Master Superchops Expanded Instructions Premise ~ After more than 50 years of o f exhaustive embouchure study I’ve concluded that the prevailing brass instruction of the past 50 years is holding us back immeasurably. We have been t aught to increase range by tightening the lips and blowing more air. But not only do most of us encounter severe endurance and range restrictions rest rictions with with this th is method, those who do achieve high range with the lips and air produce a sound that is less than satisfactory. Careful listening listening to these t hese players quickly reveals the shortcomings. Lips cannot control air in a stable manner. The sound is pinched, and most clearly, the pitch wavers as the lips quiver under the strain. With this DVD, I reveal the techniques I believe will result result in a much more controlled embouchure for all players, one with nearly unlimited range, po wer, and endurance. Most importantly, the sound will be unstrained with no pinch and no waver. This is because the control of air is moved away from the unstable lips to the stable tongue, a much more powerful and controllable muscle. I be lieve this technique is the one taught during the baroque era and rediscovered by the select few truly great players of our time. I have very carefully fine-tuned this technique during my 50 years of instruction with thousands of successful students. To institute your new embouchure e mbouchure you will need to relinquish your previous t raining and start fresh. But after 21 days of careful work with these new techniques I believe you will w ill clearly see the tremendous benefits of the Master Superchops embouchure.
Initial Setup ~ Begin by spreading your teeth wide open then push the tip of your tongue lightly up against the upper part of the back of your lower teeth. Now push the top of your tongue, just slightly behind the tip, up against the backsides of your upper and lower lips. This creates a widened and thickened wedge in your tongue. While keeping your teeth wide open, make sure your bottom lip is up high enough to lightly contact your upper lip corner to corner while also contacting the top of your tongue corner to corner. Make certain your tongue is turned over enough so you can actually feel the top of your tongue contacting the cutting edges of BOTH upper and lower teeth. The top of the tongue approximately ¼” (5mm) behind the tip of your tongue should feel the cutting edges of your lower teeth. The top of your tongue approximately 3/4” (2cm) behind the tip of your tongue should feel the cutting edges of your top teeth. This newly created wedge acts act s like a spring in your mouth. This T his spring keeps your teeth wide open while forcing the top of your thickened tongue up against your top lip as well as the cutting edge and back of your top teeth. At first, this spring spring wants to continuously unwind (pull back and flatten out). But, you must not let it! The more carefully you practice this new technique the easier it gets. Nevertheless, expect your body to require a full 21 days of careful practice before this new technique becomes a habit. -1-
Starting and Stopping the Tone ~ In playing a brass instrument the most important two elements are the starting and stopping of the tone. THE TONE IS NOT STARTED BY STRIKING THE TEETH OR LIPS! Rather, it is started by a ver y slight release of the wedge of the tongue back away from the top lip and the cutting edge and back of the upper teeth. This action releases the air inside the top of the mouth that has been compressed by your lungs. To build the pro per air resistance to make higher and faster lip vibrations the tongue wedge must completely seal off the top lip with the e ntire width of the top of the to ngue. This tongue action will completely stop the tone and begin the process of building great air resistance inside the top portion of your mouth. Practice a spit-buzz without a mouthpiece: start the tone by releasing the compressed air with your tongue and quickly stopping the air and vibrations with the same part o f the tongue. This tongue action is done with an absolute minimum of movement, only 1/16 of an inch (1-2mm). When playing from low C to double high C, the lower lip and wedge of your tongue must never pull back or drop downward!
