How do you do, fellow kids?

[Chicken]

Hello, first post. Beginner to Trombone, many years of flute. Currently in a small town brass band without a teacher so winging it. It’s hella fun!

[Chicken]

And here’s my follow up. Struggling with embouchure at low end, sound is very fbfbfbfbfbfbfb-y.

[BGuttman]

And here’s my follow up. Struggling with embouchure at low end, sound is very fbfbfbfbfbfbfb-y.

This is a question to be posted in Teaching and Learning. Also, what the **** is fbfbfbfbfbfbfb-y? That's not something I can understand (and potentially help to fix).

[jthomas105]

fb...
fartblat...

[TomWest]

I’m new to the trombone, playing about six months, and I remember very well the “Dying Moose” sound I made when I started. Now if I could just learn how to tongue properly! I’ll get it, just keep working on it…

[BGuttman]

I’m new to the trombone, playing about six months, and I remember very well the “Dying Moose” sound I made when I started. Now if I could just learn how to tongue properly! I’ll get it, just keep working on it…

A lesson with a good teacher can do wonders.

[Kbiggs]

1. What Bruce said: get a good teacher.

2. Flute and trombone embouchures have some similarities, but are different enough to confuse some people. (It's like what my wife told me about learning new languages: She speaks Danish, but when she tried learning German, she got confused due to the overlap in the languages.)

Remember to keep the embouchure muscles surrounding the mouth firm, especially the area right below the corners of the mouth. Don't let the lips go flabby in the lower register--that's what makes the "dying moose" sound.

3. What are you doing with the tongue when you play? Why do you think you're not tonguing "properly"?

In general, let the sound be your guide. If it doesn't sound good, then maybe there's something in the mechanics to adjust. That's where a good teacher helps. See no. 1.

[Macbone1]

Trombone is too hard to "self-teach" from scratch; find an instructor. If your town is too small and all you can find is a music educator who plays a brass instrument (that's how I started), still way better than nothing.