Embouchure From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation navigation,, search The embouchure is the use of facial muscles and the shaping of the lips to the mouthpiece mouthpiece of of a wind instrument. instrument. Less frequently, it is used to mean the mouthpiece itself. The word is of French origin and is related to the root bouche (fr.), bouche (fr.), mouth. The proper em!ouchure allows the instrumentalist to play the instrument at its full range with a full, clear tone and without strain or damage to ones muscles.
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Brass embouchure /hile performing on a !rass instrument, the sound is produced !y the player !u33ing his or her lips into a mouthpiece. 4itches are changed in part through altering the amount of muscular contraction in the lip formation. The performers use of the air, tightening of chee& and 5aw muscles, as well as tongue manipulation can affect how the em!ouchure wor&s. 'ven today, many !rass pedagogues ta&e a rigid approach to teaching how a !rass players em!ouchure should function. any of these authors also disagree with each other regarding which technique is considered correct. 0esearch done as early as the $6-7s as well as more current research suggests efficient !rass em!ouchures are dependent upon the performer using the method that suits the players particular anatomy. 8ndividual differences in teeth structure, lip shape and si3e, 5aw shape and the degree of 5aw malocclusion, and other anatomical factors will affect whether a particular em!ouchure technique will !e effective or not for a particular performer. 4hilip Far&as, Far&as, a noted French horn performer and !rass pedagogue, hypothesi3ed in his $69 pu!lication, The Art of Brass Playing , that the air stream traveling through the lip aperture should !e directed straight down the shan& of the mouthpiece. mouthpiece. Far&as !elieved that it would !e illogical to violently deflect the air stream downward at the point of where the air moves past the lips
(Far&as, $69). 8n this te2t, Far&as also recommends that the lower 5aw !e protruded so that the upper and lower teeth are aligned. 8n $6;7 Far&as pu!lished a second te2t on !rass em!ouchures, A Photographic Study of 40 Virtuoso Horn Players. This pu!lication contradicted his earlier writing. ccording to this later te2t, players who place the mouthpiece higher on the lips, so that more upper lip is inside the mouthpiece, will direct the air downwards to varying degrees while playing. 4erformers who place the mouthpiece lower, so that more lower lip is inside the mouthpiece, will direct the air to varying degrees in an upward manner. 8n order for the performer to !e successful, the air stream direction and mouthpiece placement need to !e personali3ed !ased on individual anatomical differences. Lloyd Leno confirmed the e2istence of !oth upstream and downstream em!ouchures in his $6?; article for the !nternational Trombone Association "ournal entitled > +tudy of Lip @i!rations with Aigh+peed 4hotography. ore controversial was 0einhardts description and recommendations regarding a phenomenon he termed a pivot. >ccording to 0einhardt, a successful !rass em!ouchure is dependent upon a motion wherein the performer moves !oth the mouthpiece and lips as a single unit along the teeth in an upward and downward direction. >s the performer ascends, he or she will either move the lips and mouthpiece together slightly up towards the nose or pull them down together slightly towards the chin, and use the opposite motion to descend. /hether the player uses one general pivot direction or the other, and the degree to which the motion is performed, depends on the performers anatomical features and stage of development. The placement of the mouthpiece upon the lips doesnt change, !ut rather the relationship of the rim and lips to the teeth. /hile the angle of the instrument may change as this motion follows the shape of the teeth and placement of the 5aw, contrary to what many !rass performers and teachers !elieve, the angle of the instrument does not actually constitute the motion 0einhardt advised as a pivot. Later research supports 0einhardts claim that this motion e2ists and might !e advisa!le for !rass performers to adopt. John Froelichs article for the !nternational Trombone Association "ournal , The outhpiece Forces Bsed =uring Trom!one 4erformances ($667), descri!es how mouthpiece pressure towards the lips (vertical forces) and sheer pressure (hori3ontal forces) functioned in three test groups, student trom!onists, professional trom!onists, and professional symphonic trom!onists. Froelich noted that the symphonic trom!onists used the least amount of !oth direct and sheer forces and recommends this model !e followed. ri3ona +tate Bniversity, 77$).
any noted !rass pedagogues prefer to instruct the use of the em!ouchure from a less analytical point of view. >rnold Jaco!s, a tu!ist and wellregarded !rass teacher, !elieved that it was !est for the student to focus on his or her use of the air and musical e2pression to allow the em!ouchure to develop naturally on its own (%rian Frederi&sen, Arnold "acobs) Song and *ind , $669).
