Peter,
Thanks so much for the update, I’ve been thinking about you and wondering how it was going. Glad you were able to Skype with Greg and feel a renewed sense of optimism.
I’m still on my own journey as well, but am very grateful for how far I’ve come.
Lately, I’ve realized a new sense of how relaxed we can be and how less truly is more–the more relaxed we manage to keep the lips, the more resonant the sound and faster the vibration (higher the range).
A little more than a year ago, the week between Christmas and New Years, I had my last major setback.
I had worked up to a point that I was easily ascending to a point I never thought possible. Then, I took a few days off and started to struggle to a point which had become “easy”.
In hindsight, I’m better for the experience and am grateful now for the experience.
The past couple days, I’ve experienced a new sense of freedom and efficiency experimenting with how little we need to engage the muscles in our face to change pitch. Less truly is more.
I know if you experiment with the willingness to crack a note, not achieve the pitch you’re aiming for–to fail, you will learn as I have learned a better sense of how the instrument works.
Godspeed, Peter!