[Trombone-l] Technical Question

[George Carr]

> I'm sure there will be some good things said by a lot of people but with subject matter of playing "high" or in the "upper register" there is no one answer that is the tried one thing that rings true.
> > Assuming the truth of the above, then it ought to be the case that
> > the higher one goes, the greater one tries to spread the lips. I take
> > it spreading the lips is tantamount to shortening the vibrating
> > length of the lip qua string.

Everyone is different.  I had an awful high register when I tried the
technique you propose, of smiling to stretch out the upper lip surface
horizontally.  I think this technique only works for people whose lips
are thin to begin with, and I have big fat lips.  Instead, I learned
to curl the upper lip inward, around the upper teeth, to reduce the
vibrating surface area.  Also, sitting here at my desk doing lip
slurs, my lips increase in 'vertical' pressure toward each other in
the high register; in other words, pressing the lips against each
other (very hard!) ensures that only the center surface vibrates and
the aperture stays small.  Small air aperture + reduced vibrating lip
surface = high pitch note.  Small aperture also allows for healthy
sound without using up air too quickly.

Your mileage may vary ...

George