support Tutorials CDs PPT mouthpieces

Sore Tongue - related to playing?

teen37

Senior Member
Messages
70
Locality
Dudley, West Mids
I do have a question..........

Has anyone ever suffered from a very sore, cracked tongue resulting from playing their sax??? Mine started bout a week ago and I'm not sure really what's caused it. I've never had it before when practising a lot. I did put a new reed on at beginning of the week, could it possibly be a reaction to that? But then I am still getting over a nasty cold I had over the hols, still got a tickly cough, it may just be something to do with that eh? Its a bit of a mystery to say the least. Any ideas anyone? Or should this possibly be a new thread?
 
Last edited:
I do have a question..........

Has anyone ever suffered from a very sore, cracked tongue resulting from playing their sax??? Mine started bout a week ago and I'm not sure really what's caused it. I've never had it before when practising a lot. I did put a new reed on at beginning of the week, could it possibly be a reaction to that? But then I am still getting over a nasty cold I had over the hols, still got a tickly cough, it may just be something to do with that eh? Its a bit of a mystery to say the least. Any ideas anyone? Or should this possibly be a new thread?
no pain....no gain!:headscratch:
 
I do have a question..........

Has anyone ever suffered from a very sore, cracked tongue resulting from playing their sax??? Mine started bout a week ago and I'm not sure really what's caused it. I've never had it before when practising a lot. I did put a new reed on at beginning of the week, could it possibly be a reaction to that? But then I am still getting over a nasty cold I had over the hols, still got a tickly cough, it may just be something to do with that eh? Its a bit of a mystery to say the least. Any ideas anyone? Or should this possibly be a new thread?


It might seem obvious, but play some repeated tonguing and check if where you are touching the tip of the reed is where it is painful. I used to get it sometimes with Clarinet, but not bad and only lasted a day, when I was practicing a lot as a young student, but at the time I used to blame the reed.
 
Last edited:
It'll be the cold. I've never had any bother sax related with my tongue. Bottom lip is another matter.
 
It might seem obvious, but play some repeated tonguing and check if where you are touching the tip of the reed is where it is painful. I used to get it sometimes with Clarinet, but not bad and only lasted a day, when I was practicing a lot as a young student, but at the time I used to blame the reed.
Yeah I did think that myself, although I've never had it before that I can recall, but one particular piece I was playing I noticed I did do a fair bit of repeated tonguing.
 
Yeah I did think that myself, although I've never had it before that I can recall, but one particular piece I was playing I noticed I did do a fair bit of repeated tonguing.
I think or used to think it was something with the tip of a particular reed. But it's worth while looking into where your tongue touches the reed when tonguing a lot.
 
It'll be the cold. I've never had any bother sax related with my tongue. Bottom lip is another matter.
Yup have had some right grooves on my bottom lip from over biting on the bottom teeth, I am making a conscious effort to try to relax my bottom lip but still trying to keep my embouchure correct.
 
Also used to bleed, not like from a cut, more weeping. The tip of the reed would be red.
 
Lemon
Yup have had some right grooves on my bottom lip from over biting on the bottom teeth, I am making a conscious effort to try to relax my bottom lip but still trying to keep my embouchure correct.
lemon juice is good in the evening, ie to put on the cut /groove
 
I will have to give it a go, I have just been using mouthwash, a bit stingy but probably not as stingy as lemon juice eh!
 
Neat whiskey does the trick, hold it before swallowing, 7yrs or malt is fine.;)

Sounds better than mouthwash, especially if you read todays news re how bad some can be for you :)

Must admit I was never a whisky drinker until we visited Tullibardine distillery and I found a year I was quite partial too. They also do a nice whisky beer ;)

Jx
 
I had a long layoff from playing reeds and a few times had very irritating splits on the tip of my tongue, so it could be be nothing whatsoever to do with playing sax.

I never really got to the bottom of it.
 
Neat whiskey does the trick, hold it before swallowing, 7yrs or malt is fine.;)
Seeing as I live in Scotland I would choose whisky first and then second whiskey from across the Irish sea
 
Seeing as I live in Scotland I would choose whisky first and then second whiskey from across the Irish sea
And very last the fakes from further west and even further west across the Pacific.

Then there's Schnapps...
 
Just as long as you don't spit it out!
 
That bring to mind an episode from the late 80s.
We were touring the Basque countries with the Conservatoire choir, and the director of the school, trying to perform a "Spanish S" during an official speech, bit his tongue. The Basque hosts promptly recommended him to sterilize the wound with huge amounts of delicious spirits.
This affect his overall speaking ability.
 
Wow you guys!!!!

I'm not a whiskey drinker myself, although my hubby has a bottle of Aberlor I think in the cupboard, I think the Edrador has gone?????mmmmmmmm? Anyway, I had a bit of a bad experience last year with whiskey, not me personally drinking it, but my hubbies visit to the whiskey festival! Needless to say it took me 2 hours to drive him home , what should have only been a 15 minute journey!!!!! He hasn't touched a drop since!
May just lay off the sax a couple days and see if it clears up eh? If not will try the whiskey.
 
Teenie.................have you ever had cramp of the tongue? !!!
 
Back
Top Bottom