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How to Clean a Horn Mouthpiece and Sanitize a Lead Pipe

Bruce Hembd
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When I regularly taught beginning horn students, a portion of the very first lessons were usually devoted to maintenance of the instrument. This included mouthpiece care.

Putting lips onto a mouthpiece and buzzing inside it in can create a lot of crud and build-up over time. This seems especially true if a player likes to eat and play, without brushing their teeth beforehand.

It is a relatively simple thing to clean a mouthpiece, but it is easily forgotten. In spite of my careful instruction, it always surprised me how dirty some students would let their mouthpieces get before getting around to cleaning them.

In extreme cases, the accumulated crud would more-or-less reduce the actual bore size of the mouthpiece.

Yuck.

Buy a mouthpiece brush

The only tool required to clean a mouthpiece is a mouthpiece brush. They are very affordable and are typically priced under five dollars. Most music stores in the U.S. carry them. Elsewhere, they are very easy to find online.

Mouthpiece brush

* * *

Using a mouthpiece brush

Over a sink with running water, insert the brush into the larger end of the mouthpiece. It helps to twist and turn the brush while pushing it in and out.

Mouthpiece brush cleaning

* * *

Pushing the brush through the mouthpiece

* * *

Run the mouthpiece brush back and forth a few times to make sure all the residue gets scrubbed out. Rinse the mouthpiece under the running water. Soap is not necessary, but it certainly will not hurt anything.

But wait – – you are not done yet! 

Residue can also build up on the exterior surfaces of the mouthpiece. Give the outside and underside of the rim a good brushing.

Brushing the underside exterior of the rim

* * *

Be sure to rinse the mouthpiece thoroughly with water and dry it with a lint-free cloth when the brushing is all done.

Graphite for the rim

To help prevent a screw rim from getting stuck try some powdered graphite or using a pencil to “draw” graphite into the screw rim’s grooves.

After treating the screw threads with graphite, assemble the rim and underpart. Twist and turn the rim a few times – clockwise and counter-clockwise – to help distribute the graphite evenly throughout the grooves.

When finished, lightly tighten the rim into place and rinse the entire mouthpiece in water to wash off excess graphite.

Dry the mouthpiece with a lint-free cloth and your rim will now be stick-free.

Sanitizing a lead pipe

Besides snaking out the lead pipe every 30-60 days, once a week or so I run a small amount of alcohol through the lead pipe in order to kill germs and bacteria.

A horn lead pipe is a dark and warm environment and it can provide the perfect breeding ground for germs and bacteria. Recent studies indicate that mold and bacteria in a horn lead pipe can build up and over time affect your health.

* * *

The first step is to remove the main tuning slide.

Next, use an old mouthpiece – not your main mouthpiece – as a funnel and add 2-3 teaspoons of isopropyl alcohol as illustrated in the picture below. I have also heard through various sources that a certain brand and type of mouthwash – the original Listerine – can also do the trick.

* * *

After adding the liquid, wait about one minute without moving the horn around.

If you have a water valve, drain some (or all) of the alcohol through that valve. Otherwise, maneuver the horn counter-clockwise so that the alcohol drains back through the old mouthpiece.

If alcohol is drained though the open tuning slide, it will breakdown the slide grease. For this reason, I drain the alcohol back through the mouthpiece.

After the draining, switch back to your normal mouthpiece and gently blow out the remaining fluid. Before re-inserting the main tuning slide, set the horn aside for a few minutes and allow the remaining alcohol to completely evaporate.

As a final touch, add a few drops of light valve oil directly into the lead pipe ferrule opening. Insert the mouthpiece and gently blow the oil through the pipe. This treatment can help to protect the lead pipe from future build-up.

Remember that a clean horn is a happy horn – keep your horn happy!

 

Mailbag: Playing a Horn that Fits In, Internationally

John Ericson
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A question recently came in from a reader from the United States that was playing in a foreign orchestra. Their horn of choice in the USA was a Conn 8D, but now they were playing in a section otherwise full of Alexander horns. They were thinking about a smaller horn but not sure the best thing to do as they loved the 8D. As this is a topic that falls generally into the category of mentoring I believe the reply, edited slightly, will be of interest to a number of our readers.

