Thanks to those who have given me advice on and off the list. At various times I have consulted: orthopedic surgeon, neurosurgeon, neurologist, internist, acupuncturist, Pilates instructor, massage therapists, and various yogi and yogini. None has really been able to help my downward progression. I think I am headed for surgery eventually. Unfortunately, it is not a trivial affair. The approach is anterior - i.e. cutting through various neck tissues from the front down to the spine, with hardware installation or bone grafts and many months rehabilitation.
Several people have suggested that reducing embouchure pressure would help. Also, that I need to somehow relax my upper body. I would like to be able to do that, but after 52 years of horn playing, I find it difficult to change. I play pretty well for an amateur, and have never had embouchure problems. Maybe if my playing occasionally crashed and burned I would be more amenable to change. Dr. Sarno's mind over matter prescription, as suggested by Andrew Joy, has helped many people with spine problems, including my wife. But not me - my matter seems much stronger than my mind. I have used a soft cervical collar as suggested by Steve Haflich. It helps a little during normal activities, but not for horn playing. Another thing that helps is to do part of my playing with a valveless horn. I guess that shows that the weight of the horn is important. I am now playing a Schmid triple, which weighs about the same as the Paxman 20A double I played for 20 years. When I play in the 3x/year Chamber Musicians of Northern California weekend workshops or the summer Humboldt State University Chamber workshops, I now play the 18th and early 19th century pieces with a valveless horn - a tribute to the patience of the other workshop members. Dan _______________________________________________ post: [email protected] unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
