (retired now), so it pretty much goes to show that even world class players like him play off center too and do just as well. My private lessons teacher was lucky enough to study under him for awhile at UT and still plays golf with him to this day, lol, so that's pretty cool. Quote
TRtrumpet Posted July 10, 2006 Author Posted July 10, 2006 Thats pretty awesome that your private lesson teacher got to study under him. I am pretty relieved now that I know I dont HAVE to change it. I mean, I have a great tone already (lol, not tryin to sound cocky) so why change it right? Quote
trumpetman1288 Posted July 10, 2006 Posted July 10, 2006 Trumpet Master said: Try playing with braces, ouch! Try playing once you get your braces off It's even more fun. That's cool, being able to be under Donald Knaub's direction. I guess that would be like having Maynard Ferguson as a teacher...minus all the split notes. Quote
TRtrumpet Posted July 10, 2006 Author Posted July 10, 2006 Haha playing after you get braces of SUCKS. It took my a long time to get my tone back but after that its awesome. Quote
bayleelovestrumpet Posted December 7, 2006 Posted December 7, 2006 well, i don't know, my director, Jeremey Earnhart told me in 9th grade that i play on my mouthpiece slightly to the right, then he told me that i needed to fix it && that it would improve the way i sound. So it took me a couple of weeks of getting used to just putting my lips there, but by then, i realized that my sound was WAY better... My sounds didn't sounds as "dead" or "wet" as he said it did before. So i guess it helps if you play in the center of your mouthpiece?!?! Hope I helped!! LD Bell Trumpet Chick 2006-The Remaining Quote
gavinrh Posted December 7, 2006 Posted December 7, 2006 i cannot play on the center of my lips...i've tried and it just does not work. i play really low on my embouchure and use barely any top lip. i dont think its hurting me too much because i made first band last year Quote
NSUMusician Posted December 7, 2006 Posted December 7, 2006 In my opinion, playing in the center of the lips doesn't necessarily make one's tone better. Playing with the correct amount of top lip to bottom lip ratio is ideal! The way that some players teeth are shaped doesn't allow them to play in center, BUT you can play with a correct top to bottom lip ratio regardless of teeth. If I remember correctly, the guy who played the top lead for the Cadets from 2002 to 2004 was missing a front tooth and didn't play on center. I play a little to the right of center. Hope that helps out some. Edit: Playing with an incorrect top to bottom lip ratio can result in damage to the muscles of your lips. Quote
Shiloh Phoenix Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 well I change my embouchure when I play really low notes to not get the fuzz sound of air escaping from the left side of my mouth. Quote
MartinHorn Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 I try to aim for the center when I play. Quote
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