 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Albert
Date: 1999-04-05 23:41
Since there are so many questions on orthodontal care, does anyone play with braces? Have you played the clarinet before you got them on? What does it feel like and does it effect your sound? I'm going to be getting my share of dental work this summer and I need some experiences. Thanks.
-(é¿è)
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Author: Eb
Date: 1999-04-05 23:49
Okay... I'll answer your question. My daughter had braces, and she played just like she did when she didn't have them.. She said it felt a little weird at first, but she got used to it in a couple of days. Yes, she did play the clarinet before she got them.. Good Luck On Your Braces, and I Hope You Get Them Off As Soon As You Can!
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Author: Merry
Date: 1999-04-06 01:36
I played with braces during high school. It didn't effect my playing and actually got me out of the habit of biting too hard on my mouthpiece because my front teeth were often sore. It will feel different for a while but you will get used to it.
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Author: Katherine Pincock
Date: 1999-04-06 12:38
I played with braces for the first few years I was learning. As everyone else has said, it's not a major adjustment to play with them. I found it harder to adjust to having them off--that takes a while. Just a few tips: first of all, when you have them on and they've recently been tightened, it will be sore, so try to take a bit of a break from playing; second, when you get them off, make sure that you wear your retainer! If your teeth move easily like mine, the clarinet itself will start pushing them out of shape again. You can't tell in my case, because I wear my retainer relatively faithfully even after many years (I figure why go through all that money and time just to let them wander back out of place again! ;-). If you find that your teeth don't move that easily, you can work your way down after the prescribed period to not wearing it at all.
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Author: ted
Date: 1999-04-06 13:00
Don't get me started. ...just kidding! I am an adult, 29+, with braces. I've had them for two and a half years and have been playing for mush longer than that. When I first got braces my teeth were very sensitive and I didn't play for a few months. I started playing again using a mouthpiece cushion and also a double-lip embouchure. Now I hardly notice the braces, and could go back to the single-lip embouchure if I preferred.
Once you're used to the braces, you'll probably only have problems once a month when you go in for an adjustment. By the way, I've heard braces are more difficult on adults than younger folk. So you may not have any of the difficulties that I had.
If the braces have affected my sound at all, it's been positive. It has forced me to use the corners of my mouth more (and less biting) to grip the mouthpiece, which is a plus. I get many complements on my tone from my teacher and others who have heard me play.
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Author: Dave Spiegelthal
Date: 1999-04-06 14:19
Go ahead and play with braces, and don't worry about it. I played with braces on for three years while I was in junior high, and now (25+ years later, can you believe it!) my teeth are fine and my clarinet playing isn't too awful.
Dave Spiegelthal
Calverton, VA
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Author: Nicole Y.
Date: 1999-04-07 00:18
Hola!
I don't have braces, but my friend does. She used to play the clarinet. Her mother made her stop because her mother had to pay a thousand dollars to fix her braces. My friend said that the dentist said that the embouchure messed up the braces. Sorry if this is a little confusing. Bottom line, talk to your dentist.
The rising freshman,
Nicole Y.
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 1999-04-07 01:36
My son wore braces for a couple of years of clarinet playing - and he's doing fine. However, one of his teeth has moved again because of the playing (according to the orthodontist). At this point my son doesn't care about the one crooked tooth, and will not be wearing braces or hois retainer again.
He does have to have his wisdom teeth out this summer
( :^(
and it worries us a bit. He should have had them out earlier but we didn't want to take any chances before college auditions.
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Author: Jim
Date: 1999-04-07 05:43
My son (now 15) began orthondontia and clarinet playing within a month of each other six and a half years ago. Both the orthodontist and the instrumental music teacher (a flutist, what did she know) agreed that it would be OK. He had a pallet spreader first, then 2 years of full braces which came off 2 years ago. He played fine and had only minor discomfort when adjustments were made. Shortly after the braces came off, his bite began to change. The orthodontist wanted to have unerupted wisdom teeth extracted but would not say that that would fix the shifting. Then I reminded him of the clarinet playing and he agreed that this might be the cause. As he is far too involved and accomplished to abandon the clarinet, we will need to live with the bite as it evolves. His regular dentist suggests wearing retainers indefinitely to combat this and he agrees to do so. (He played his instrument for her in the office so she could evaluate the pressure on the teeth. She seemed to enjoy it!) I suppose that with nearly $5,000 invested in that mouth (no insurance!)if I had known that there would be a problem back when he started, I'd have handed him a pair of drum sticks or let my wife start him on the piano!
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Author: Albert
Date: 1999-04-08 04:38
Thanks for all of the advice everyone! I'm not afraid at all about the looks of the braces. A few years ago, they were considered to be nerdy. Now they're very common and aren't a big spectical anymore. Thanks again! :o)
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