Alternative mouthpiece design for viewing the lip reed in motion

Abstract

Mouthpieces for stroboscopic viewing of the lip reed have been designed for the full range of brass instruments, from trumpet to tuba. In order to provide an unobstructed frontal view of the lips, the axis of the backbore has been rotated 90° from the axis of the rim, so that it emerges from the side of the cup. This is similar to the original design of Daniel W. Martin [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 13, 305–308 (1942)]. Flat end windows are desirable for avoiding optical distortion, but they limit the range of viewing angles. Placement of the lips on the rim and the angle of the air channel between the lips can vary noticeably from performer to performer, so a flat window that works well for one embouchure may be quite inadequate for another. The large cup volumes of the low brass mouthpieces allow for greater flexibility in design without getting into severe distortion. A cylindrical end window with its axis parallel to that of the rotated backbore provides a wide range of viewing angles. A preliminary survey of embouchures used by beginning and advanced trombone players will be presented. [Work supported in part by the Scholarly and Creative Activities Committee at CSULB.]