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congratulations on wanting to take the shortcut to easier brass plane good day Greg speds from Mystery to Mastery here today we’re going to unlock the biggest obstruction to your playing the biggest obstruction to playing freely all over the instrument the obstruction to efficiency and that obstruction of course that we’re going to unlock is the air lock the air lock of the lips pinching down top lip bottom lip squeezing together there is a psychology that we have to buzz the lip and tighten them up when we’re
playing higher and all this does is actually increase the air lock what is the air lock if we put the lips together pinch them down p p p p pinch blow as hard as you can you cannot blow the lips apart there is so much strength in the umer especially around the middle of the lips there that you simply can’t blow them apart this is a massive error that just about everyone makes and it comes from a misunderstanding of how the instrument works and what we
think we need to do so how do we overcome that I’ve got a concept called the milk spout I’ve got a concept called the aperture Corners the corners of the aperture not the corners of the mouth I’ve got a concept called the bed sheet and once we understand those Concepts those amazing tools that we use in the course you’ll start to recognize that the pinch is the opposite of what you actually need to be doing the middle of that top lip and some people often say
just the skin on the top lip there needs to be like the bed sheet when the breeze blows they respond so to unlock your limitations and obstructions in your playing you really must discover how to let go unlock the lips let the lips go and let them respond sympathetically to the the energy in the air stream hey guys if you’re wanting my help to develop an efficient 3 to four octave range with consistency confidence a killer sound and a virtuoso technique I’ve put everything I’ve learned
over the last 35 years into one easy to follow program that you can benefit from right now at absolutely no cost for the next 7 days from your very first lesson you’ll begin to understand why you’re having playing problems and why hitting ceilings our step-by-step comprehensive technical development program is for all brass players of all levels and all styles and are run live weekly master classes and live lessons via Zoom to make sure you’re on the right track if your mind isn’t totally blown by day
seven you can opt out without being charged to [Music] sent
Greg Spence explains the Air Lock: pinching the lips together and trying to overcome that resistance with more force. This short lesson introduces a different way to think about lip vibration.
What is the Air Lock in trumpet playing?
The Air Lock is Greg’s term for an overly pinched lip closure that obstructs the airflow. He contrasts that sensation with his aperture corners, Milk Spout and Bed Sheet concepts, encouraging observation of unnecessary squeezing.
This recording is part of Greg Spence’s public teaching archive. References to dates, events and offers reflect the original recording.
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