Hello Valerie, all very well said. But didn´t all these precautions & all these food supplements CREATE all these allergies together with OUR contribution to the common pollution of the environment ?
When I was pre-school & early school after 1945 we had no choice what to eat. Important was just getting some food. And surely, we intook a lot of stuff which would nearly kill us today. So we became quite resistant against a lot of bad influences through food. I eat fresh fruits including kiwis & pineapples, - nourishing myself by fruits only in the evenings - with exceptions -, have no problems with tomatoes. But I do not eat at all prior to performances. Well, this time is over, as I just perform rarely and only for fun. It meant, I had my last food in the late afternoon prior to driving to the opera. This was never a problem. The body does not need that much food. And all this kind of food did never influence the embouchure. I avoided coffee prior to performances principally except my home brew, as you never know what they mix into the coffee. Certain substances may have a bad influence upon your stomach, which is not good, if you are in a demandig performance. Certain coffees are so strong, that you start shaking at the soli. But it did not influence the embouchure with swelling lips etc. I knew some hypochondric colleagues, who suffered under the influence of quite everything. Poor guys. But I noticed also, that these bad effects on the embouchure due to "allergies" are more known to amateurs. And we seem to sensibilize ourselves a lot by taking pills against all & everything. Our hypochondric approach will eventually kill ourselves sometimes. -----Original Message----- Date: Sat, 20 Dec 2008 23:41:33 +0100 Subject: [Hornlist] RE: Embouchure From: Valerie WELLS <valleriewe...@msn.com> To: horn list <horn@music.memphis.edu> <This is going to sound strange. But does anyone know if there are any dietetic things that promote a healthier embouchure - more strength, less fatigue, that kind of thing.>Ron, I don't think it's strange at all. I recently posted about my chops being adversely effected by certain foods. Anything that is allergenic, pro-inflammatory or highly acidic can irritate the lips & cause them to swell. Some of the effects are short term, some are not. Not only food allergies, but seasonal and environmental allergies can make the lips swell. This is what I do to maintain my embouchure: (1) I limit kiwis, fresh pinneapple, high oxalate foods, tomatoes & other shade vegetables. I've read recommendations to avoid citrus fruits, but thankfully haven't noticed any problems from eating them myself. (2) I take low dose antihistamines during allergy season (which is almost year round for me). (3) I take Joint MD as directed on the package. Joint MD is an inexpensive non-drug, dietary supplement made to increase flexibility & reduce pain in arthritic joints. This product reduces inflammation ALL over the body, not just the joints and has been beneficial to my chops making me less sensitive to the effects of allergens. (4) I practice The Balanced Embouchure (BE for short) -- Nothing but nothing has made as huge a positive impact on my chops as BE has. BE exercises & techniques have made my embouchure more efficient so I don't need brute strength to play high, long & strong. I've used BE for 2 1/2 years & am very pleased w/ the results. (I've promoted it so successfully in the horn community that the author recently asked me to handle all the BE book sales to horn players. Email me if you are interested.) Valerie Wells in Tacoma_______________________________________________ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/hans%40pizka.de _______________________________________________ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
