Articles on the Embouchure

My Opinion:

In my opinion the embouchure (or the lip set up) is probably one of the most important parts of trumpet playing. Like many of you I have also had problems with this part of trumpet playing. It’s weird to see as a student that many teachers are almost timid to talk about this important part of trumpet playing. In my opinion this is something that needs to be talked about more. You can’t just let a student develop something that’s wrong. So since I don’t have the answers what I am going to do is give you guys little excerpts from what different books and teachers have to say about the embouchure.

Arban:

"The mouthpiece should be placed in the middle of the lips, two-thirds on the lower lip,
and one third on the upper lip. At any rate, this is the position which I have adopted, and
which I believe to be the best."

(Claude Gordon footnote): "Notice Arban was not dogmatic on this issue. Rather, he state
that he believed it to be the best. Another equal authority of that time, Saint-Jacome,
stated just the opposite. Most all authorities today place the mouthpiece high" - Gordon.

Saint-Jacome:

This piece is coming from page 1 of the Saint-Jacome Grand method.

"The cornet is without contradiction one of the easiest instruments to play as regards
the fingering, and one of the most difficult in regard of the embouchure...."

"The mouthpiece is placed on the lips as nearly as possible in the middle of the mouth....
The fact no doubt arises from a certain weakness of the middle of the lips and
sometimes also by the position of the teeth which do not allow of the mouthpiece being
placed on them without suffering some injury."

"The lips are divided in the mouthpiece into two unequal parts: two-thirds for the upper
and the rest for the under according to all professors and one-third for the upper and
one-third for the upper and two thirds for the under.... Now my advice on the subject: I
think it depends on which of the lips is thicker; a person with a thick under lip will
probably find It more convenient to use two-thirds of the under and one-third of the
upper lip while the contrary happens when it is the upper lip that is the thicker."

"In placing the mouthpiece first the lips rest on the teeth and should be extended
equally as in a smile, second the tongue, made as thin as possible, in introduced
between the teeth, which are opened....."

That's pretty much what Mr. Jacome had to say about that. After that he goes on to talk
about how to tongue. Know this is a pretty old book, almost as old as Arban's but the idea changes dramatically. Know as
we go on let’s see what different people have to say and let’s see if the theories change or not.

Claude Gordon:

I studied the Claude Gordon’s Systematic approach to Daily practice for about 1 year.
First let me show you guys Mr. Gordon’s points of view then I will add in what I think at
the end.

"The only purpose of the lips is to vibrate... Proper development so as to vibrate freely in
all registers is necessary for power, endurance tone and flexibilities."

After this he talks about having to keep the lips moist as they tighten then he talks about
how there is no such thing as a NO PRESSURE SYSTEM and then he talks about how
the lips contract toward the mouthpiece as you ascend to the higher register and then they
descend when coming into the lower register.

"Do not use smiling or stretching back movements of the lips. This causes weak
endurance and a thinning out of tone."

"For freer vibration and more endurance in all registers and for power and control, the
mouthpiece should be placed more on the upper lip. This gives you the advantage of
more lip in the mouthpiece or more vibrating surface. The lower the mouthpiece is
placed, the more it tends to shut off the vibration."

Know switching books. I will know go into Claude Gordon’s Brass Playing is No
harder than Deep Breathing book

On page 29 - 31 is where you will find what I’m talking about.

The first topic he starts out talking about the lips. And he says “THE LIPS DO NO PLAY
THE HORN”. After that there is a letter that Herbert L. Clarke wrote to Mr. Gordon
regarding the topic and here is a piece of it:

"The LIPS do not play the cornet. They only act as a vibrating medium, and should not
be abused."

If you wana know what the rest of the letter says then buy the book. hehe.

After that the next topic is the lips and Mouthpiece placement. Claude starts out by
once again saying that the only function of the lips is to vibrate and that the lips alone can
not produce a high or low tone. Then he says this:

"The position of the mouthpiece on the lips is very important. It should be placed where
it will produce the best vibration, not where it necessarily feels comfortable. What feels
comfortable at first may be entirely wrong. That is the same as telling a beginning
pianist that using just three fingers is OK as long as it is comfortable. How much of a
pianist will he become?"

"Place the mouthpiece toward the center of the mouth. Placement a little to one side or
the other is used by most players with no credit or discredit to their playing.(the shape
of the mouth and teeth will affect this as no two mouths are alike). Place it more on the
top lip, that is, approximately 2/3 on the upper and the rest on the lower.... Saint
Jacome stated exactly the same thing... Herbert L. Clarke said half and half; however
when I watched him play, it was on the higher side. Arban stated the opposite, but was
no dogmatic about it. He stated that he thought that to be so."

Then basically after this point he talks about letting the lips work correctly not try to
make them work correctly. And about how buzzing the lips by themselves is a waste of
time. And about how tucking the lower lip under the upper lip will cause more problems.
And then he talks about how gadgets are a waste of money. And then he concludes with
this:

"Remember, the lips do not play the horn, so once your embouchure is set, FORGET
THE LIP. If you leave the lip alone, with proper practice, it will take care of itself!"

Dr. Collin:

I will be quoting excerpts from his book “Advanced lip Flexibilities” On page 5 under
Embouchure security he says this:

"A commend often heard by beginners is “smile slightly.” This can be magnified too
greatly. Instead of unnecessary lip stretching, if the lips are puckered and pressed more
firmly together more of the meaty substance of the lips are instinctively absorbed
inside the mouthpiece resulting in much more security in the embouchure. The
vibrating tissues should be solely for the purpose of vibrating; not for vibrato or for
pressure, or shifting registers."

"Puckered lips have a strengthening effect, but lip stretching spreads the muscles in
opposite directions and in so doing tends to weaken the lips. To insure strength in the
lips they should at all times be closed and puckered. By keeping the chin firmly set the
needed vitality for a healthy embouchure can be drawn from all facial muscles. There
are the eye, chin, upper lip, and muscles in the corners of the mouth. In ascending
from the low to the high register, the lips should be drawn together. This is done by
raising the bottom lip slightly, thus tightening the muscles in the corners of the mouth.
It also has a direct bearing in controlling the air stream. The process is in raising the
lowering the air stream, and thus controlled resistance reverts back to the tightness of
the embouchure. The technique is to lower the bottom lip for a slight opening, which
gives both wider vibrations and a resonant bottom register. The compression of the lips
results in a smaller opening thus higher range."

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