Tongue Block Bending II
David, I can tongue block bend somewhat fairly on the low end of the harp now, but not without some difficulty. Most of my difficulty seems to be centered around my embouchure. When bending, I tend to bear down on the harp with my mouth, my embouchure tight. The resulting bend most times sounds pinched (for want of a better description) and sometimes leaky from the right corner of my mouth. If I relax my embouchure, I can't bend. I didn't really have this problem when I used to pucker bend (my embouchure was tighter than my normal playing, but still somewhat loose).
Am I doing this correctly? Should my embouchure be relaxed when I bend?
I know that practice makes perfect here and it will come with time, but I want to make sure my technique is correct right off the bat.
I guess I shoulda just watched the second video on bending! I wrote my question after only seeing video 1. In video 2, you answered my question. Sorry to make you repeat it here. I should just shut up and listen sometimes - the story of my life.
You got it... all auxiliary muscles should be relaxed... only the tongue moves in the bend (for both pucker or tongue block bending). With that said, it's hard to be relaxed when you're trying hard to bend! ;-) Keep at it... focus on the tongue movement.