buzzing: tube,berp,or mouthpiece only?

[MikeMason]

In a constant attempt to learn something(and raise the level of discussion on tubenet) I propose a new topic of importance to us all.I have for many years been searching for a productive tuba-use of the many hours i spend in my car each week.I have always done a lot of listening(mainly with noise canceling headphone to hear the nuance) and have done some sporadic buzzing,but nothing really consistent.I have recently been using the Brass Gym CD as a guide to buzz to.I think it may be working and may be something I can use long term.My question is this: what are the pros and cons of mouthpiece alone,with tube, or with berp?Buzzing in the low range(below Bb) is certainly challenging and today I found my throat hurting after a good low register session.I looked in the mirror and found the back of my tongue arching,presumably to add some resistance to make the low range easier.I can't believe that could be a good thing.I wonder if adding some resistance through a tube or berp may prevent me from making the desired resistance for that low range in my mouth.I'd love to hear from some pros,teachers,or students of some of our heros(Jacobs,Mr. P.,Floyd Cooley,and many other great ones)to get the standard wisdom on this issue.I hope this can be a useful thread such as the low c thread turned out to be. Any general wisdom from some of our greats on buzzing would also certainly be appreciated.

[MartyNeilan]

My vote goes for just buzzing the mouthpiece. Much less resistence than the horn; builds chops. One of my teachers (Pat Landolfi) had a mouthpiece with the sides chopped off that he could plug in the horn and buzz with even less resistance - almost like a visualizer. He had my machinist grandfather make him an expertly crafted model, with a nylon plug in the throat. He loved it and called it the "Martin" and had my grandfather make one for Warren Deck as well. WD appreciated his, but did not use it as a part of his routine.

[Geotuba]

Driving with noise cancelling headphones on is REALLY DANGEROUS since it removes one essential source of sensory input necessary for safe operation of the vehicle. (OK - deaf people can drive satisfactorily but why risk it - they have no option). Ever thought about why the airlines require you to remove headphones when taking off or landing? They want you to be as aware of your surroundings as possible for safety (yes really)

Similarly I agree with Bob1062 about the dangers of taking a hand off the wheel to buzz while driving - many jurisdictions have banned the use of hand held cellphones while driving - banning the buzzing of tuba mouthpieces while driving can't be far behind

Nevertheless I am very interested in this thread as it addresses buzzing in a safe environment and hope to learn from it - I have no opinions on that point (yet)

[NDSPTuba]

I personally can't buzz with my "correct" embouchure with mouthpiece alone. I need that resistance to help facilitate the buzz. I can come up with an embouchure that will buzz mouthpiece alone, but it fails miserably when I add the tuba to the end of the mouthpiece. I have never been "good" at buzzing the mouthpiece even when I was playing horn. I have always needed the feedback the horn/tuba provides to create the buzz.

[basstbone64]

I personally buzz without the mouthpiece. I believe it helps you to focus your buzz and to achieve efficiency with your air. You have to make sure, though, that your corners have been "anchored" and that you aren't smiling to achieve higher notes.

Buzzing without the mouthpiece allows you to literally let the spit fly. It may be a little gross, but you can make sure you're using enough air that way.

I like to buzz along with recordings while I'm driving; Berlioz is my favorite.

[JHardisk]

Recommended to me from one of the "greats" listed. In my lesson, I asked him in reference to the month off I was about to take to attend delightful Professional Military Education class:

"Tuba away from home" as he referred to it:

Take about 6-8" of vinyl tubing (think aquarium, but larger) that fits the shank of the mouthpiece and buzz with that. It gives enough resistance to simulate somewhat of a tuba, and also amplifies the sound enough to hear pitches, not buzz. I did this for one whole month in the car to and from "work" (school). In one month, I maybe spent 3 hours total with either of my tubas.. playing tunes for my kids.

My sound did not suffer when I returned to the horns. Stamina was a bit of a challenge for a few days, as expected. Going from playing 4-6 hours daily to 30 mins of buzzing in a tube obviously took some toll. I did see real benefit from it, though. Now, I warm up in the car on the way to work.