First Spit Buzz ~ Before your first articulation remind yourself that the wedge o f the tongue must never release its full contact with your upper and lower lips. There is NO back and forth movement of the tongue tip in Superchops. It is absolutely essential that you o bserve this rule if you are to master Superchops. Instead of the customary back and forth motion of the tongue tip, the part of the tongue that moves is the thicker part of the tongue that has been created slightly behind the upper lip and upper teeth. The motion of the tongue is of the wedge only - very slightly back and down. In Superchops, we DO NOT BLOW AIR to release the tongue. Rather, we spit a small amount of air directly at the cutting edge of the upper teeth. This action is like spitting a hair off the top of the to ngue. The action is NOT like spitting a seed off the tongue as that action is much too large and disruptive. The correct spitting action automatically releases the small center channel o f the tongue a very slight amount, roughly a millimeter or two. If the spit is done correctly we do not need to think of the tongue channel; it forms automatically. Check yourself continuously: make sure the tongue wedge moves only the slightest amount when releasing the spit of air. In order to make the spitting action crisp and precise air pressure is built up inside the mouth just prior to the initial spit buzz. If you neg lect the buildup of air then the attack will be slow, loose, and sloppy. Listen to your articulation and you should easily hear the difference. Always strive for a crisp, popping attack. With proper practice, articulations should so und like the sharp attack of a snare drum or the ring of a small bell. If you cheat on your attacks you will never develop the tongue strength necessary to master your instrument.
Consecutive Articulations ~ In order to accomplish a proper second attack the tongue wedge must immediately return to its initial setup position. As the wedge o nly moved a slight amount, the return is also very small. Slightly move your tongue wedge back to its setup position to stop the air. In other words, begin each tone with a TONGUE STOP and end each tone with a TONGUE STOP. The end of each tone must be as crisp and clean as the attack. Once again, do not cheat; this step is essential. -2-
To recap: the only movement in the tongue is the slight release of the wedge that has been formed just behind the upper lip and upper teeth. Continuously check yourself: make certain that the wedge of your tongue, apart from the tiny center tunnel, continuously contacts your upper lip and teeth. Do not allow any noticeable back and forth motion of the tongue. A failure here will be a failure to master Superchops. Expect to take about 21 days to ingrain the above steps. Begin with repeated Superchops articulations in the lower register. Start with one evenly spaced spit attack on each step o f an easy scale or half scale. Then, move to two crisp attacks on each pitch. Follow with three then four pointed marcato attacks on each pitch. Move up in range only as far as you can articulate very precisely, cleanly, and easily. After 21 days of this careful practice your new technique should be a fully formed habit. Realize that this initial foundation is absolutely essential in order to succeed with the following important step.
The Bottom Lip as Control ~ Once the initial setup and spit attack have been mastered it is time to add the technique that controls upper range development. The upper range is controlled by the bottom lip! At the upper part of your current range begin to pull your lower lip in a bit more firmly against the bottom part of the tongue wedge. In other words, grip your tongue more firmly with your lower lip. This gr ip adds even more thickness to your tongue wedge. Observe that as you add this step you do not close the teeth. The teeth must continue to stay wide open. If you close your teeth then you will push the tongue back into your mouth and your new embouchure will be lost. To ingrain this new action practice lip slurs. Begin with easy intervals such as thirds in your middle register. Expand the width of the intervals to fourths, fifths, etc as you become more proficient. Concentrate on making the lower lip and tongue wedge completely control each slur. The inward grip of the lower lip and the forward pressure of the wedge are wholly responsible for changing p itch. As you master this technique your range will continue ever upward. Once again, expect to take 21 days to make this a habit. Once you have mastered the setup, spit buzz, and lower lip control you should clearly see the nearly unlimited potential of Superchops. You will be well on your way to mastering your instrument.
Control of Air ~ As you have probably begun to see, Superchops is NOT about blowing more air. On the contrary, the more air you blow the more you blow your embouchure apart. Increased volume is achieved by compressing more air inside your mouth before t he spit attack, not by blowing more air through your lips. Air blown through the lips creates a wide and unfocused sound that is not in keeping with the true sound and real mastery of the instrument. Concentrate on blowing much less air than ever before. But, compress that air inside your mouth before the spit buzz. A modest expansion of the upper chest combined with a moderate pulling in of the stomach just below the rib cage provides all the air that is needed once the air is properly controlled and focused by the tongue and lower lip. Do not tolerate a blatty, harsh sound as this is a clear indication that you are overblowing. Also, do not tolerate a wide, spread sound as this shows that your embouchure has already spread apart and is no longer being controlled by the tongue.
Work diligently with the above instructions and you too will Master Superchops! ================================= -3-
