Excess Saliva

[Dennis Schwartz]

I am playing with a metal mouthpiece VanDoren V16 using the new Vandoren Jazz Reeds (2 1/2) and I find that I produce too much excess saliva. Is there an embouchure exercise that I can do to minimize this problem and/or does anyone have other suggestions. Would greatly appreciate help. Thanks.

[gyrofrog.com]

Seems like I keep coming back to this problem myself. I just tried switching to a softer reed and that took care of most of the problem. Also, switching from a metal mpc. to a hard rubber mpc. made a difference, though it may have been the higher baffle in the metal one (Runyon Smoothbore).

[colibri]

Rub cork grease or chapstick evenly on the baffle of your mouthpiece. Saliva problem goes away instantly. Give it a try.

[tenor_tom]

ok call me stupid but whats the baffle?

[Flatted 5th]

Baffle
The portion of the mouthpiece directly behind the tip rail. The shape of the baffle determines much of the brightness or darkness of the mouthpiece, as well as its "buzz".

http://www.mouthpieceheaven.com/images/mpc-info3_300.jpg

http://www.mouthpieceheaven.com/content/refacing.htm

[Tears June]

Also, try to pull your reed a little bit forwarder, on the same line with the MPC's tip. If the reed is placing too far away (backward), such air & saliva noise is much heavier.

BTW, I also have this problem & give me a lot of trouble. But I found it depends on player. Different player are different (many players don't have this problem even they pull the reed more backward)

:cry:

[cannonballrokr]

just suck in with your lungs, like breath in real hard, and that will pull the saliva out of your mouthpiece. oh, and make sure you swallow after you suk it in or it'll be right back where it came from :lol:

[Kareeser]

The baffle? I would've thought put it on the rails.

Nevertheless, I haven't tried it, so I don't know how well that works...

[saxofunk]

Interesting topic, especially since I thought I was going to die from my own spit at the last gig.

To fix it, I change the angle of my head and horn. Also, I figure if I think about sucking spit (as my former teacher so eloquently put it) during practice, then it becomes second nature during gigs.

I can't imagine that cork grease on the mpc baffle would really make a difference... sounds like sending you're the new kid to get checkered paint. Enlighten me.

[area51recording]

Nope. It actually works! I've done it myself and it kills the spit sound, although I'll be damned if I know why!

[Vortex]

The real problem is when you don't have enough time (due to phrasing) to stop and suck. Especially bad coupled with sections of rapid articulation.

Any tips for not sending extra spit into your horn in the first place?

[jaankaden]

i find that the angle of the mouthpiece as it enters your mouth affects, to a much larger degree than i previously expected, the saliva problem.

before i begin, let me just say that this is what i've experienced and make no claims for its effectiveness, or its credibility for that matter.

when i have it straight in, the slightest shift in embouchure causes the whole setup to be compromised, sorta like a bite sealing up the opening. i end up forcing more, and as a result, send more saliva into the mouthpiece. this also seems to happen when i take in too little mouthpiece for similar reasons.

what has worked, fairly well infact, was to take in more mouthpiece or/and to have it angled slightly upwards (pointed more in the direction of the roof of my mouth than at the back of the throat). of course, i'm not saying that you pull a david sanborn, that's extreme. but you could try just angling it a little steeper. this also has the effect of opening up my sound more.

another thing is to keep the tongue at the bottom of your mouth, which is, from what i've been told, where it should be. this seems to significantly reduce the amount of spit in your air stream.

hope this helps a little, if at all.