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Thread: Lip quiver advice

  1. Lip quiver advice

    In recent months my lip has begun to quiver rapidly within the first five minutes of practice every day. It happens during long tone warmups at various pitches. The quiver doesn’t hurt, it sounds like a nice fast vibrato, and it dissipates within about ten minutes, but At the same time I can’t control it. This is probably somewhat age related (I’m 74), but I have no symptoms or history of Parkinsonism.

    Has anyone else, of any age, experienced this chop quiver (as opposed to chopped liver - sorry)? Thanks.

  2. #2
    Welcome to the forum!

    At 74, the general neighborhood I occupy, you would want to make sure there are no medical issues behind the scenes. If you are satisfied that you're OK there...

    The good news is that the quiver goes away! If I found this happening, I would start by looking for a slightly different warmup. For example, the first note I play is usually concert Bb (2nd line of the bass clef), with lots of semi-long tones. So if I noticed something odd, I would move my first note up a 5th (concert F) and see if that helped. I might also try to change from starting on still notes to starting on slowly moving notes (or vice versa). You could also try blowing the mouthpiece along to see if that helps.

    Another IMPORTANT factor is to play in THE HORN'S CENTER on your first notes. A cold horn will usually be flat. If you have a good ear, you might be subconsciously lipping up, which causes your warmup to begin with tension. So turn off your relative pitch and find where your horn is comfortable. Blow easily and keep your chops relaxed, and let the horn take you down or up a little on that first note as you "feel" the center. You could also try to move pitch up and down slightly and sense where it is easiest to blow. The idea is to keep your chops unstressed during warmup.

    I have done 2 videos on warming up:

    https://youtu.be/nMallNTCDSw



    https://youtu.be/QqPql-Sh-7w

    Dave Werden (ASCAP)
    Euphonium Soloist, U.S. Coast Guard Band, retired
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    Alliance Mouthpiece (DC3)
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  3. I'm a bit younger, but I had the same issue about a year ago. I was terrified that (at 56) age was going to start catching up with me. For me, it started at the beginning of notes, and it lasted for a couple of weeks. Now it's gone. I've tried to relax my breathing, get in some exercise, and practice long notes. I was also doubling on trombone, euph and tuba, and playing a lot of tuba at the time. The crazy embouchure changes I was putting myself through, mainly with the tuba may have had something to do with it. I've been focusing more on trombone and euph, and haven't had it return. It felt like uncontrollable weakness, which is what scared me. If you're doubling or straining your embouchure in some way, try backing off for a week or so and see what happens. I think I did a minute of freebuzz before practicing just to make sure the chop muscles were still doing what they should.

    Best of luck. I hope you get it figured out.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2022
    Location
    St. Louis, MO
    Posts
    1
    Boy- am I relieved to see someone else is dealing with this issue. Mine's a little different- I suspect my wobble is related to essential (familial) tremor. (I'm 66) Most people think ET shows up in the hands as shaking, but mine also seems to travel to my embouchure at the most inconvenient times. I can say for certain that when I'm a bit nervous or stressed, it's worse. (And it's so embarrassing, especially if I'm playing an exposed section or solo part and it hits.) I haven't found any way to push past it except to pull away from the mouthpiece, exhale, and try again or come in a bar or so later if I'm rehearsing a piece with my community band. Sometimes that works. Sometimes playing lower register notes helps it dissipate. Most of the time it will go away as I play for a longer period of time and I get more immersed in the music. It certainly gets worse if I begin to obsess about it...then my brain gets in the way as well. It's most noticeable in the mid-range G to Bb for some reason. I used to blame a weak or tired embouchure or lack of air- I started on euphonium 8 years ago after a 30+ year hiatus from tuba- but it isn't that at all. At some point (very) soon, I'll have to seriously consider medication, but I'm not quite there yet. In the meantime, I try not to worry about it and just keep plugging along. Hope you find some ways to help you cope with your quiver.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    Valley City, North Dakota, USA
    Posts
    1,314
    I’ve actually had this happen a few times myself (I’m 52). It DID correspond with me also spending some time on my trumpet. (I have a younger nephew and niece that both play trumpet…so I work with them on occasion.)

    So, perhaps there is something related to stressing your embouchure in that way.
    Groups
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    Larry Herzog Jr.

    All things EUPHONIUM! Guilded server

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by hyperbolica View Post
    I'm a bit younger, but I had the same issue about a year ago. I was terrified that (at 56) age was going to start catching up with me. For me, it started at the beginning of notes, and it lasted for a couple of weeks. Now it's gone. I've tried to relax my breathing, get in some exercise, and practice long notes. I was also doubling on trombone, euph and tuba, and playing a lot of tuba at the time. The crazy embouchure changes I was putting myself through, mainly with the tuba may have had something to do with it. I've been focusing more on trombone and euph, and haven't had it return. It felt like uncontrollable weakness, which is what scared me. If you're doubling or straining your embouchure in some way, try backing off for a week or so and see what happens. I think I did a minute of freebuzz before practicing just to make sure the chop muscles were still doing what they should.

    Best of luck. I hope you get it figured out.
    Tuba was hard on me. I was prone to a double buzz and I never quite warmed up to the mouthpiece. I doubled for a couple of years and played tuba in a community band, but finally just figured that tuba wasn't for me.
    Sterling Virtuoso Euphonium, Denis Wick 4AL

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