Nordic Trumpet

Hi all,

I'm an amateur lead player playing mostly in commercial/bigband settings. I seem to have this funny thing going on when doing soundchecks 3 to 4 hours before the gig starts. During the soundcheck I usually feel fine, as a matter of fact often I feel in excellent shape before the gig. I try to pace myself saving the energy for the gig, but I still have to play in such a way that the soundmen get to do their job. I never strain myself on the soundcheck, but I may go above high C briefly just to give the soundmen an idea of what's coming.

When the gig starts I seem to have lost a full octave of my range and I know it already on the first tune. I'm not tired at all, but my lips just don't want to vibrate above an A (below high C). I never have this problem when there is no soundcheck.

This is frustrating as h...... It feels like there's a small swelling in my lips causing this. I guess I could still be more carefull on the soundcheck, but I feel I should be able to handle a simple soundcheck. Normally I can play lead for 4 sets (4 hours) without a problem.

Am I the only one with a quirk like this?
Besides being more careful while doing the soundcheck (which I feel I try to be each time), what can be done to prevent this?

Solar Bell

I don't understand....

You say your range is A bove high C?

If you play just a little bit 3 to 4 hours before a gig and play just a little about high C for a sound check, your chops are shot when the gig starts?

You can normally play 4 sets of lead, but not with a sound check, as that will ruin your chops?

You get to a gig 3 to 4 HOURS before the gig starts?

Something is not right here....

-cw-

Nordic Trumpet

I see how it looks that way as I did say I lost a full octave. It's not really a full octave but it's not far from it. My range is normally to a G above high C.


No, my chops are not shot. I'm not tired at all. I play all 4 sets, but for some reason my lips don't vibrate when I try to play over that A, leaving me no other choice than to go down one octave. As a matter of fact, into the 3rd set I might actually get some range back.

This is the part I don't quite get myself. It's not always like that, but sometimes. I said it's a quirk..
I believe that there's something muscular going on in the chops during the 3 hour break causing me to have problems.


Quite normal when playing on company events where you need to rig up before the company dinner starts.


Well, I'm telling it like it is.

rowuk

It sounds to me like you are having trouble with the PA. Our brains can play funny tricks on us when our ears get fed unexpected things.

I have a couple of questions.
Does this ONLY happen in settings where you are mic'ed or do you have problems sometimes when unamplified?
Have you tried having the stage monitor feeding you turned off?
Have you tried different mics or stage monitors?

After 3 sets of amplified band, you are probably either used to the PA sound or half deaf and are playing on auto pilot.
At more than one occasion, I have asked to have the stage monitor taken away because I could not hear myself in a productive way (not even necessarily too loud, sometimes just an unusable mix). The problem can be EQ, delay, volume, mix with other instruments, wrong choice of mic.......

Anybody else out there with bad PA experience?

If you can, set the PA up between gigs and see if the problem is still there

gchun

Is there a chance that you aren't blowing with proper support during the soundcheck? If the monitors/pa are hot, you may have a tendeny to "back off." and let the PA do the work and forget about concentration and air support. Much like playing acoustic in a church or really live hall, I have to concentrate on proper breath support since the acoustics make it "too easy" to sound good.

The PA could be throwing off your normal sense of "balance."

This could be setting the pace for you for the rest of the evening.

Could that be it?

Garry

Pagetown

Any chance you are using some sort of chapstick or lip balm after the soundcheck? Some lip balms contain (among other things) Camphor, which can be a muscle relaxer. Not good on chops unless you've got a bunch of hours of rest ahead....I won't use it ever actually.

Just a thought...

-jp

kadleck

I agree. This problem is quite odd. Is it possible that you are over-anxious during the performance? Sometimes that can throw breathing into a "mini hyper-ventilation" mode. I can't imagine that a 3 hour layoff would be the cause of the problem.

Also - often the excitement of the gig takes over, and we sometimes over blow, or try to "go for it" too much. I would concentrate on relaxing during the gig and maybe backing off on the volume (with the knowledge that the sound system is working in your favor). Other things to try: make sure that you warm up for the job as well as for the sound check; watch what you eat/drink before the gig (sometimes that can be a factor).

Let us know what happens.

Tony

Nordic Trumpet

Thanks for you input guys.
To reply on your thoughts:

- No, I don't use anything on my lips.
- This has happened in both mic'ed settings and none mic'ed settings.
- No, I was not anxious at all (Oh but I've been there a few times in the past. Believe me.. )


But when I look at what I wrote in my first post I see that I give the impression of barely playing at all during the soundcheck. This is not quite correct. We played 4 or 5 tunes or so where I try to be as careful as possible. I've been thinking about this quite a bit the last few days and in retrospect I might have gotten a bit carried away on "Digging on James Brown" - you know, the Tower of Power song, during the soundcheck. I apologise for being misleading.

I still think it's a bit odd since I never have this problem when there's no soundcheck before 4 hour gigs. My lips can take 15 minutes off but not 3-4 hours?!?

You might have a point on the warmup Tony. This last time I didn't get to warm up for as long as I would like. Still, previously I have been able to warm up good enough and the problem occured..

Being an amateur I guess I have to live with it. I can always skip the soundcheck allthough I don't like to do that..

cornetguy

I am going to suggest something else. The soundcheck isn't the gig and so you are playing with abandon (even if holding back) making a mistake doesn't really matter so, but when the gig starts you are beginning to get into the mindset, "don't mess up..." I always tell students that they have permission to make mistakes and to succeed, and when I give the students permission to make mistakes, they invariably play better. Also make sure you are staying in "present time."

ebjazz

Did you do a long warm up before the sound check?
Here's my theory:
You have what I call finicky chops. Since you are an amatuer, your chops are not conditioned to play "on call". So you get them warmed up and ready for the sound check and then you rest for 4 hours. When you come back they are stiff and no-responsive. AND it takes longer to get them loose again.
Think of a baseball pitcher who has just pitched 7 innings and is doing well. Then his team bats and scores 10 runs and he sits on the bench for 45 minutes. That pitcher is often pulled at that point.
My suggestion:
Do the sound check cold and hardly play. Take a break and do your normal warm up for the gig.
Heck whenever I do a soundcheck, I play pp so the soundman will turn my mic up!

HTH

Eb