Embouchure collapse Embouchure collapse Embouchure collapse is a generic term used by wind instrument players to describe a variety of conditions which result in the inability of the embouchure to function. The embouchure is the purposeful arrangement of the facial muscles and lips to produce a sound on a wind or brass instrument. In brass playing, it involves vibration of the membrane area of the lips. Embouchure collapse in its various forms and extremities generally results in difficulty in playing for extended periods (especially if playing loudly and/or in the high register) or a complete inability to play. The former applies mainly
Brass instrument of most scholars (see organology) is that the term "brass instrument" should be defined by the way the sound is made, as above, and not by whether the instrument is actually made of brass. Thus one finds brass instruments made of wood, like the alphorn, the cornett, the serpent and the didgeridoo, while some woodwind instruments are made of brass, like the saxophone. Modern brass instruments generally come in one of two families: There are two other families that have, in general, become functionally obsolete for practical purposes. Instruments of both types, however, are sometimes used for period-instrument performances of