Is it possible I am practicing too much? All I am getting is an air thru the horn and having alot of trouble getting a buzz.

you can`t practice too much! if anything, it might be the horn.

I am gonna rinse it with warm water- I always take good care of it- and oil it all the time- Maybe a thourough cleaning will help. I been palying alot cua I have thanksgiving vacation to really focus and make some progress.

Take a day or 2 off and let your chops rest. Do your lips hurt at all?

Actually no- they don`t hurt- towards the end of alonger practice session they get hot- almost like chapped burned lips- but not bad or anything.

You may have blown your lips out.

contract your stomach muscles

YES!! you can practise too much...You have to understand that you are usuing the most delicate muscles in your body and just like a weightlifter you can over do it (Overtrain) and damage things. One of the biggest mountains I ever conquered was learning to relax (in the gym and with the horn)When you give the muscles a chance to rest (Incubate) they grow stronger. Did you ever have to take a day off from practise and when you came back you found that you played a little better?? Try it. I have learned to practise every other day and give those muscles the rest they need. Give it a try. What do you have to lose besides overtrained chops?

I agree with previous posting, muscles need toning, and a little lay off perhaps. I have seen MANY horn players temporarily lose facial & lip muscle tone from overdoing it. Same fatigue occurs with any muscle. Strat man Dwight - strategies for musicians

I got the same problem about a week ago. I`ve started playing whenever I get bored (which happens alot in the Middle of No Where Maine...), and ended up playing about 2-3 hours every day for a week.

about the 5th day I had touble geting any notes out... I had to really force it, but after playing a bit it got better.

So, I`ve decided to try not to over practice myself, and hope that with practice over a long period, I`ll get better.

Thats what I have been doing. Practice whenever I get a chance several hours aday-

TODAY is my first day back after a full day and a half off- And I feel like I suck now more than I did before I took a day off.

Nah... Just do as everyone said. Take a short break, then play again...

All it took was one day of not playing before we had band practice to get my lips back to normal.

seems like i suck now!

try figuring out if the problem lies with your chops. Try and experiemnt with different methods.

haha...pain is good but I guess what you need to do is when you start feeling the pain...just stop for the day or take a break. That`s what I do and now I can play for 10 hours at a time (well something like that...don`t really think it`s that long!)