Bassoon TechniquesEmbouchureThe main purpose of an embouchure is to ensure that air does not escape from anywhere other than the reed, thus making it one of the most important aspects to master of any instrument. If you are initially tempted to cover half to two-thirds of the reed when you first encounter the bassoon, you must resist this temptation. Instead, the player should cover the front third of the reed. The teeth should never come into contact with the reed. Only your lips should touch it. The lips should hold the reed firmly, but the student should be very careful not to put too much pressure on it by turning the lips inward or clenching the jaw excessively (this usually happens because a student tries to force the bassoon to change pitch with your mouth, not with air pressure). This leads to biting, which causes problems not only in sound production, but in tone quality, intonation, and player fatigue (you'd be amazed at how quickly even a little tension can wear down a player). . Once the embouchure is set, a student can test whether the embouchure is correct through a process called singing. This simply involves the student blowing through the reed (be careful, not much air is needed for this process). If the embouchure is correct, the sound produced should be multiphonic, or it should sound like multiple notes are being played at the same time. Many have compared it to the sound of the screeching of blackbirds, hence the name of the term song. Like everything to do with music, it will take time for the student's embouchure to develop and occur without outside assistance. A teacher should always be alert to errors (which could occur in the middle of the paper (the air would simply escape) and stability is the key to correct exhalation. Every time a student plays a note, he is exhaling. If he were to loosen the his support, the air would come in faster (or even escape) and ruin the solid tone he was producing. But if his air support remains firm and constant, the tone should, in theory, remain the same. A good exercise to practice which can help with support and exhalation is to take a small piece of paper and hold it at mouth height against a wall and start blowing the paper, remove your fingers. If the air coming out is still and constant, the paper should be held, immobile, against the wall. If the paper falls or moves slightly, the air support (and possibly the mouthpiece) needs a little work.Fingering chartsSee attached document.