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Updated in [July 27th, 2023]
JonKypros.com's Shakuhachi Dai-Shihan 'Grandmaster' has gained extensive knowledge and experience in forming the embouchure and lips to play the shakuhachi, a Japanese bamboo flute. After helping countless people to get their first sounds on the shakuhachi and improve their technique, the Grandmaster is now ready to share his insights publicly. This video focuses on some of the unifying principles which apply to every approach for forming the lips or embouchure.
The first unifying principle is to support the cheeks and lips with the muscles of the face, while avoiding tension. The second unifying principle is to use a small(er) opening of the lips. Exercises are provided to help with this, such as "breaking the seal of the lips" and "closing-down the lips". It is also recommended to practice without the shakuhachi at times, as the desire to make a sound can be the single greatest obstacle preventing improvement for many people. Finally, alignment issues can cause people to get stuck with a big opening of the lips and never work toward a more efficient, smaller opening.