Double Buzz

What Is It?

Double buzz is when the two lips vibrate at two different frequencies. Both notes come out of the instrument at the same time. From that description, you might think that the result of a double buzz is something like homophonics where the second note is in harmony with the original pitch. Unfortunately that is never the case. 

With a double buzz, the second pitch is usually dissonant to the other, original note. It's so dissonant that it doesn't even sound like a note. It sounds like a buzz or a growl.

This is one of the most nerve racking problems trumpet players have to deal with because the answer isn't as obvious as you might think. Practice as many long tones as you want and it's not going to make the double buzz go away. Do lip slurs. Do air exercises or breathing exercises. None of that works and it's always these kinds of rudiments that the ambitious players practice more of - to try to get rid of the double buzz. 

And now that I've said it, yes, this is a problem common more often to ambitious players than it is to those who are less enthusiastic about playing the trumpet. Does that tell you something about the double buzz? 

There are a few problems on the instrument which we make for ourselves. These are problems which we cause by doing the very things that we think are going to help our playing. Instead, they make our playing worse. That is why, sometimes, it's not a very good idea to get TOO enthusiastic about playing the trumpet. Enthusiasm is good, but it's a double edged sword which often cuts both ways. 

The double buzz, for enthusiastic players, can turn into the black hole of trumpet playing woes. The more you try to fix it, the worse the double buzz gets.  That's because the enthusiastic player is always looking for something to DO to fix the problem, instead of looking for something to NOT DO.

How Do You Fix It?

Double buzz is caused by fatigue. But it's important to clarify what kind of fatigue we're talking about here. There is the short term fatigue like you get at the end of a long etude - you know - that burning sensation in your lips and muscles of your mouth or face. But then there's the long term fatigue which is something all together different from the short term fatigue. 

Short term fatigue is what you feel when the muscles in the lips switch from aerobic to anaerobic contractions. Aerobic contractions are reusable contractions which are powered by the oxygen in your blood. Anaerobic contractions are caused chemically and are used on a one shot basis. Once you've used up your anaerobic contraction for that muscle fiber, it cannot be used again until it is fully "recharged". 

So that's the short term fatigue and it really has nothing to do with the double buzz. I only clarified what short term fatigue is so that we can contrast it with what long term fatigue is. 

Long term fatigue really isn't fatigue at all. It's just that we treat it the same way and it gets lumped into the same category as the short term, real fatigue. But long term fatigue would more properly be called "muscle tissue damage". 

It works almost the same way as fatigue. Fatigue is something you get from playing too long without taking a break. Okay, well so is this long term damage I'm talking about. If you play trumpet in a way which does not allow the blood to circulate through the lips, it's sort of like applying a tourniquet to your lips. Almost everyone knows that you can't just leave a tourniquet on your arm or on your leg (my dad would joke and say, "or on your neck"). When you do, the result is that the cells don't get oxygen and they die. If you leave the tourniquet on for too long then the entire arm or leg dies and needs to be amputated. 

Imagine what the effects would be if you could tie a tourniquet to your lips. Every time you play your instrument you are doing essentially that. You are cutting off the blood flow to the lips just like a tourniquet. That's why it is such a good habit to take the mouthpiece off of your lips every chance you get. 

Double buzz is caused by practicing without breaks, day after day, for an extended amount of time. The tourniquet like damage accumulates over time and begins doing strange things to your lips and your playing. The cure is quite simply to rest more often. I won't talk about resting here because I have another essay that covers resting in complete detail. Click HERE to read the essay about resting.