… The thing is you need to fit in.

Backing up, if you have poked around Horn Matters on the topic you will see that in terms of horns I have played it all and for a good while played a 500,000 series 8D, primarily late undergrad into Doctoral and then later as a young professional.

Reality is, right or wrong, that there are plenty of jobs you can’t win playing an 8D. Realizing this and wanting a job, at the end of my Doctoral studies I was switching back and forth between an 8D and a Yamaha 667, depending on the audition that was coming up. I won my job in Nashville playing the 667 and did not dare get the 8D out again in Nashville until after I had tenure in the orchestra. I played it again later in my time in Nashville into the beginning of teaching full time, up to the point that the first branch started caving in. It was getting pretty tired, and after that I moved on to two Paxmans and now my current horn.

My advice is you need to seriously think about a smaller horn in your present performing situation. Geyer style would be a good idea to have for the USA and would fit in better at least where you are. But ultimately you have to decide what you can afford and what fits you as a player.

There are a lot of related articles in Horn Matters, but if you want to get the big picture this one is a good place to start:

A final note being I am going to guess you have tried an Alex and did not like it, but if you tried it with your mouthpiece that works well on your 8D the Alex really won’t play right. In this respect it is similar to the Willson that I am playing as I write this article, it really needs a European shank mouthpiece.

Equipment is a professional minefield to negotiate carefully over a career. Good luck!

Hornmasters on Horn Chords

John Ericson
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Another technique long known but rarely touched upon in print is horn chords, also referred to as vocalizations or multiphonics.

How and why

Barry Tuckwell in Playing the Horn presents how to play them and also why to play them.

The playing of chords on brass instruments used to be considered a cheap music-hall trick, although Weber uses the effect in the cadenza of his Concertino, even if the printed notes he asks for are not possible. Now, however, it is used by many serious modern composers and must be accepted as a part of the basic horn-playing technique.

To play chords the player must play a note and sing another note with the voice typically a fifth or sixth away. This produces as Tuckwell notes a chord “produced by resultant tones” if the two sounds “are well matched dynamically and are perfectly in tune.” He further notes that

It is for each individual to decide whether to sing above or below the played note; this will depend on the vocal ability and the register required. All intervals other than fifths and sixths produce overtones outside the limits of the tempered scale; third, quarter, there-quarter tones, and so on. If the sung and played notes are brought close together, a definite beat will be heard when the two sounds conflict.

Coordinating the buzz and the voice

Douglas Hill has a fairly extended discussion of vocalizations in Collected Thoughts on Teaching and Learning, Creativity, and Horn Performance, with exercises designed learn the effect. He suggests the key is “learning how to coordinate the aperture buzz with the voice.”

Traditionally I would also add that it was thought to be an effect more suited to the male voice. However, Hill notes in one of his exercises to “Try the following, either as is or up an octave for higher voices.” The effect can work for a hornist of any vocal range.

As his book is still available I will leave it to readers to track down his specific suggestions, but for those that would like to try to play a horn chord I would suggest one of the following as a first pair of notes to try, adjusting the voiced note up an octave as needed. A traditional approach would be to play a low C (an octave below the staff written) and sing the G above it. An alternate would be to play that same low C but sing the E on the bottom line. If you get either interval well in tune magic happens and you will begin to hear another note come in, the resultant tone.

As to a work to try, as Tuckwell indicated, the Weber Concertino is not written in a way that really works.

There are a few others to chose from. A favorite of mine being Sonorites II by Walter Hartley, from which this brief example was selected, with instructions by the composer. It is the same chord I suggested trying earlier, but down a half step and showing the resultant tone. The voicing of all the chords in this composition works well for me exactly as written. Composed in 1975 for the late Calvin Smith (“with special thanks to Frank Lloyd”) this short work is not heard often enough.

To conclude, horn chords are not an effect for everyone, but are still well worth experimenting with for any player.

