Trumpet embouchure tip #4,5, and 6 Jaw position, teeth gap, and alignment

[@TrumpetBiz]

Thank you Jeff. Aligning my lower teeth with my upper is something I wasn't taught as a kid. This is great advice. Love your channel and they way you explain things. As someone coming back after 40 years away, your guidance is invaluable.

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

You are so welcome!

[@arthurcosta5359]

I have recently changed my jaw position. For 25 years I had been playing with a too open jaw. When I close it, I had to compensate opening my lips to get some sound. The result was amazing. The first time I felt my embouchure right. I,m still adapting to it, but it's much better than the old embouchure. Thanks for the tip!

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

Yes! I did the same. It wasn’t easy though as it felt very awkward at first. Thank you for checking out the video and commenting!

[@arthurcosta5359]

@@JeffLewisTrumpet kzbin.info/www/bejne/bX27q5yigdeaa7s this video also helped me to find good fundamentals. I d like to share with you.

[@perarnetandberg3475]

Thanks for great tips❤

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

@@perarnetandberg3475 you’re welcome!

[@thomasodowd4564]

Thank you. Great advice!

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@darlenebeltran8965]

Love love your channel, thank you for sharing all your know and tips 👍🏽

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

You’re welcome! And thank you for watching my channel and commenting.

[@alanl4489]

thanks for the useful tips

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

You’re welcome! Glad you found them useful.

[@seifenstander508]

hi Jeff, thanks a lot for this video! even though i am a beginner (trying to play the trumpet now for some 1 1/2 years) i know exactly what you mean. ist funny, because i am quite sure that i play with a (too) big gap between my teeth too, which means i take the lower jaw too deep. but the problem is, once i tried to lift the jaw, i was no longer able to create a tone, somehow i lost control over the embouchure, it felt as if i dont get any (positive) tension and grip on the lips. so i tried the whisper g with touching teeth. in the beginning it felt weird, but soon it became better, and within quite a short amount of time i could even play scales up to g abouve the staff with closed front teeth. sometimes even tones eventually kept rising and rising up to very high notes, without any effort, but without control either. but of course i know that this technique can only be a means to improve the embouchure, that it never can be the standard set up for playing (i think it perfectly trains the muscles on the corners of the mouth). so what i am trying now, is to start with touching teeth, and then to step by step open them again. thank you again and looking forward to watching your further videos, gerd

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

You are welcome! Sounds like you are on your way through self analysis, which, I think is, crucial. I can already tell you are way ahead of the "game" even after only 1 1/2 years. Please keep me posted as I would love to hear how you progress.

[@seifenstander508]

@@JeffLewisTrumpet hi Jeff, thank you for your answer! progress is very much ups and downs. i am not yet able to keep a more or less constant level. one day things work, the other day they dont. now at the moment (as i am kind of captured in a flat), i do very much only whisper tones. i wonder what effect this will have on my playing. looking foreward to watching your upcoming videos! all the best, gerd

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

Our trumpet journey definitely involves ups and downs as you say. it can be a frustrating journey indeed! I am sure you will become more consistent as you progress. Do you have a practice mute you can use for the time being since you are probably confined to your flat? It may be better than nothing for now to at least get some playing time in with full air support. Or, maybe some mouthpiece buzzing? kzbin.info/www/bejne/nWrRZnysp7GagJY Hope that helps?! Best, Jeff

[@seifenstander508]

@@JeffLewisTrumpet hi jeff! thank you for your answer and the link! a mute i don't have, but i think it's time to buy one. mouthpiece buzzing i do quite a lot. i found out that this really works for me. the more control and easy height i get on the mouthpiece, the better is my trumpet-playing afterwards. so what i do now, is to get a good feeling with buzzing, and afterwards i change to the trumpet. as long as buzzing doesn't feel good, i don't take the trumpet. and yes, i am stuck in my flat, but we are still allowed to go outside for walks, so sometimes i go to my car (where i have a trumpet as well :-)) and practice there a bit with full air. and in the car i can do a funny thing avoiding too much mouthpiece-pressure: i fix the trumpet on the steering-wheel, and then adjust the seat in a manner that my lips get perfectly there where the mouthpiece is. so i can sit there completely relaxed, hands down, and very soft contact to the mouthpiece. the anti-pressure-device you show in your video looks very interesting as well. i will try to get one. thank you for your support and best wishes, gerd

[@guygourevich4096]

Hey Jeff! I also have a large overbite, and I have been hading a lot of trouble with upper register and endurance. How did you make the change to playing with your jaw forward? I'm finding it very challenging to making the switch and to produce a proper sound this way

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

The only thing that seems to help me was to set in more of a smile position and practice with my teeth more aligned with a very small gap. Sometimes I would practice with my teeth together like the Cat Andersen method. Let me know how it goes.

