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Re: Squeezing my stomach

Author: Tony Pay ★2017
Date: 2008-06-11 19:24

clarinetguy55 wrote:

>> Tobin wrote:

>>> You haven't yet explained WHY your teacher says not to squeeze the muscles?>>>

>> My teacher does not want me to squeeze my stomach muscles because he says that when my stomach is squeezed, there is not enough air that is being released and the notes are not as clear.>>

It sounds as though there is a lot of confusion around all of this.

I'd like to clear up just one part of it, and see where it gets us in the discussion.

So, how do we blow, when we are blowing from LOW DOWN (the almost universally recommended method)?

The answer is, we flex both our abdominal muscles and our back muscles simultaneously and equally.

Think of another part of our body for a moment.

If we flex our biceps and triceps simultaneously and equally (the biceps bend our arm, the triceps straighten it) there is no effect upon the bending of our arm. The bending effect of the biceps is counteracted by the straightening effect of the triceps.

The same is true of the abdominal and back muscles. Simultaneous and equal flexing of those muscles have no effect on the bending of the body at the waist. If we are standing erect, we remain standing erect. If we are sitting, we remain sitting.

However, in this case, there IS an effect upon the soft tissue that lies between abdominal and back muscles. A pressure is exerted on that gut material, and it pushes up on the division between gut and thorax -- namely the diaphragm.

So, that's how we blow.

It's no use going on to talk about 'support' unless this fundamental system is understood. Abdominal flexion -- in conjunction with back muscle flexion -- is a necessary component of blowing.

Tony

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Squeezing my stomach new

clarinetguy55

2008-06-09 14:02