51B, day four

Today, I felt truly comfortable on the 51B. Jon heard me play a few licks on it and commented that I don't sound terribly bright like I thought I did, which is a relief. It may just be the overtones in my head...

My staff notes sound great today. Tone was much better all around. Endurance was also much better. After my practice session, my lips ached a little bit, but I feel as though my chops got a workout -- that kind of ache, not the bad kind.

I'm feeling much better about it in general. Some articulations are still imprecise, and my partials aren't lining up quite right still, but if I keep up with the flexibility studies, I think this will improve drastically. I did a little high range work today also, and got tired extremely quickly up there. However, I did get a nice clear Eb at one point, which is a big step! I will keep working in my high range to win back that endurance.

I see no really provocative reason to continue this particular mouthpiece diary unless something truly fascinating happens, so I will quit my daily posts now and restrict myself to posting whenever I have something interesting to say.