[@leosteamedbaozi9867]

You mentioned that you have 2 embouchures that you go back and forth with/cross over. I've been told that we should just stick with one. Your thoughts?

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

Yes, until I can play everything with the new embouchure. I am still building it up. Almost there! I heard Maynard Ferguson had many embouchures, but who knows for sure. I would prefer to only have one for sure.

[@thedamndiz2343]

@@JeffLewisTrumpet i think I just had i just had one of those "ah hah 💡 moments after watching u ascend. I've recently gone through a drastic embouchure change for the time being, I've adapted to a rather unorthodox way in order to get a propert seal and my chops to vibrate. I started an efficiency safari on different methods for efficiency upstairs and i came across Lynn Nicholson's MF protocol. I've been a fan of his for over 2o years and if he's telling u if u wanna play high, get a V cup and let the abs and intercoastals get the notes and unfurl the chops as u ascend and relax. I'm thinking to myself, "what the fuck!?!? Relax as I ascend?? How the fuck am I supposed to relax while trying to belt out powerful ass screaming 🎺? " After some experimentation and assimilation to the piece, it just clicked. I relaxed the chops and took a nice big yoga breath and then "WEEEEEEEE" Powerful ass double C with like it was nothing. Ur chops are doing the same thing and u sound great up there by the way bud ☺️🙂 sorry to ramble..... Feeling pretty good over here lol 😂😂😂

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

That is awesome! Isn't it weird how you may think, in theory, something should not work like "relax while you ascend" and the next thing you know it's working!? Trumpet playing can be so counter-intuitive it's ridiculous. I love that you call it an "efficiency safari". That's perfect!

[@ljbegnaud]

Great info and presentation. Thank you!

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

Glad you enjoyed the video!

[@IIrandhandleII]

Which embouchure do you recommend for absolute beginners? I am really wanting to learn just one that will sustain me and won't have to ever change. I am very new so i know it's important not to learn bad habits.

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

That's a tough question! I would recommend seeing a trusted trumpet teacher who can guide you through the first few months at least to make sure you are not developing any bad habits. It's pretty difficult to do on your own in the beginning. Although, you never know, you could be a natural! This video may point you in the right direction but there many other good ones out there as well; kzbin.info/www/bejne/mKSZZqqvnMqjbpo Keep me posted!

[@pebblebeach8517]

Players with over-bites are going to struggle vertically aligning their teeth ?

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

I guess it would depend on how much of an overbite. You definitely don't want it to hurt!

[@teofreire8720]

hi Lewis, I have a question, is there a technique of this kind of playing and how do I change notes that quick, thanks ! kzbin.info/www/bejne/iGW6imOuna9sZ5Y min 1:50 of the video. Thanks !

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

Are you referring to learning to play with your jaw forward and maybe using a smaller aperture than you usually play with? If so, for me, practicing with my teeth together, evenly, (The Cat Anderson method of practicing) made me aware of the process and then I experimented from there.

[@pebblebeach8517]

Teo Freire: that 1.50 sound you only hear from very advanced players with at-least 10K hours on a trumpet... ( flexibility & strength plus maximum relaxation)

[@pebblebeach8517]

Pucker with a smile ?

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

All about micro adjustments and trial and error.

[@karlhubben8009]

Like to see that you mention the Stevens-Costello method, that happens not very often, even in the US! In Europe is this method more or less unknown....., for me it was an eyeopener and the way to a nearly effortless way of playing after decades of struggling with a not really working embouchure! We have to consider that Roy Stevens only accepted an upstream playing, means the player have to bring his lower jaw forward to an even teeth position or slightly more forward. That favoured players using an upstream setting naturally, roughly 10 % of all players. When i changed my setting to the (for me) naturally given upstream i got halve an octave range from one moment to the next...., but complete loose of tone control! So i was forced to learn from the beginning ....after playing 35 years the wrong way! For more information: roystevens.org

[@JeffLewisTrumpet]

Wish I would have learned about the embouchure when I was a teenager. I never realized there were books dedicated to the subject. Who knows if I would've helped me or not. Glad to hear you figured it out.