Klarinet Archive - Posting 000113.txt from 2002/07

From: Neil Leupold <leupold_1@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Lip problems
Date: Thu, 4 Jul 2002 10:04:51 -0400

--- Allan Thompson <athompson@-----.za> wrote:

> I have just had a quite demanding week, and have had to play rehearsals and
> concerts on clarinet, basset horn and classical clarinet. As usual when I
> have to change embouchures quite a bit, and especially in cold, dry weather,
> my lips have become very chapped and painful. I have tried the various
> lip-ices on the market, but the problem persists. Does anyone know of a
> 'miracle cure' for this problem, as I have a couple more busy weeks to
> follow, and playing is remarkably unpleasant at the moment. (I know one
> should 'suffer for one's art', but this is a bit much).

I get painful chapped lips just over the course of everyday life, and have
found that the only way to avoid the problem is to apply lip balm on a rou-
tine basis -- in my case, every morning just as I'm about to head out the
door for work. A few strokes of Chapstick or some other regular lip moist-
urizer, and then gently rub it into the tissue to ensure absorption. In
those cases where I've lapsed out of the routine and experience the pain-
ful cracked (sometimes bleeding) dryness, my only remedy has been to resume
the routine ASAP and let mother nature do the rest (i.e., wait for the body
to repair the damage).

Neil

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