Continue in Hornmasters Series

Ask Dave: What your Horn Says about You When You are Not Around

Bruce Hembd
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Often, when working on a horn the wear and tear tell me a lot about how a horn is handled, used, cared for, and stored.

Your horn is “talking” to me in the shop, and I am listening.

Look carefully at the valve rotors in the picture and you will see that there is a good deal of buildup in the windway channels on the Bb side of the horn, but not in the F side of the horn.

Click this image for a much closer look.

This player is a student, and I know that she played primarily on the F side of the horn.

So, why the buildup?

She was storing her horn with the case flat on the floor, and the Bb side down. And, she did not empty the water from the slides before putting the horn away. The water would collect at the lowest point, which was inside the valves on the Bb side, it would evaporate, and the solids that were suspended in that solution remained as hardened deposits.

So, why were there no deposits on the F side of the horn?

Those channels are nice and clean. There are two reasons. First, she put oil down the F side, and never down the Bb side. That oil protected the metal from the water and deposits. And second, she used her F side more, and the wrap of her horn allowed the water to drain away more readily while she played.

Did the player tell me this?

No, the horn did while it was in the shop for a cleaning. All I had to do was confirm it when she picked up the horn. We discussed how she could change her cleaning and storing regimen to lengthen the time between cleanings and keep her horn in good working order.

Hornmasters on Pitch Bending

John Ericson
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In this series we now arrive at the topic of pitch bending, an exercise that can be of great benefit to hornists to develop tone quality and the lower register.

Finding the best tone quality

In the addendum to Essentials of Brass Playing Fred Fox addresses the topic of honing in on the best tone quality through pitch bending.

A thick, heavy sound on your instrument may not carry as well as a leaner, well balanced tone.

Try the following experiment: Pick a middle register note, hold it out. As it is sustained, bend it, make it sharper and flatter. Go to the extreme both ways—almost to the point where the next harmonic appears. Do this a few times, to get the feel of it. Finally do the same thing more slowly, reach both extremes one time, then stop at the point near the middle of the note that sounds best to your ear. The point that sounds best to you is where that note should always be played. I have found, in my teaching, that the point arrived at by the student is invariably a slighter firmer point than where the note is usually played. It now tends to be a leaner sound, less flabby, more effective. The pitch is not important. If you adopt a leaner overall embouchure and it is all consistently sharper, then all that has to be done is to pull out the tuning slide a bit.

The sound may not be the one you habitually have produced, but consider, given a multiple of choices, you picked it in preference to your usual tone! It is possible to be too tight as well as too loose. Eternal vigilance!

Opening up the tone in the low range

In another Horn Matters article I looked briefly at how William R. Brophy in his Technical Studies for Solving Special Problems on the Horn used pitch bending to open up the sound in the lower register. To quote this resource again, he explains how to best bend pitches.

The pitch change is accomplished by opening up the oral cavity and throat, but a slight downward and forward movement of the jaw if necessary, and by some slight relaxation of the embouchure, though a minimum amount of lip change is desirable. Do not help the pitch change by closing the bell with the right hand.

Strive to match the tone quality of the “bent” not to that of the “real” note. Be sure that the lowered pitch is supported with the same amount and intensity of air as the starting note.

Based on the MRI studies I’m thinking the mechanics are a bit different than he describes, but the overall benefit of pitch bends on building the lower range tone is clear.

More brief thoughts

Two other notable sources to briefly highlight:

  • Frøydis Ree Wekre in Thoughts on Playing the Horn Well suggests doing pitch bends as being “useful for intonation” and they also increase “the strength of the muscles inside the mouthpiece.”
  • Douglas Hill notes that pitch bending is a “wonderful low-range study” in Collected Thoughts on Teaching and Learning, Creativity, and Horn Performance.

