Posted by Sean Chisham on May 05, 2003 at 22:26:34:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: poll posted by Army Horn, Also? on May 05, 2003 at 22:05:31:
no.
I did try to substitute my warmup on the Sousaphone the first year when I woke up too late to get a proper warmup at home. That led me to some fairly severe embouchure problems which I am just now overcoming. Also trying to keep up with the dynamic fortitude of Mike Forbes on the parade field that first summer threw my face out of whack.
For me, the smart way is to play on my CC tuba at home every morning before going to work in order to reinforce a proper approach to playing music on the tuba. I don't try to play badly on the Sousaphone, but in order to better survive on the sit down horns I must approach the marching horn as a totally different animal.
Although some approaches work on both, most of the embouchure aspects don't carry over. Bouncing my face on the mouthpiece in pulse with the music while playing primarily quarter note downbeats is very counterproductive to a good embouchure. This is one of the many reasons why I envy some of the other bands which rotate their players between marching and stage work. This gives one frequent opportunities to reinforce good ensemble skills and good playing habits. Day after day after month after year after decade of playing nothing but marches and church hymns can play tricks on your brain if you aren't diligent.
sean