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Re: child is playing so flat!

Author: donald
Date: 2010-10-08 20:04

Several times over the years i have experienced a student who plays flat, as you describe. Often it is because they are not putting their teeth on the top of the mouthpiece (i teach single lip to 99% of students)
- get the student to slur from middle C to open G
- make sure that they are not using any fingers to hold the instrument when on open G, the instrument should be held by the RIGHT thumb pushing the mouthpiece against the top teeth. Obviously, the instrument has to be at an angle where this is possible (and the head can't be angled downward).

This simple test seems to solve most of the flat players, though not all. Other causes can be- the lower lip folded out, not enough reed free to vibrate (usually has more effect on tone quality than pitch), top lip folded out so that it is not held firmly against upper teeth, and the dreaded.... "low tongue position" (easier to describe to the student as "yawn position").

re the "teeth on mouthpiece" problem...
I can actually demonstrate to a student the difference this makes- i play open G to the student, then take my teeth off the mouthpiece (without going into "double lip" mode) and the different in tone quality and pitch is obvious.

dn

Post Edited (2010-10-10 03:35)

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