Farkas Embouchure ost 4rofessional performers, as well as instructors, use a com!ination called a puc&ered smile. 8t is descri!ed in The >rt of %rass 4laying and is easy to set. 8t is the way you !low when you cool soup, or whistle. Ae told people to !low as if they were trying to cool soup. That is how he set the em!ouchure. 0aphael ende3 said to say the letter . The s&in under your lower lip will !e taut with no air poc&et. Cour lips do not over lap nor do they roll in or out. The corners of the mouth are held firmly in place. To play with an e2tended range you should use a 4ivot, tongue arch and lip to lip compression. >ccording to Far&as te2t, The >rt of %rass 4layer the mouthpiece should have D top and D !ottom, or E top and !ottom lip in it. Cour lips should not overlap each other, nor should they roll in or out. The mouth corners should !e held firm. Far&as speculated here that the horn should !e held in a downward angle to allow the air stream to go straight into the mouthpiece, although his later te2t, > 4hotographic +tudy of -7 @irtuosi Aorn 4layers shows that air stream direction actually is either upstream or downstream and is dependent upon the ratio of upper or lower lip inside the mouthpiece, not the horn angle. Far&as advised to moisten the outside of your lips, then form your em!ouchure and gently place the mouthpiece on it. Ae also recommended there must !e a gap of E inch or so !etween your teeth so that the air flows freely. (+u!set) %u33ing 'm!ouchure: The Far&as set is the !asis of most lip !u33ing em!ouchures. ende3 did teach lip !u33ing and got great results. Cou can start the !u33 !y acting as if you were spitting seeds !ut &eep !lowing. This really helps the Far&as as it prevents using an open aperture.
Maggio Embouchure aggio claimed that the puc&er em!ouchure gives more endurance than some systems. arlton ac%eth is the main proponent of the puc&er em!ouchure. The aggio system was esta!lished !ecause Louis aggio had sustained an in5ury which prevented him from playing. 8n this system you cushion the lips !y e2tending them or puc&ering (li&e a mon&ey). This puc&ering ena!les the players to overcome physical malformations. 8t also lets the player play for an e2tended time in the upper register. The puc&er can ma&e it easy to use too open an aperture. Lots of very soft practice can help overcome this.
Stevens Embouchure (formerly the Costello embouchure 8t uses a slight rolling in of !oth lips and touching evenly all the way across. 8t also uses 17G top lip and 17G lower lip in the mouthpiece. The teeth will !e E inch apart and the 5aw thrust forward so that the teeth are even. This will give you a level, or slightly elevated horn angle.
There is little mouthpiece pressure. To practice this hold your horn !y laying it on its side in the palm of your hand. =o not grasp it. 4lace your lips on the mouthpiece and play. >t first you will get nothing, !ut with practice of this e2ercise, one can get to the point of !eing a!le to play a high in this position. Cou must use vertical (upHdown) lip compression to play your upper register. 0ela2 the chops and !ac& off the pressure. a&e the air do all the wor&. >s your top lip pushes down and the !ottom lip pushes up you may get a roll of s&in under your lower lip. This em!ouchure can use a tongue arch (although +tevens didnIt li&e that) and a pivot.
