Good ways to fight off drymouth

[j.morgus]

And it certainly won't cause much if the instrument is cleaned regularly.

[JohnZ]

you definitely want to avoid ANY sugary foods beforehand - a lot of dry mouth can be attributed to this even before the pre-performance nerves add to the drying up.

prepping for performance in the shower room, include a very thorough tooth/gum/palate/tongue cleaning with a minty toothpaste and mouthwash. cleanses out any sugars and stimulates the saliva glands to keep pumping a little bit more.

there are some OTC mouthwashes and drops that are specifically designed for people with chronic dry mouth conditions - never used them personally but some folks I know who did swear by them.

lemons - it depends IMO. they dry me out. *shrugs*

start hydrating well before performance time. doing it just before does little good.

I have always used the old trick to think of something sour, like pickles. works for me.

just some off the top of my head.

[a marching trumpet]

Me and a few others had that problem our freshman year, so hot, it was registering 130 off of the pavement, in tennessee weather=living hell. Anyways We were told to stfu and tough it out, when contests came around people before we marched throught the gates were chugging down glasses of water, thank you mrs waxman and the other band parents

[leadsop97]

In 2004 and 2005, our caption head had lemons for the entire hornline. It worked for many of us, not for all though.

Obviously drinking enough water throughout the day will help, and even though many of us think we're drinking a lot, we're really not.

When I'm playing on a gig and get cotton mouth, I normally lightly bite my tongue if I don't have some water with me. I've gotten it a couple of times in the middle of shows though, and the last thing I think of doing while I'm marching is to bite my tongue. At that point, there is so much going on that I'd say you're kind of stuck with it.

[JeromeyBush]

I know this is kinda unorthodox(really,me?),but I chew gum.Sugarless gum,and just put it somewhere in my mouth where it doesnt interfere with my playing after it done its magic.The lemon and water mixture works also before hand, but I prefer gum.

[iSpazz]

lotta water, lotta hydration...

Gatorade usually does the trick :)

although it can screw up the inside of your horn >.>

[troon8]

There's this old trick involving a bell and a dog...

(I can't believe no one else has used that icon yet!)

[DcFr3aK]

There's this old trick involving a bell and a dog...

(I can't believe no one else has used that icon yet!)

I doubt you could recreate that experiment on an entire horn line! YOU SHOULD TRY!

[John H]

same conv came up a few years ago, and someone suggested eat a banana a little before going on.

I tried it, and swear to god, it works. very weird, but true for me.

eat a banana before leaving the warmup area to go to the gate, and then 30-35 minutes later when you're starting your show, you're body has taken in the potassium and what-all.

ALWAYS have dry mouth when I don't, NEVER have dry mouth when I do.

[melligene]

same conv came up a few years ago, and someone suggested eat a banana a little before going on.

I tried it, and swear to god, it works. very weird, but true for me.

eat a banana before leaving the warmup area to go to the gate, and then 30-35 minutes later when you're starting your show, you're body has taken in the potassium and what-all.

ALWAYS have dry mouth when I don't, NEVER have dry mouth when I do.

Really need Steve Cooley to chime in here. He once told me about using your tongue and pressing it somwhere behind your bottom teeth. It supposidly activates the salivary glands. I've tried it but apparently I couldn't find the right spot.