Simplification - air, tongue, grounding

Simple:
having few parts; not complex or complicated or involved; "a simple problem"; "simple mechanisms"; "a simple design"; "a simple substance"

Thanks, Google.

Summary for today:
Separate the components (air, embouchure, tongue). Enjoy the ones that work right, address the ones that don't.
Less motion on the face is, in my case, better.
When the body is simple and relaxed, it is easy to identify what tension & actions do not belong.

While I was practicing today, I typed these few notes:

Focusing on: rehab, assertion

Things to do always:
Don't move the rest of the body. Ground.
Feel the mouthpiece.
Inhale well, cycle straight to blowing.
Stay firm.

Tom Brantley master class today. Thoughts:
Don't forget the positive stuff when you practice. Don't spend all your time worrying ? maximize on the positive things. Remember the things you are doing right, then work on the other stuff. Go for product, go for musicality, go for ease. Stand there and play. What did you like? What didn't you like? Keep it simple like that.

"Your discipline is horrible!" Lindberg to Brantley (late 1980's)

Other thoughts from my practice:
Everything that comes out of the horn is actively done. The horn isn't doing anything. Pay attention. What am I doing? What do I like? Keep that. What don't I like? Change that, but leave everything else alone.

The "Focusing on rehab" is a topic for later. Assertion is fighting the demons, fighting the fear of missing. I strongly recommend you don't think about that (elephant :) ).

I have a habit of pacing when I practice - it's another remnant of high school. Moving around makes me lose track of what I am doing, though, and bad habits go unnoticed. Now I have to remind myself to stand still (Brantley reminded his audience of this today).

Standing still, feet flat on the floor, helps me keep simple. I stand without the horn, and there is no tension. My body is simply there. I can imagine what it will feel like when I pick up the horn. But then I do pick up the horn, and I feel new tension in my back, left shoulder, right part of the neck ... why do I do these things, even when I am not playing? These actions are certainly "artifice." Standing still makes them obvious.

Another process that helped immensely tonight:

I blow air through the horn, and it is simple, easy. I do this a few times. "HOH". I can even use a little tongue, no buzz - "DOH". I can make a pitch without tongue - "POH". It sounds acceptable in just about every range, it's easy. I add the tongue, and the sound becomes ... complicated.

What am I doing right? I am standing still, feet on the ground. I feel the mouthpiece touching my lips. I am inhaling well, I am keeping the lips firm. My body is [mostly] relaxed.

What doesn't feel right? The air does not move seamlessly from inhalation to exhalation. My tongue feels slow and heavy.

I keep all the things I like, only addressing the turnaround/tongue issues. Seamless in-out. Breathe well. I gradually use less tongue, finding the light, easy sound I want. I think of starting my 'problem' notes with 80% air, 20% tongue (hey, it works for me).

A couple of weeks ago I spent part of the afternoon playing lip slurs and 'bops' with trombonist Oscar Diaz. What a great guy. Watching him slur an F major arpeggio three octaves was a firm reminder for me - don't move outside the mouthpiece. Today I mentioned that I was trying to pucker more to keep things stable as I slur. He recommended Buddy Baker's advice: "All the work is done in the mouthpiece." Billy Gayman told me that once, via Don Knaub ("Keep it in the mouthpiece"). Great advice. Easy to check with the mirror, and great audible results.

A clear mind is like a still lake - a slight disturbance is obvious.
When I am relaxed, I can easily feel the causes of my chips & challenges. But if I am tense or pacing ... oh, the frustration!