!ongue"controlled Embouchure This em!ouchure method, advocated !y a minority of !rass pedagogues such as Jerome allet, has not yet !een sufficiently researched to support the claims that this system is the most effective approach for all !rass performers. >dvocates of allets approach !elieve that this method was recommended and taught !y the great !rass instructors of the early 7th entury. Two French trumpet technique !oo&s, authored !y Jean %aptiste >r!an, and +t. Jacome, were translated into 'nglish for use !y >merican players. >ccording to some, due to a misunderstanding arising from differences in pronunciation !etween French and 'nglish, the commonly used !rass em!ouchure in 'urope was interpreted incorrectly. allet attri!utes this difference in em!ouchure technique as the reason the great players of the past were a!le to play at the level of technical virtuosity which they did, although the increased difficulty of contemporary compositions for !rass seem to indicate that the level of !rass technique !y todays performers equal or even e2ceed that of most performers from the late $6th and early 7th centuries. allets method of !rass em!ouchure consists of the tongue remaining forward and through the teeth at all times. The corners of the mouth always remain rela2ed, and only a small amount of air is used. The top and !ottom lips curl inward and grip the forward tongue. The tongue will force the teeth, and su!sequently the throat, wide open, supposedly resulting in a !igger, more open sound. The forward tongue resists the pressure of the mouthpiece, controls the flow of air for lower and higher notes, and protects the lips and teeth from damage or in5ury from mouthpiece pressure. %ecause of the importance of the tongue in this method many refer to this as a tonguecontrolled em!ouchure. This technique facilitates the use of a smaller mouthpiece, and larger !ore instruments. 8t results in improved intonation and stronger harmonically related partials across the players range.
Wood#ind embouchure Flute embouchure > variety of transverse flute em!ouchures are employed !y professional flutists, though the most natural form is perfectly symmetrical, the corners of the mouth rela2ed, the lower lip placed along and at a short distance from the em!ouchure hole. The end!lown sha&uhachi and hocchi&u flutes demand especially difficult em!ouchures, sometimes requiring many lessons !efore any sound can !e produced.
$eed instrument embouchure
/ith the woodwinds, aside from the flute, piccolo, and recorder , the sound is generated !y a reed and not with the lips. The em!ouchure is therefore !ased on sealing the area around the reed and the mouthpiece. This serves to prevent air from escaping while simultaneously supporting the reed allowing it to vi!rate, and to constrict the reed preventing it from vi!rating too much. /ith woodwinds, it is important to ensure that the mouthpiece is not placed too far into the mouth, which would result in too much vi!ration (no control), often creating a sound an octave (or harmonic twelfth for the clarinet) a!ove the intended note. 8f the mouthpiece is not placed far enough into the mouth, no noise will !e generated, as the reed will not vi!rate. The em!ouchure for single reed woodwinds li&e the clarinet and sa2ophone is formed !y resting the reed upon the !ottom lip, which is placed on top of the !ottom teeth. The top teeth are then used to !ite down on the mouthpiece, and the top lips are wrapped around them in order to create a seal. /ith the less common dou!lelip em!ouchure, the top lip is placed under (around) the top teeth. 8n !oth instances, the position of the tongue in the mouth plays a vital role in focusing and accelerating the air stream !lown !y the player. This results in a more mature and full sound, rich in overtones. The dou!le reed woodwinds, the o!oe and !assoon, have no mouthpiece. 8nstead the reed is two pieces of cane e2tending from a metal tu!e (o!oe staple) or placed on a !ocal ( !assoon, english horn). The reed is placed directly on the lips and then played li&e the dou!lelip em!ouchure descri!ed a!ove. ompared to the single reed woodwinds, the reed is very small and su!tle changes in the em!ouchure can have a dramatic effect on tuning, tone and pitch control.
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=ou!le !u33 relating to the !rass players em!ouchure
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+uper hops, Trumpet +ecrets !y Jerry allet http:HHwww.callet.comH +creamin The Final 'm!ouchure ethod video !y %ill armichael http:HHwww.screamin.net +ail the +even s %oo& = !y lyde Aunt http:HHwww.!flatmusic.comH 'm!ouchure 'nhancement !y 0oddy Lewis http:HHwww.roddytrumpe t.ccHhome.html > Kew >pproach to >ltissimo Trumpet 4laying !y John Lynch http:HHwww.asymmetric mouthpiece.comHthe!oo&.htm Trumpet >M ,Trumpet F>N+, 4ros Tal& 'm!ouchure !y lint 4ops cLaughlin http:HHwww.%!Trumpet.com %rass Tactics !y hase +an!orn http:HHwww.!rasstactics.netH The %u33ing %oo& !y James Thompson http:HHuserwww.service.emory.eduHOmmoor7H>%+4ress.htmlPstudies