Now... I said my sound did not suffer... my tounge did. My articulations got very slow from lack of practice. It's taken 2 weeks to become acceptable for a tough technical lick a la carnival of venice or clark studies.

I'm a big advocate of the cheap tube! Helps me far more than just the mouthpiece!

[Thomas Maurice Booth]

I do the same thing as JHardisk, but I have the other end of my "cheap tube" attached to my plastic breathing contraption (the kind with a ping-pong ball in it) to help monitor airflow and such a little better.

TMB

[eupher61]

I've come around to the idea that free buzzing--no mpc of any kind--isn't very productive. The lips just plain vibrate differently without the isolating aspect of the rim.

A berp is almost worthless unless you have the horn. Without the horn is the best time to get buzzing practice (in terms of general airflow, articulations, and loosening up), so while driving has always been my best buzz time. Just be really careful, esp at first, since some dizziness can hit you.

Also in the car, it's easy to buzz some jazz. What better way to warm up?

[JCalkin]

I ordered a 6L breathing bag from Dillon and it came with an L-shaped plastic fitting that fits my mouthpiece shank as well as a factory receiver. I've since done a lot of my buzzing into the bag since it gives me visual feedback on the amount of wind I'm using (promoting lotsa breeze) and it lets me rebreathe to avoid dizziness.

Aside from that, I usually do my buzz without any extra resistance, using either the mpc alone or just a rim. It makes me throw more air through the embouchure and that's where I personally need the most upkeep.

[MikeMason]

concerning safety- I've driven over a million miles in the last 16yrs(just at work) with no accidents(except that stump i backed into-jumped out behind me ).The most dangerous times for me is when I'm bored and/or drowsy.Listening to great music or being engaged making some buzz-music keeps me alert.I only do either of these on long easy stretches of interstate.Concerning the headphones-I can still hear everything,just not as much road and wind noise.I was turning things up so loud to hear the details it was painful.I can hear much more detail with much less volume this way.Here in Alabama,we don't have cell phone in the car bans.Thanks for the good ideas so far.I'm thinking if i can do something productive for just 4 or 5 of the 20hrs/wk i spend driving,it could make some real long term improvement in my playing.

[DavidJMills]

I use the clear vinyl tube at 2 different lengths,12 inch for the low stuff with my DrReynolds Black Hole special and a shorty 3 inch tube ( all jokes encouraged) with my Laskey 30H. I just added a small copper tube to the trumpet mouthpiece I sometimes buzz for the" I wish I played like Sam " register. But the best thing I've done lately is take mp and tube into the car and buzz along with Dave Zerkel's new CD What a great sound model!! Dave in Charlotte

[Leland]

I'm surprised that you have trouble hearing details over the car's own stereo -- what are you listening for besides timing & pitch? I mean, that's all that's really needed.

I haven't used a Berp, but did use some vinyl tubing for a few months. I didn't find a size big enough to fit around the outside of the shank, so I stuck it inside instead, and it still seemed to do the job.

Whenever I buzz anymore, I don't have any extra accessories; I just use the mouthpiece and variably cover the end with a finger.

What I use buzzing for is two things -- warmup, and accuracy. The warmup aspect is obvious enough, and doesn't need clarification. Regarding accuracy, I'll use it for gaining clarity in difficult licks and fast passages. When I'm buzzing and can make each note speak on time, on pitch, and with enough "oomph", I greatly improve the chances that I'll get it right when I'm on the horn. That way, it actually helps me with articulation and quick notes.

[MikeMason]

Much of the subtlety/nuance is lost to road/wind noise on the interstate in classical/instrumental music.

[Leland]

Get a quieter car, or build a louder stereo. My old Civic wasn't quiet to begin with, so another 150 watts (approximately; I never did the math on my bridged setup) did the trick.

