Getting braces off and a degradation in range

[AlexBazinet]

This is a topic I'm certain is pretty well worn, but I think my situation is pretty unique. I got my braces off about a month ago now. From day one I was pretty much able to play with the same tone and intonation as before the only real change was in endurance, and range. Before getting my braces off I could play pretty consistently up to the double E to triple G range after getting them off I had a hard limit of an Eb, not double Eb high Eb. The problem I'm having, and the reason for this post, is that my range has been decreasing. Almost everyday I have been doing long tones both with and without a drone, as well as lipslurs, in addition to the Caruso 6 Notes/ 2nds. I have tried taking break days I've put heat on my chops ,but I've been losing range and tone in the upper register as the days go by. Currently I can only play up to a high C with a pretty wimpy sound. Getting my range back is not a super pressing issue as most of the playing I do is combo and the jazz band I am currently in I am 2nd trumpet, but it is concerning non the less.

[Andy Del]

Your solution is to take a step back and rest.

When my students are getting braces, or having them removed, I get them to take 2 weeks off playing, surrounding the change - or even more. Then they can ‘restart’ their playing.

I’d guess from your description, you just kept in and expected everything to work the way it did. Issue is, there was a profound change made to your mouth. You need time to work around the change instead of forcing things.

Get a GOOD trumpet teacher. Talk to the directors of everything you play in and get their co-what you need to do. (Or change ensembles, complain to the principal / school board, etc) Give yourself time and go slowly. You will be back again. If you do it well, you’ll be back even stronger than before!

Cheers

Andy
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so many horns, so few good notes...

[JayKosta]

Was there something about how the braces 'fit' that made the braces help align your lips, or maybe the braces forced some particular portions of your lips to be in a good position for vibrating the high notes?

If the braces did some 'mechanical actions' that enhanced lip vibrations, then you might have developed a special skill to use that mechanical assist, and it is not working without the braces - but maybe it has become your habit.

If you are still attempting to use some special 'with braces' techniques, that is likely the problem - you will need to discover and learn the 'without braces' way of getting your lips / embouchure to vibrate.
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Most Important Note ? - the next one !
KNOW (see) what the next note is BEFORE you have to play it.
PLAY the next note 'on time' and 'in rhythm'.
Oh ya, watch the conductor - they set what is 'on time'.

[peanuts56]

I wore Invisalign in my mid/late 40's for about a year. I wasn't real active playing wise but was practicing regularly. The orthodontist advised me to put the horn down.
I had the opposite reaction when resuming practicing. I picked up about a fourth in useable range. My mid range took a while to come back.

[AlexBazinet]

[AlexBazinet]

[wohlrab]

[Billy B]

Braces on/off is one of those situations where we can lose our focus and allow our attention to drift to how it feels. Invariably our air suffers causing many problems.
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Bill Bergren

[Wilktone]

You should certainly be aware of your breathing. However, I think it's most likely that as your teeth have shifted over the time of wearing braces, on top of the sudden change resulting from having them taken off, your anatomy has changed enough that you need to make a correction in your embouchure technique.

Maybe your mouthpiece placement needs to be placed higher or lower or even off to the side (even after braces). There are other things that are too difficult to go into quickly and I'd have to watch you play to offer any real advice. If you can take video of your chops I am happy to take a look. Sometimes I can spot things and offer suggestions that way.

Dave
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wilktone.com

[mafields627]

Dental structure has so much to do with the upper register and I don't think anybody really understands it. My theory is that completely flat, perfect front teeth inhibit the upper register. I had braces during middle & high school, so I don't really know what I would have played like otherwise, but with my two big flat front teeth I cap out at a weak high G, no matter what I try.
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--Matt--

No representation is made that the quality of this post is greater than the quality of that of any other poster. Oh, and get a teacher!

[etc-etc]

If high register is weak, spend more time practicing above your functional play range. Ever so often, descend to verify that you are in full control below.

If everything else fails, get the braces back on and hope for the best.

[Wilktone]

I don't think that putting the braces back on is the way to go.

Find the best placement to fit your new anatomy and go for there. Don't worry about what the placement looks like, worry about how it works. I'd start with finding a placement that helps you access the upper register best, even if it's initially softer and thinner sounding. You can work on opening up the tone and descending into the low register more easily than trying to set for the low register and hope that it develops your upper register.

Dave
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wilktone.com

[etc-etc]

Dental structure does influence the production of sound in trumpet.

For example, John Hagstrom writes in an article published at cso.org "A Tribute to Phyllis Bleck: trumpeter, surgeon and CSO philanthropist",

[Wilktone]

I question what a dentist understands about brass playing (my dentist plays trumpet, by the way). I would also question anything that a brass musician (especially me) says about dentistry.

My dissertation looked at, in part, the role that tooth structure played on observable embouchure characteristics. The results were inconclusive and suggest that there are many different factors that combine to result in those embouchure characteristics.

Of course the dental structure has a powerful influence on how we play a brass instrument, but it's not something someone can just eyeball and judge. You have to go with how it works when the metal meets the mouth.

The OP has just gotten braces *off*. What medical reason is there for getting braces put back on?
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wilktone.com

[etc-etc]

Regarding the braces re-installation, if braces help playing, perhaps braces or something similar to braces can be used.

A possible reason why braces helped playing the OP is that braces introduce a separation (air pocket) between lips and teeth.
As per your website:

[Wilktone]

[etc-etc]

Wilken, D. (2000). The correlation between Doug Elliott's embouchure types and playing and selected physical characteristics among trombonists. D.A. diss., Ball State University.

Abstract:
"Although traditional methods of teaching brass embouchure tend to favor a more centered mouthpiece placement, individual differences in facial structure may make a centered placement inefficient for many individuals. Thirty-four test subjects (N = 34) who volunteered from a mid-sized, Midwestern university school of music, a mid-sized Midwestern high school, and professional and semiprofessional trombonists from around a Midwestern state were tested for an efficient embouchure and then photographed while playing specific pitches into a transparent plastic mouthpiece. Additionally, each subject filled out a brief survey and had various facial characteristics photographed. Statistics from this data suggest that the three basic types defined by Doug Elliott, Very High Placement Type, Medium High Placement Type, and Very Low Placement Type, are accurate. Evidence also suggested that airstream direction and the use of an embouchure motion is dependant on vertical mouthpiece placement. The angle of the airstream also changes according to the register being played. It was also determined that certain physical characteristics, most notably lip protrusion, suggested that a subject will play with a specific mouthpiece placement."

BSU Library link

[etc-etc]

I found the link to your dissertation at
https://scholar.colorado.edu/downloads/gt54kp254
Specifically, in the list of references, on page 107:
"Wilken, D. (2000). The Correlation Between Doug Elliott’s Embouchure Types and Playing and
Selected Physical Characteristics Among Trombonists— [Ball State University].
https://www-proquest-com.colorado.idm.oclc.org/docview/304582289"

[Wilktone]

Now you've found it.

[etc-etc]

Thank you for posting the tables!

Summing up the results on Pearson correlation with Vertical Mouthpiece Placement:

................. Feature ......................... Pearson correlation ... p-value ... N
Degree of Upper Teeth Straightness ............... -0.077 ............... 0.664 ...... 34
Degree of Lower Teeth Straightness ............... -0.154 ............... 0.383 ...... 34
Chipped, Protruding, or Missing Teeth ............ -0.222 ................ 0.207 ...... 34
Orthodontic Work ........................................ -0.464** ............ 0.006 ...... 34

** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).