USING THREE EMBOUCHURES???

trpt.hick · Posted: Sat Sep 18, 2004 3:01 pm Post subject: USING THREE EMBOUCHURES???

Here's an interesting little story concerning Mendez and Clarke. It leads to a question.

When Mendez had his first embouchure accident (swinging door) it took months for the lips and teeth to be repaired and healed well enough to begin trying to play again. Evidently, he could hardly make a sound due to a lot of scar tissue and rearranged muscles in his lips.

He traveled to New York for lessons with Schlossberg and Walter Smith. Both told him he would likely never be able to play at a professional level again.

He then went to Long Beach for a lesson with Herbert Clarke. Same story.

In the Rafael Mendez Library there is a copy of Clarke's Characteristic Studies, autographed by Clarke to Mendez, which reads: "To Rafael Mendez, hoping to someday hear you play the contents of this book." Obviously, Clarke meant that he hoped that Rafael would someday play well again and be able to play the etudes in his book.

During that visit, Clarke told Mendez about his own embouchure difficulties which forced him to retire from performing as a cornet soloist at age 50. Evidently, Clarke took several months off one time while teaching in Chicago (the "Clarke School for the Cornet") and then received a call from the manager of the Sousa Band. He was to report in one week for heavy rehearsals followed by a world tour.

Clarke tried his best to get back into shape but he found himself getting torn ligaments in his upper lip a couple of weeks into the tour. They performed 3 concerts each day and Clarke always performed a solo plus encore on each one.

Eventually, Clarke had such difficulties that he only played his solos and left the regular First Cornet parts to his assistant, Frank Simon. By the end of the tour, Clarke could hardly play at all. (Perhaps this has some personal significance about his comment in the Technical Studies? You know, the "a drop of medicine may cure, whereas a spoonful could kill" line.)

After taking some time off to heal properly, Clarke developed three embouchures.....mouthpiece placed center (as usual) for more difficult things.....placed to the right side (to allow the center to rest)....and placed to the left side.

Of course, nothing of this appears in Clarke's four instruction books. They were published before his difficulty. But, he did tell Mendez about it, perhaps to see if Mendez could develop an embouchure off to the side.

We know that Mendez developed his pedal tone routine and was able to regain all (and then some) of his previous abilities on the horn.

By the way, Mendez returned to Clarke and played some of his most difficult solos for him. Clarke absolutely flipped! Here was a guy who could hardly make a sound, and after a year played like Mendez in his prime.

Perhaps you know of the letter Clarke wrote to Edwin Franko Goldman. It was quoted in the original liner notes of one of Mendez' Decca LPs. It said, "My dear Ed, Have you heard of the young Mexican trumpeter, Rafael Mendez? Such tone. Such velocity. Such range. A hundred years from now they will have forgotten the names Goldman and Clarke, but they will always remember the name Mendez!"

Of course, we have NOT forgotten about them.

But, here's a question:

Do you know of any modern players who utilize two or more mouthpiece settings to conserve chops?

Dave Hickman

bachstrad · Veteran Member Joined: 08 Mar 2003 Posts: 194

Well he's not a modern player, but I've heard that Claude Gordon mentions in one of his instructional videos, that he developed 3 different settings so that he could play fresh on more than one gig per night. I wouldn't bet my car on it as I don't actually own the videos, but I've heard it from more than one source.

gerrit2 · Posted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 12:10 pm Post subject:

I read an interview of Maurice andre where he talks about switching his embouchure during concerts. The shift was about 2 mm. Maybe not that kind of switch you're talking about?

All the best.

btw. Great forum!

Pat · Veteran Member Joined: 18 Nov 2001 Posts: 396

In one of the Herseth interviews in the ITG Journal he talked about moving the mouthpiece over a little when he got tired.

AccentOnTrumpet · Heavyweight Member Joined: 03 Nov 2002 Posts: 878

I've done it myself...Long story I'd rather not go into...but it helps if you need it.

littledoc0079 · Posted: Tue Oct 12, 2004 7:06 pm Post subject:

Hell, who doesn't? When I get tired, I do it and it gets me through the night!

Richard

pitchlevel · Posted: Tue Oct 12, 2004 7:24 pm Post subject:

mel broiles told me you had to be able to play center, left and right in case you get too tired but the job has to get done. he then proceeded to peel the paint off the walls in a demonstration of all three.

EBjazz · Posted: Thu Oct 14, 2004 11:56 pm Post subject:

Claude did not develop three settings so he could play the gig!
He did show me that he could play well in many different positions, including moving the mpc to three different horizontal positions, like you say. It was basically a stunt he did to show the relative insignificance of the lips. He sounded good at every setting!

<And here's what Claude would say>

"But so what? What good is it? I could be a complete musical moron and play with three settings. You know...If I did play with three settings, I would be a complete musical moron!
How does three settings help you? I've known players that used multiple settings and the're lives were miserable. Hell, it's bad enough being one trumpet player, try being two.
It just doesn't make sense. Why make life so diffucult when it can be so easy?"

Eb
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