Pitch bending is a tool toward finding the best, centered pitch

Pitch bending relates strongly to pitch centering, and I would highly recommend besides the related exercises in The Brass Gym as an additional resource my own article, “Placing Pitch ‘In the Pocket,'” which was published in The Horn Call some years back. A portion of this article may be found here, which points to some additional useful resources on the topic from William C. Robinson. My article begins

Proper pitch placement is certainly an issue of concern for horn players. Many less experienced players play high on the pitch, and as a result need to pull their main tuning slides out a great deal. Most fine players, however, don’t need to pull their horns down nearly so far. In reflection I realize that over the course of my own studies my pitch certainly dropped; I needed to pull my horn out less as I advanced in my playing abilities. This was not something that I intentionally set out to do and no teacher told me that I needed to pull out less, but I did over the years learn how to place the pitch better. To play well with the best possible tone you need to place pitch correctly. Two keys to learning how to describe and achieve proper pitch placement recently fell into place for me while working on a recital.

Continue Reading in Hornmasters Series

Working Without a Conductor

Bruce Hembd
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The old Greek story of Orpheus and his journey into the Underworld to rescue his wife opens some interesting commentary when that name is applied to a chamber group that works without a conductor.

As the old myth goes, Orpheus is allowed to leave the Underworld with his love in tow. She will remain behind him out-of-sight, but only if he never looks back to see if she is there or not.

That being said I have also wondered about how the music group Orpheus organize concerts and make decisions about the music.  From a recent article at The Wall Street Journal we gain some insight.

…an elected executive committee of players assigns the position for each work; the concertmaster then chooses the leaders and co-principals of the other sections, who form the so-called core. At core rehearsals, the broad themes of interpretation, tempo and phrasing are hashed out ahead of tutti rehearsals, in which each player is encouraged to speak up. Everyone is expected to know the entire score. During rehearsals, players take turns walking out into the auditorium to check for sound and balance and then report back to the ensemble.

(More.)

This article also brought back to memory a classic conductor joke:

Q. What is the difference between a symphony orchestra and a freight train?

A. The freight train needs a conductor.

[Extracted from a “Random Monday” article, 2021, JE]

Ask Dave: How do I Re-cork a Mute?

Bruce Hembd
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Mathew asks:

What advice or tricks can you provide for re-corking a mute, both successful removal of the old cork and application of the new cork?

Dave replies:

This is an excellent question that I rarely get to answer, so thank you for the opportunity!

I will assume this is a straight mute that has long, rectangular cork strips rather than a practice mute that has a conical section of cork.  The conical section of cork can be tricky, and I’ll discuss that another time.

First, measure all three dimensions of the cork strips and the placement of the corks on the mute.  Your mute should have an odd number of cork strips.  If it does not, then consider replacing the four strips with five strips of the same dimension, but spaced 72 degrees apart.

Your next task is to replicate the actual cork strips.  I recommend going to an automotive parts store to find gasket cork, which is made of a composite of cork and neoprene, and comes in at least two thicknesses.  If a single sheet of gasket cork is not sufficiently deep to replace the cork strips, then you will have to cement layers together to build it up to the right height.

To cement layers together, use a good contact cement (I recommend Weldwood brand, or similar) according to the directions.  Put cement on both parts, let dry and then press the cemented sides together.  Apply pressure overall to get a good uniform bond.  Remember, contact cement will adhere ON CONTACT when used properly.  Follow the directions carefully.

After you get a sheet of the correct depth, cut a long strip out of it with a utility knife to a width equal to the longest dimension needed.  Cut the individual strips off to the proper width, and you have your cork strips.  I recommend using a metal straight edge to do the cutting with the utility knife.  Always use extreme care when cutting with a knife, and protect both yourself and the surface on which you are cutting.  And, use a new blade for best results.

Remove the old corks with the utility knife, carefully and gently shaving the strip from the mute. Gently scrape the surface clean and smooth without damaging the mute.  If old cement and cork bits remain, then use a cotton swab dipped in lacquer thinner to gently remove it.  Do so carefully, because the lacquer thinner may damage the finish on the mute.  Try to get off all the old cork, but don’t worry if some of the old cement remains.

