Question:
I recently had six upper teeth bonded(not the two front teeth) upon the advise
of my dentist as there was so much wear that they were prone to infections and
cavities.As these were not the front teeth I did not anticipate any effect on
my playing.I am not sure if it is coincidental or the cause of my problems but
I now find it nearly impossible to maintain my embouchure.My lower lip feels
uncontrollable and I have to play with more upper lip and more pressure on the
upper lip.Strangely enough,the upper and lower registers are less affected than
the middle register which is now very insecure.
My only hope for being able to continue playing trumpet is that I also need
bonding on six lower teeth and I am hoping that will correct any imbalance that
may have occured.
Answer:
Years ago I gave up on developing a real career on the trumpet when I lost
my front teeth. Originally the result of a traumatic altercation, my front
teeth were replanted and replaced, but several years later were in severe
deterioration as a result of time and heavy blowing. Most of my front teeth
have been completely replaced with implants and bridges, the only two
remaining are the two upper, right in front. These too, are configured
differently than they were originally, and will need bonding or bridging in
the future.
Despite this, my sound is nearly as large, and my range is nearly as broad.
I rarely play the horn, though I have an old bb/c/a trumpet in my office,
and I blow licks, etudes, and concertos between meetings. With practice I
can hit high Fs easily and even produce solid Gs. I have performed the
messiah nearly every year for 12 years.
I look forward to having the rest of my teeth fixed some day and am
confident that practice and good technique will perservere over the change.
While I have my suspicions that certain configurations are advantageous,
it's not worth fretting about.
It would seem to me than any alteration of the supporting surfaces of the
teeth would alter one's ability to play trumpet in the same way. I don't
believe it to be any different from a trumpet player getting braces. Along
the same lines, it is probably a matter of time and practice until your new
"chops" get broken in to do what you could previously do.
I have one 14 year old student who has braces as well as a high C and a big
full sound under her belt. However, she will probably have them removed in a
few months and will be in exactly the same position that you're in
presently, except that her dental structure should be nearly perfect (not
knowing how yours is). I fully expect that her playing will initially be
equally frustrating upon removal of the braces as when the were applied.
Just stay with it and update us with your progress in a couple weeks.
I have bonding on my two front teeth, following an accident in college where I
chipped them. I've had them redone twice, but haven't had any problems with them
for 12 years or so. Each time I've had them done, my teeth were cosmetically the
same as ever, but the minute differences meant about 2-3 weeks of time to recover
chops fully.
Lots of slow, careful routine--rest often. Listen carefully to your sound and pay
attention to how everything (embouchure, airstream, throat, abdomen, etc.) *feels*
as you play. You'll have to make slight adjustments, but if you trust your
awareness of your body (kind of ersatz "biofeedback"), you should be able to make
the adjustment in under a month. Plus, that kind of careful
listening/sensing/feeling is just a good thing to do--you may even notice some
overall improvement.
