"Lip Service"

[BeachDrums]

I have noticed a small, red patch on my lip. It is also slighly sensitive if I practice long. I assume I've damaged a few blood vessels or something. I realize it's safe to say that no one is a doctor here, but how long do you "stay off your lips" or reduce your practice time each day if you suspect lip damage? I've just started playing and have been trying to practice 1 1/2 hours a day. Maybe that's too much for me right now. I was just wondering if I could still practice with a slighly sensitive/damaged lip as long as I cut down on time and take it easier.

[idontwan2know]

An hour and a half might be a little extreme as a beginner depending on how you're practicing.

If you're playing constantly, doing lots of extreme range extending work, articulation, etc. then it's probably going a tad overboard.

If you're taking good breaks, alternating your strenuous technique building exercises with with work on specific music and general musical expression, etc. then it shouldn't be a problem.

Developing the embochure is just like working out any other muscle group, you can absolutely overwork them and do damage.

If you favor really intense practice sessions (even if you don't, it still may be a good idea), consider breaking your practice time up into two 45 minute sessions, or even three half hour sessions, with a couple hours rest in between.

In general many players don't rest enough during individual practice. As opposed to a ensemble rehearsal where you're resting while another section is being worked with, recieving instruction, etc. when you practice individually you're generally playing constantly.

Good brass instructors are subtle about it, but if you pay attention you'll notice that they give you plenty of time to rest your chops (without letting you go completely cold) and don't work one section too much and wear them out.

In an hour and a half of individual practice, you're probably doing as much actual playing as you would in 4-8 hours of ensemble practice.

[BeachDrums]

Thanks for the insights, idontwan2know. As I mentioned, I'm new to the trumpet and my thinking was that I basically had to be "blowing" all the time or I would be practicing hard enough. Except for taking a breath and resetting my embouchure, I was playing the whole hour and a half. I'll now practice just an hour and take a couple minutes rest every so often if a couple of minutes is long enough between an exercise or piece. Or, as you suggested, maybe breaking down my practice time into two periods might be helpful, too. I guess I'm just in such a hurry to learn and inprove my range. They say patience is a virtue.

[regularsopguy]

I have noticed a small, red patch on my lip.  It is also slighly sensitive if I practice long.  I assume I've damaged a few blood vessels or something.  I realize it's safe to say that no one is a doctor here, but how long do you "stay off your lips" or reduce your practice time each day if you suspect lip damage?  I've just started playing and have been trying to practice 1 1/2 hours a day.  Maybe that's too much for me right now.  I was just wondering if I could still practice with a slighly sensitive/damaged lip as long as I cut down on time and take it easier.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Dude, you've bruised your chops. Stay off the horn for about four days. then get back into it with very quiet loooong tones.

[MelloHorn13]

Yup stay off the chops and wen i's better....long tones.

This summer, I had a cold sore, split lip on the bottom and a split lip in the inside on the top. Was not fun at all... I got maybe like 4-5 hours off a day. Couldn't afford to take 4 days off... One less person in a hornline of 22 could make a big difference. But I had lots of DCT and Blistex. My lip is now just getting better and i haven't played a horn since DIV2/3 semis.

So yeah.. take some time off

[MelloHorn13]

Oh and range will take time ... practiing your brains out 1 1/2 a day will help but it won't speed up the process. Range will come as other stuff get easier.

[BeachDrums]

Thanks for all the information to everyone who replied. As I stated, I'm new to trumpet (about two months) and I don't really know what I'm doing. Eventually, I hope to get lessons. For now, I'm just renting instructional videos, learning out of a book, and asking questions to you all. Thanks again.

[oldschoolVK]

I have noticed a small, red patch on my lip.  It is also slighly sensitive if I practice long.  I assume I've damaged a few blood vessels or something.  I realize it's safe to say that no one is a doctor here, but how long do you "stay off your lips" or reduce your practice time each day if you suspect lip damage?  I've just started playing and have been trying to practice 1 1/2 hours a day.  Maybe that's too much for me right now.  I was just wondering if I could still practice with a slighly sensitive/damaged lip as long as I cut down on time and take it easier.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I agree with all of the above: you've damaged/bruised your chops. This is a result of too much playing, or perhaps just simply spent too much time spent with the horn on your face.

My personal rule of thumb when practicing on my own (something I don't get to do enough of, I'm afraid) is for every minute of actual playing (horn on your face) you should have an equal amount of time off your face. You should rest at least 50% of the time, particularly during your warm up. You should probably work up to this, as you are still a "new" player. Perhaps you should establish a routine of one minute "on" and two minutes "off".

Many pros say that one should rest, or stay off the chops one day a week. I think that Scott Englebright recommends this, as do many others. However even Doc Severinsen plays seven days a week, for several hours a day. Remember, he's been playing decades longer than most of us have been alive.

Years ago I played in a band at a major theme park. We played five to six days a week, and rarely had two days in a row off together. Our sets lasted about 15 minutes, with about 25 to 35 minutes rest between. It was brutal. By mid-summer, we had something one might describe as "tour chops" but more to the extreme.

Remember, in corps rehearsals you are probably "bopping" some of the time, and your horn block is perhaps four hours a day pre-season. Imagine several (as many as 10 or more per day) full-out sets, plus some limited rehearsals before going into the park. Over a few weeks, a definite callous forms, and you can actually lose flexibility.

One of the routines we brass players adopted was a "warm-down" period at the end of the day. This is a good habit anyway. Ask around or do a search on the trumpet forums and you can find many suitable routines and advice. For me it was gentle, quiet-as-you-can-play-while-still-producing-a-nice-sound longtones. At the end of the day this routine might actually last another 20 to 30 minutes. We eventually convinced the park to pay us this extra time, as it was pretty much required if they wanted us to sound good the next day.

So if you are a "new" player, give it time. No one here became an advanced player over night. You should also find yourself a good teacher from which to take lessons.

Good luck,

[Ryan H. Turner]

Exactly right on Charles with your recommendations...

However, I'm surprised you're not talking about the Dr. Woll "Screaming Monkey" warm up....but I guess that's not really applicable here, as it's more of a face stretcher than anything!!

Side note...when I used to play alot, I had a penchant for getting subdermal "zits"--the kind of zits INSIDE my chops that would never form a classic white head. MAN--you wanna talk painful? It was enough to send me packing sometimes...