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So next semester i have made the decision to commute to school. It's about an hour drive either way. I already practicing double tonguing whenever the car radio is on. Are there any other aspects of playing i can improve on while driving? Using the radio is preferred, but not required.

If you keep a mouthpiece handy you can work on your embouchure, lip slurring, etc. Great way to get befuddled looks from fellow commuters at red lights.

Just don't do this if you drive stick-- I speak from experience.

While driving...
I would suggest the purchase of a kellyberg or similar plastic mouthpiece, so you don't loose your teeth if you get bumped. Do NOT make a spectacle of yourself at lights, that is the time to put the mouthpiece down on the seat next to you. Also, while the suggestion of plastic tubing is a great one otherwise, I would not think it would be appropriate while driving. Your pinky can be used to partially cover the end of the shank to decrease flow if necessary. Don't blow so much you get light-headed.
Remember, the most important thing to do while you are driving is...
DRIVE.

The drive is also a great time to hear a specific listening list of performers you want to emulate or use ideas from to improve your musical prowess.

Apparently to some people a tuba mouthpiece looks a lot like some kind of drug paraphernalia, so, if you get stopped by cops with guns pointed at you, that might be why.

I made a lot of progress getting over the embouchure "break" between my mid and low range (on horn, not tuba) while buzzing in the car on the way to work. Getting those full-range glisses completely smooth can be a great thing to have learned.

MA

Bob1062 wrote:I would seriously suggest to just DRIVE. Driving requires enough attention that I would be seriously uncomfortable subdividing, working on articulations,... OR with other people on the road doing the same thing (talking on the phone, eating,.... is bad enough).

Listening to music on the radio is probably the best idea.

I used to buzz the mouthpiece behind the wheel, never had a problem. Times are different now, there are more drivers on the road, and they're more aggressive. I have to agree with Bob on this one. Nowadays, it's not a good idea to multitask behind the wheel of a moving vehicle. Listening works great, though. You'd be suprised what you can learn just by listening.

If the driving environment precludes other activities, then use the time to expand your listening repertoire. You may develop skills with mouthpiece buzzing, but you'll develop musicianship by listening to great musicians perform. Part of learning excerpts is learning their musical context. I wonder if there are people who can play certain excerpts cold but have never listened to the entire work whence they came to understand their context, let alone listening to various interpretations of those works. Forced listenage in the car may turn out to be a blessing.

Rick "thinking great musicians must first love and know music" Denney

I would suggest just concentrate on driving unless you route involves long straight roads with little traffic. Remember a car is a lethal weapon and should be handled as such!

However driving is a good time for listening and being musically inspired.

I am definitely in the same boat as Bob on this one.

When you are driving, you should drive. The last think you want to do is run over someone on a bicycle or rear-end someone because you were buzzing a mouthpiece and examining your embouchre in the mirror instead of focusing on the road.

When I drive, I listen to music. Classical, rock and roll, jazz, all of it.
Listening makes you a better musician. Hands down.

I don't disagree with the thought of having a plastic mouthpiece in the car in case you are ever in a situation with light traffic, perhaps on an interstate where there are fewer distractions, however. But, in city driving, please just drive.

Andy Larson

Neptune wrote:I would suggest just concentrate on driving unless you route involves long straight roads with little traffic. Remember a car is a lethal weapon and should be handled as such!

Especially if one drives on UK motorways as fast as you do, heh, heh.

One day I'll describe the details of the Tuesday after our dinner, when we rented a Vauxhall Vectra and drove out your way to see Stonehenge and the Salisbury Cathedral. That was, um, exciting. Fortunately, only our nerves sustained any damage.

Rick "who was left behind at 80 mph on the M-3, whilst being passed by many going at least 100, despite a posted speed of something much less than that" Denney

Rick, I think you better recall to me off-line - particular as I am in the Police band

Jonathan "who only usually just nudges the speed limit in the UK, but enjoys going 135mph in Germany!"

We are in the process of equipping our own recording studio.
Between the three of us "Creekers" we own a music store.
I love to hear C.D.'s of music we plan to play while driving my old Bonneville. That car is gone the day the C.D. player packs it in.
We will soon be throwing out C.D.'s for each other of parts we must learn plus cranking out at least a two or three new recordings every year.
I will never buzz a mouthpiece while driving because it looks almost as creepy as booger picking. I get distracted enough listening to music without trying to make it while driving.
Jonathan, in England, do the young people drive a car with a cell phone in one hand and a cigarette in the other the way they do here in the U.S.? I hope not. Those guys really spook me.
tooter

tubatooter1940 wrote:Jonathan, in England, do the young people drive a car with a cell phone in one hand and a cigarette in the other the way they do here in the U.S.? I hope not. Those guys really spook me.
tooter

It is illegal to use a hand held cellphone while driving in the UK. However, all the same, it happens far too often. The worst case of such I have ever see was someone at over 70 on a motorway with a drink in one hand and sandwich in the other - frightening!