Playing a Wind Instrument is a complex activity involving brain and body. This complex character requires from any musician: - To prepare your brain for the mental effort; - To prepare your body like a sportsman for the physiological effort; As a musician it is very important to maintain your body and your brain in good condition. Many musicians ignore this complex character of playing an instrument. Prevention of medical problems is essential for every musician. This requires: - Optimal and regular training of muscles and brain - Regular Warming up and Relaxation when playing the instrument. Physical training prevents medical problems and improves the performance of musicians! The presentation provides some background knowledge and teaches methods for training to wind musicians.

1. Lip Relaxation and Lip Training
for Wind Musicians
Dr. W. Kreitmair
INEXPIM S.L. Madrid

2. The Art of Playing a Wind Instrument
Playing a Wind Instrument is a complex activity:
– Mental/Neural Activity
• Anticipation of tones
• Creativity of artistic expression
• Automatic mechanisms
– Physical Activity
• Movement of Muscles (rapid, slow, strong, soft, …)
• Fixation/Hold of Muscles in certain positions, i.e. Maintenance of Muscle
Tension for a certain time period

3. Be aware of this complex character of playing
an instrument!
This complex character requires from any musician:
• To prepare your brain for the mental effort;
• To prepare your body like a sportsman for the physiological effort;
• To maintain your body and your brain in good condition.
Many musicians ignore this complex character of playing an instrument.
Therefore:
76% of the musicians have medical problems caused by playing an
instrument at least one time in their musicians life.

4. Physical training for prevention and improvement
Prevention of medical problems is essential for every musician:
• Optimal and regular training of muscles and brain
• Regular Warming up and Relaxation when playing the instrument
This means especially:
• Preparation and Maintaining the body for holding an instrument – depending on
the instrument - sometimes in a very unnatural position
• Preparation and Conditioning of the Muscles to contract easily and with different
velocities, and to rest for different time periods in certain positions
Physical training prevents medical problems and improves the performance of
musicians!

5. Basic physiological knowledge for wind musicians
is very important
The most important muscles for wind musicians are the facial muscles, and especially
the lip muscles.
For maintenance and training of the relevant muscles musicians should:
– Know the anatomical details of the lip muscles
– Know how to strengthen these muscles
– Know how to warm-up these muscles before playing
– Know how to efficiently relax these muscles after playing

6. Anatomical details of the lip muscles
The lip muscles form a type of muscular network.
All facial muscles are extremely slim and delicate!
Schematic of the muscular
network of the lips

7. Highly dynamic lip muscles (Type A)
The 4 muscles of the Orbicularis Oris have no fixation on bones!

8. Stabilizing, almost static muscles (Type B)
These muscles are fixed on bones and support on the other ends the Orbicularis Oris;
therefore these muscles are in permanent tension during playing the instrument!

9. Respiratory muscles

10. Dynamic Stretching
Dynamic stretching with moderate intensity helps in the long term for:
- increasing strength and quickness of the muscles,
- reducing the risk for muscle injuries
It presupposes warm muscles and it needs to be followed by a active
or passive muscle activation

11. Grimace – activation of blood flow in mimic muscles
Tensing of the indicated muscles/muscle groups and holding
the tension for 3-5 seconds activates the blood flow

12. Other, more intense types of muscle training
There are 3 important types of muscular performances important for wind musicians:
– Basic muscular strength (depends on muscle volume)
– Muscular quickness (depends on muscular elasticity)
– Muscular endurance
– Recovery of the muscles
These muscular performances require specific
forms of „work-out“!
How to train the muscular performances?

13. Training of the Basic Force
This form of training is important for all muscles of type A and B
The best training for then is an „intelligent“ combination of isometric and isotonic
training!

14. Training of the muscular quickness
This form of training is important for all muscles of type A
The best training is a combination of dynamic training , dynamic stretching, and
relaxation, always starting with dynamic training and finishing with relaxation

15. Training of the Muscular endurance
This form of training is important for all muscles of type A and B
The best training is an isotonic (static) training only, isometric training doesn‘t help
here!
If terminated with relaxation the efficiency of the endurance training can
be improved significantly

16. Warming-Up and Relaxation
To GRIMASE
The muscles need
to be accustomed
some few sessions
to the vibrations!
The muscles need
to be accustomed
some few sessions
to stretching!
Warming-Up
Relaxation
(1)
(2)
(3)
(1)
(2)

17. Training help from INEXPIM S.L. (1)
myVIBS
Relaxation Device ENDI dynamic Lip Trainer
Check the devices at www.musicaccesorios.es

18. Training help from INEXPIM S.L. (2)
ENIS isometric Lip Trainer PUEDO Respiration Trainer
Check the devices at www.musicaccesorios.es

19. Training help from INEXPIM S.L. (3)
SEPA Teeth Separator PROTEC Lip Protector for Clarinet and
Saxophon players
Check the devices at www.musicaccesorios.es
Training help if you need teeth spacing
Protects the lips of clarinet and sax players

20. myVIBS 
training help
before warming-up
after the use
of myVIBS  after playing
Warming-
Up
Relaxing

21. The 3 Training Levels
• Level 1 • Level 2 • Level 3
More
difficult
More
difficult

22. Some further innovative products of INEXPIM S.L.
Woodwind from TREEPUR with Silent Pads
We offer Clarinets and Saxophones from TREEPUR in Spain exclusively!
TREEPUR instruments are top class woodwind instruments from Austria

23. Some further innovative products of INEXPIM S.L.
Brass from BRASSEGO with „Singing Bell“ – Trumpets, Trombones, Horns
Bassfrequenzen werden deutlich verstärkt,
ebenso der mittlere Frequenzbereich, störende
Frequenzspitzen werden dagegen eliminiert.
Das Ergebnis ist ein satter, dunklerer Ton ohne
giftig-grelle Klanganteile, dafür mit einem
ausgeglichenen Spektrum über alle Register –
ganz wie eine schöne Stimme.

24. Some further innovative products of INEXPIM S.L. (2)
• Synthetic Reeds from FIBERREED

25. Some innovative further products of INEXPIM S.L. (3)
• Mouthpieces: Trumpet mouthpieces from SPIRI
• Saxophon mouthpieces from Theo Wanne/Harry Hartmann