Dry fit the cork strips before cementing.  If the strip is wide and does not follow the curvature of the mute well, then you can curve it by firmly rolling the cork with a rigid, round rod on a hard smooth surface.  I use drum sticks to roll corks.

Mark out the cork positions with a soft pencil, if necessary.  Usually there is a shadow of the old mute position as a guide.  Apply contact cement somewhat generously to the cork strip, and position the strip properly on the mute. Immediately pull the strip off, and you should have transferred a sufficient amount of cement to the mute.  Let the cement dry.  Carefully reposition the cork strip and press it into place.  The strip will be cemented firmly in place.

Humor: 14 Famous Musicians and their Odd Doppelgängers

Bruce Hembd
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In the previous article from Wednesday, “Symmetry and Balance: 3 Reasons to Not Worry about an Off-Center Embouchure” some liberty was taken with the imaging software Photoshop and my own face.

In messing around with photos of famous musicians, I quickly discovered that few people face directly, dead-center at the camera and when applying the mirror-effect, the results can get pretty weird. Light and shadow can also create warped effects.

Here are some of those oddities – with a concentration of brass players. None of this is to be taken seriously of course, and these effects should all be taken lightly and in good humor.

Click on any image for a larger view.

* * *

Philip Farkas

Philip Farkas

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Milton Babbitt

Milton Babbitt

* * *

Fritz Kreisler

Fritz Kreisler

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Arnold Jacobs

Arnold Jacobs

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Igor Stravinsky

Igor Stravinsky

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Louis Armstrong

Louis Armstrong

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Leopold Stokowski

Leopold Stowkowski

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Roland Berger

Roland Berger

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Wilhelm Furtwangler

Wilhelm Furtwangler

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Luciano Pavarotti

Luciano Pavarotti

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John Coltrane

John Coltrane

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Barry Tuckwell

Barry Tuckwell

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Paul Robeson

Paul Robeson

* * *

Maria Callas

Maria Callas

* * *

 

Accuracy Tip: Watch Your Fingers

John Ericson
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Over the years one thing I have noticed in watching students is that a percentage of missed notes have to do with how your fingers move, or more precisely how they don’t quite move at the same time as each other. In a follow up comment to the recent article on glissandos I noted that

In my own case, to perform a gliss from for example an F at the top of the staff to a high B-flat I would roll my fingers 3-2-1 from the T0 fingering for the F to a T1 for the top note, a variation on the suggestion from Berv.

So while this rolling action can be used to advantage in making a glissando or rip, it is also something to be very aware of as a potential problem.

In slow passage work I know what my tendency is, and I suspect it is common out there. My fingers tend to roll very slightly in order 3-2-1. So for example if I am going to a 2-3 fingering the third finger tends to go down slightly before the second finger. If it is to the fingering 1-2 my second finger tends to go down slightly earlier than the first. My perception is that it is more likely to be noted in the 2-3 combination than the 1-2 combination.

Then in many passages you also have the thumb valve to throw as well. Let’s say you have to go from 0 to T2-3. When taken quickly probably the fingers will all hit at about the same time but taken slowly there is a real good chance that they won’t, and even if it does not cause a full blown chip that roll of the fingers will translate into something audible, especially if it is a slur.

There are several things you can do to improve this issue.

One is to improve the ergonomics of your instrument. This may involve switching over to use a strap or flipper instead of the pinky ring (this will free up the third finger) and adjusting your horn with valve extensions (finger pads or “dimes” for example, or even modifications to the thumb valve). Make it easier for your fingers to arrive in a neutral position; make it easier for your fingers to be in that classic, rounded position when playing.

The other main tactic would be to use your fingers better. In The Brass Gym by Pilafian and Sheridan we find this very related suggestion about confident fingers.

Confident fingers – in order to avoid rough slurs, use marcato fingers in legato music. Armando Ghitalla described it as “pounding the valves.”

Taking a phrase such as this one (simple etudes in keys with a lot of flats or sharps work well for this purpose) I have found it helpful to alternately watch my fingers directly, watch them in a mirror, and then close my eyes and feel the motion.

