| I say with this with the deepest sincerity....but I have to chime in on this one. Playing dry will eventually be a detriment to your playing. I can guarantee it. Unless you never sweat and have no moisture in your mouth, you are fighting an uphill battle. I used to be one of those dry players and I understand why it can feel "secure" when you are in the practice of playing that way......but it will hinder your advancement EVENTUALLY. Playing dry means you are "anchoring" the rim on your flesh to keep it in place. This causes all kinds of problems and some that you might not be aware of yet. To put it crudely, it will eventually bite you in the behind.
A little moisture is needed so your lips can create a seal with the rim of the mouthpiece. Moisture is also necessary when you firm up the corners so your aperture can adjust. Playing dry makes this almost impossible. For this reason alone, it is worth the change in approach.
This is very difficult to explain in writing rather than in person.....but I will offer some advice. (if either of you are planning on pursuing the trumpet for many more years to come)
To begin to wean yourself away from this practice of playing dry....be it tonight...a week....a year... or five years from now....I suggest you begin in this manner. Form your mouth in a slight pucker to the brink of a "kiss" shape, but not quite to that point. This brings your corners to around the area of your canine teeth. This is the general area where they will be firm and against the teeth when you "engage". Right before you would "kiss" you would instead make a soft "m", curling the lips in ever so slightly. Once in this position, all else should be mostly relaxed. NOW bring the trumpet up to your face, take a deep breath and play letting it vibrate where it naturally wants to do so. Use a "puh" attack at first so you know you are beginning the "engagement" with your lips gently touching. It will not take long to realize you want a bit of moisture on the rim and will get into the habit of lightly wetting it. Playing dry will become uncomfortable and moist more natural. The closer you can get to playing in a way in harmony with your body and the with the least "contortions", the easier it will become. It is a matter of the body molding to the trumpet as much as it is molding the trumpet to the body. Finding balance and alignment is the tricky part. It takes time through experimentation and being in tune with ones physicality. Let us not forget, our bodies change over time as well, so it is logical that adjustments will take place in how we approach the horn. It is a frightening thought at first, but once you trust in the process, calm returns. It is an ever-evolving journey bordering on abstract.......there is almost nothing concrete about what we do and how we do it. What guides us is where we want to be, what we want to express and how we want to sound. To get there, we have to embrace flexibility in our process. |