 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Exiawolf
Date: 2016-08-17 08:52
Dear Bboard,
I need some advice. I had my wisdom teeth extracted about 2 weeks ago and am ready to start trying to get back into the swing of things. I tried playing today and it was really disappointing to say the least. I feel like all of the work I've put in over the summer has gone to waste now, like it's all gone. Have you had students get their wisdom teeth out before? And if so how long did it take them to recover back to where they left off? Thanks!
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Author: nellsonic
Date: 2016-08-17 12:59
Pretty much always less than a week, especially if they were in good shape before the surgery. Be easy on yourself!
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Author: kdk
Date: 2016-08-17 18:34
If there's no pain or other problem directly connected with the surgery, you'll probably feel more comfortable the 2nd time you play. If you normally like hard reeds, find one that's on the softer side to play on for a couple of sessions. Beyond anything else, don't overdramatize (all the work ... is all gone). Just play. If you feel too tired to continue, then rest. Pick the clarinet up again later or the next day. A break like this *can* be an opportunity to re-think details of your approach and bring things back to basic center that might have wandered off a little into eccentric habits.
If anything in the surgical areas is causing any of your discomfort, check with the oral surgeon who did the work and make sure nothing out of the ordinary is going on. I've had a few students who had impacted wisdom teeth removed in the O.R. and I only remember one running into a significant setback when one of the sites got inflamed. She had started playing a few days after the surgery but had to stop again to let the inflammation heal.
Karl
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2016-08-17 19:22
Please read my last response. I said it may take months before you get back your sound. The jaw bones were damaged, now the teeth will move around and you won't be very happy. It takes about 6 weeks for the bones to heal.
Play on softer reeds for a bit, double lib, and don't play more than 5 minutes at a time until the swelling and soreness is gone. Then you can add some time to your practicing. After 6 weeks or so don't run off and play 5 hours a day, because your teeth will be moving around a bit. Spend time with long tones listening to your sound as your oral cavity changes. Through this process don't run out and buy new mouthpieces. Even your hearing will change, wondering what a good sound should sound like. Bottom line here is your mouth has kind of been broken, 4 huge teeth removed, huge holes in your jaw bones, it will take time. They have to saw these teeth in half or in thirds to remove them. The dentist doesn't just pull them in one piece.
The good news is woodwind players always return to playing. Brass players have a much harder time and sometimes they never get that sound back.
PLEASE give yourself 6 months, one long semester or more before you start to feel like your sound is back. Remember the long tones everyday. Don't ever skip them.
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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Author: kdk
Date: 2016-08-17 20:52
I wouldn't argue with Bob Bernardo - he know what he's talking about and I respect his opinions tremendously. I think he and I are talking about different things. Will your "natural sound" change as a result of the surgery? Could be. Will there be ongoing changes as your jaw heals, swelling goes down and damaged tissue recovers? Maybe. Probably, even. But I don't think you can wait until all of that healing is done with to go back to serious practicing. Once you've been assured by the doctor that you aren't likely to do any harm, getting back to playing is important if you're going to avoid having muscles atrophy, at which point you *will* have a longer and more difficult return to playing comfort.
Bob is right to say that you may not feel that your sound itself is as it was for several weeks or even months. If you don't sound the way you think you did before the surgery, it may be because of changes in your mouth, or it may be because of changes in bone conduction of your tone to your ears. In any case, it's your embouchure and your control of the muscles that control your tongue and even your soft palate that are important to keep in condition.
Your sound will develop, and it will be what it will be. At your stage of development, your sound will change in any case as you learn and develop your playing conceptually. Lots of excellent players have no wisdom teeth and most of them, the older ones anyway, probably don't remember what they sounded like when they still had them.
Karl
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Author: nellsonic
Date: 2016-08-17 21:56
Sure things may change and take time to settle, but that's always the case as a developing player. Again, be easy on yourself.
I think it would be easy to freak yourself out by worrying too much about this. If it was really all that, sophomores would be at the top of many of the honor bands because juniors and seniors would still be incapacitated by their surgeries.
As Karl said, just play. Listen to your body and see this as an opportunity. Staying centered and positive is FAR more important to your musical success and happiness than a change in the number of teeth at the back of your mouth.
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2016-08-18 18:07
Thank you Karl for your kind remarks. He will be fine. just takes a long time to recover, then develop a sound that he will be really happy with!
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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