It is possible to get the fingers to coordinate perfectly but it may be more of a challenge than you anticipated it to be. In my own case lately while I am tempted to play on several different horns I have restricted myself a bit with the goal of really gearing my finger action around one horn. I think it is paying off, and in any case finger action is a good topic for any player at any level to consider.

Symmetry and Balance: 3 Reasons to Not Worry about an Off-Center Embouchure

Bruce Hembd
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A mirror can be a very useful tool in practice sessions. It is a great way to self-diagnose and to make adjustments that can further improvement.

Many high school and college practice rooms these days it seems come well-equipped with both pianos and wall mirrors, so I think that people are already familiar with the notion of practicing in front of a mirror.

What may not be so familiar is what to look for. A mirror can be a great tool for some, but for others it can be a mystery or worse, a source of frustration.

(More.)

A mirror gives us feedback on a number of things, including: posture, hand position and embouchure. This being said, it can also draw attention to issues that may not be anything to be concerned about.

In this regard, a question that gets regularly asked is this:

My embouchure is off-center and is not horizontally perfect in the middle of my lips. Should I make a change to center the mouthpiece on my lips?

1.) Faces are not symmetrical

Using my own photograph, a simple experiment illustrates how off-balance our faces really are. At a glance, everything is there that one would expect – eyes, ears, a nose and lips – and nothing seems greatly out of order.

Now, let’s look at the same photograph with registration lines superimposed on top.

This is by no means scientific, but right away one can observe a number of differences between the right and left sides of my face.

  • The left ear is higher than the right ear
  • The left eye is slightly higher than the right eye
  • The mouth (at least when smiling) is not a perfect curve, and the left side goes up higher than on the right
  • The center of the nose, mouth and chin do not line up in a perfect, straight line
  • My glasses are crooked, in order to match up with my varying eye heights

Taking this a step further, here are two versions of the same photo but with truly perfect symmetry.

This effect is accomplished by copying one side of the face, reversing it, then connecting the two sides into one image. If my face where perfectly symmetrical, it would look like this:

Mirror copy of right side.
Mirror copy of left side.
Both mirrored copies side-by-side.

When looking at my lips in these mirrored images, subtle differences can be observed (in spite of the facial hair).

Even famous Hollywood actors – that rely on beauty for their trade – have asymmetrical faces. Actor Angelina Jolie, for example, almost looks like two different people when this same mirror-effect is applied.

(More.)

In the broader and more philosophical sense, beauty might be defined as a symmetry of unbalanced elements.

More relevant to horn playing, the point here is that no one has a face that is perfectly symmetrical. The big question to procure from this casual experiment would be: if my face is not absolutely symmetrical, why should I worry about my embouchure being symmetrical?

2.) Our brains can be fooled

While practicing in front of a mirror can be a great tool, it can also present problems if the practice is taken too literally.

Beyond optical illusions (see also the Thatcher illusion applied to Dennis Brain), our brains are also easily fooled into delusional thinking. Problems can be imagined where perhaps no problems may even exist. For some, a mirror can exacerbate minor paranoia into a bigger issue.

3.) Teeth

Not everyone has perfectly straight teeth and I certainly fall into the category of having very crooked teeth. My bite resembles this picture (at right) of a what one writer calls “redneck teeth.”

As shown in the picture at right, my right canine tooth sticks out prominently and my front teeth are very uneven.

When my mouthpiece is absolutely centered, that projecting canine tooth (and perhaps even more importantly, the gap next to it) becomes an issue. To compensate, I play with a mouthpiece setting that is off-center and have done so for many years.

Final thoughts

When pursuing balance in your playing, keep in mind that symmetry and balance are not the same thing. Sometimes, a “balanced embouchure” is defined by asymmetrical elements.

A mobile work by the artist Alexander Calder illustrates this concept brilliantly in the abstract. While this work is constructed of many different shapes and sizes, it achieves a strong sense of balance between its two branches.

Take everything you see in a mirror with a grain of salt. This feedback can be very interesting information, but it may not necessarily indicate that there is a problem or a strong need to make a change.

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