I understand that being able to hear a lot of the low-level playing might be desirable, but for my purposes, it just isn't necessary.

[Alex C]

I personally can't buzz with my "correct" embouchure with mouthpiece alone. I need that resistance to help facilitate the buzz. I can come up with an embouchure that will buzz mouthpiece alone, but it fails miserably when I add the tuba to the end of the mouthpiece. I have never been "good" at buzzing the mouthpiece even when I was playing horn. I have always needed the feedback the horn/tuba provides to create the buzz.

When I used to teach, I would tell students that the embouchure they use to buzz is the correct embouchure. The one you are using now is the embouchure you use to cope with all of the bad habits you learned from your days as a beginner.

Among other things, the design of the tuba may be forcing you to hold the horn in such a way as to make the mouthpiece reach your face at an ange. This forces the embouchure to compensate for unequal pressure on one side or the other, top or bottom. Using the mouthpiece alone, you will find the embouchure that is right for your skelatal/dental/muculature formation.

BTW, I don't use or recommend BERPS for a lot of reasons.

[lgb&dtuba]

For those who need the 'extra resistance factor', Arnold Jacobs had a perfect answer. He used to teach that placing one's pinky finger over the output tube can be adjusted to add what you need, without extra things to carry along.

The pinky is all I've ever used. I never understood the need for all those add on gadgets.

[Charlie Goodman]

I use a lot of buzzing to warm up and to focus on clarity of sound, correct articulation, and accurate pitch. My teacher recommends the use of the mouthpiece rim ("visualizer"), and I think it's one of the most effective tools for finding a clean buzz-- it's nearly impossible to buzz with an inefficient embouchure on the rim, and it's really easy to hear inconsistencies in the buzz. Particularly in the high register, it's hard to buzz on the rim with anything other than effective buzzing habits. Also, I've found that free buzzing helps the high range sound a lot, presumably because the isolating effect of the mouthpiece is lessened when the tension is higher, and because one can't rely on pressure when there's nothing on the face.

[Chen]

I think it is much better to buzz with a BERP, or at least add some resistance.

Buzzing the mouthpiece alone is playing into open end - too little resistance - which unnecessarily stresses the player. By stress I mean things like raising the tongue, closing the throat, doing all sort of squeeze to sustain that tone. And it's not "training" like lifting heavy weights, it's building bad habits you don't want when you play the horn. The good thing about BERP is that you can start with more pressure to achieve a fuller buzz (identifiable pitch) and then gradually decrease the pressure to approximately the same as the tuba.

As for free buzz: Arnold Jacobs said do not buzz without a rim, period. But if somebody thinks the man was wrong and has an alternative theory to share, please do tell..

[basstbone64]

I think that the so-called 'free buzzing' is expressly intended to 'stress' the player in his or her practicing. If you take away the resistance of the horn and are still able to play, it is analogous to running 2 miles in training for a 1 mile race. It should be reiterated, however, that one must be aware that bad habits can *absolutely* develop with this technique.

Just a difference of opinion.

[Charlie Goodman]

I think it is much better to buzz with a BERP, or at least add some resistance.

Buzzing the mouthpiece alone is playing into open end - too little resistance - which unnecessarily stresses the player. By stress I mean things like raising the tongue, closing the throat, doing all sort of squeeze to sustain that tone. And it's not "training" like lifting heavy weights, it's building bad habits you don't want when you play the horn. The good thing about BERP is that you can start with more pressure to achieve a fuller buzz (identifiable pitch) and then gradually decrease the pressure to approximately the same as the tuba.

As for free buzz: Arnold Jacobs said do not buzz without a rim, period. But if somebody thinks the man was wrong and has an alternative theory to share, please do tell..

Not to say that he's wrong on this topic, but Arnold Jacobs is not infallible. Just because he said it, it's ridiculous to have another opinion? He was an phenomenal teacher, and an excellent player, but he's still only human. Should we all also smoke cigarettes until we have a fraction of our original lung capacity, just because he did? Think for yourself, man.