| Well, Glenn, pressure is always alleviated by the following:
a full bank of air subsequently released in a supported, relaxed way
the corners of the lips going out to meet the mouthpiece instead of pulled back in the extreme smile position (smile advocates will note the use of the word "extreme"- no irate e-mails).
I like to think, to explain further, of the mouthpiece as having four points of contact rather than the two up and down ones we often think of. So, like a compass, it's N, S, E, and W. Bringing the lips to the E and W points make a nice cushion that eases pressure when all is backed up by a good, healthy approach to wind instrument breathing.
Hope there's something in there you can use, my friend.
ML |