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I am a Euphonium player. When I practice at home I usually sit and put a piece of foam under my Euphonium because I find I have the most air flow that way. I find that when I stand, am looking down and block my air flow. When I perform I always stand, but I wanted to know if there is a way to get the same air flow as I do when I sit when standing.
Thanks a lot - Nathan Barbakoff
Answer: It's a very common problem and an important one too as comfort/physical ease does not always mean you are in the best position to allow the air free passage through the oral cavity. And once you change the angle to which the mouthpiece addresses the lips you are likely to get variable response from them too, with one lip working harder than the other, limiting response, range, flexibility and sound quality. There is no easy answer to playing standing up, it often has to be done, I only know of about 3 euphonium soloists who ever play solos sitting down and 2 of these are girls. Maybe we should all sit to play and this weight, 'droop' problem goes away, but to be honest I play better standing up, the body is freer, straighter and breathing is more efficient. This air efficiency unlocks the secret of good playing; great use of air.
A small pillow or cushion on the lap can fix the correct height that the mouthpiece touches the face, and so long as the back is straight , this problem is sorted. As soon as we stand the arms and body hold the euphonium is a way that feels 'normal' , or else we'd hold it in a different way and here is the root of the problem. The euphonium is often now twisted clockwise , as much as 40 degrees to the sitting position and now the instrument is lower and the the mouthpipe almost certainly is angled down, causing more straining on the lips,OR, the chin lowers to compensate, restricting the flow of air, as exercises in 'chin-lowering' (!!) (without the instrument) will demonstrate. I prefer to hold the instrument as close to vertical as I can when I stand, with it leaning against the middle and left side of my body, with the left arm supporting about 90% of the weight, the rest with the right hand. It feels so normal to me , and I'm holding the damn thing for hours every day, I almost cannot feel the weight of the instrument at all.
If I tilt the instrument clockwise ,as I mentioned above, the instrument becomes heavy and I feel straining at the back of the neck and left shoulder. There are some gadgets you can buy (straps) to support the euph while standing and there is a company in Germany who specialise in them I believe, aimed at the brassbands (German style usually) who march a lot through the streets on parades. These work ok.
Also, the Finnish superstar euphonium soloist Jukka Myllys showed me a prototype device which clips on the trouser belt (with some discreet rods to support the instrument) which seemd to work very well indeed, but I haven't seen the product advertised yet. I'm sure its coming soon and may be 'out there' already as the concept was designed initially for trombone players, with a rod going to the ground (not recommended in a
thunderstorm !!)
I hope these comments helps a bit. To summarise, try to keep the body and the euphonium straight and tall. It will come to feel normal and hopefully comfortable soon.
Kind regards, Steven Mead
Answer: It is essential that you prepare you body and mind for a brass workout, just as any athlete would stretch and limber up before working hard. The lip muscles are the obvious areas where care must be taken, so that they are not put into shock that will affect all your playing that day and maybe the next. If you can also get the air moving in a positive way, before you start to play with some well thought air breathing exercises, as well as some general body stretches you will find your playing at the start of the day will benefit massively. You will be more relaxed and more air with less stress in the body. If you have time , 10-15 minutes breathing and stretching exercises at the start of the day and 5 minutes before any subsequent practice session will help you function much better as a brass musician. What's more, 5 minutes of low pedal tones before you put your instrument away at the end of a practice session or concert will ensure the blood flow to your lips will increase and quicken the restoration of strength and sensitivity.
Answer: No, it is illegal. Unfortunately I encounter a lot of photocopies of music on my travels, even in lessons students turn up with photocopies of music IÕve had publishedÉunbelievable ! You must try to use original copies at all times. If you have a new copy and want to work and annotate a part while youÕre learning it then photocopy your own original for study purposes so as not to ruin your ÔnewÕ copy and then move over to the original once it is learned. I always advise students to build up a collection of originals..it is a good investment for the future and whatÕs more you will encourage publishers to publish more new music for the euphonium. If they donÕt sell any copies then they wont print any moreÉ.thatÕs not a great future for the euphonium, is it?
...the same goes for making pirate copies of CD's. Please buy the originals!
Answer : I can normally detect a defect with an embouchure shape or position also by looking at the performance of the muscles on either side of the mouth when the high notes are attempted. In some cases it is not just the position of the mouthpiece on the lips that is the problem, but in fact is the 'result' of other defects that normally are either:
So essentially the problem is quite a simple one but the solution is a correct balance between solving the three areas listed above in the right proportion, depending what is the most seriously defective. I'm sorry if this sounds a little complex in its explanation but seeing as you asked the question I feel I want to help in as accurate way as possible. Its a bit like phoning your doctor and saying 'it hurts when I walk, can you give me a pill to take' ,...it is probably one of two or three things !!!
So , explore what vowel sounds you make when you blow through the instrument, think AH for the middle tones, AW for the low, and OO for the high, almost as if you are half whistling through the instrument. Do more slow deep breathing exercises so that it feels as if you stomach is expanding when you breath and as you blow the air out, slowly, feel the abdominal muscles supporting the air until there is nothing left. Then do the same on long notes , from middle G down to low G. also work on sustaining low pedal C for 10 seconds with no variation in tone/dynamic. As a general rule the better your high register gets the more you will have control over the high notes. Keep the lips as open as you can and maximize air flow at all times - Hope this helps!
Answer: In terms of study books for euphonium, there are very few that are expressly written for the euphonium but in terms of purely technical books this is not a big problem as the technical disciplines are similar throughout valved brass instruments. Here are some I'd recommend:
All these are good and quite different. Hope you can get hold of at least one of these. (By the way , practicing from the Arban should not be boring maybe you are not approaching this great book in the right wayÉmore later)