Aging: Stuff Happens. Part 1, Teeth and Facial Muscles

A round table exchange and sharing of information about surprises that affect our playing and careers as we age. Panelists: Brenda Schuman-Post with Ruth Diamond, Michael DiPietro, Terry Ewell, Leonard Hindell, Edwin Lacy, Paul Nordby, Oscar Petty, and Amy Collins. International Double Reed Society Conference at Butler University, Indianapolis, USA. June 14, 2025. BDP #365.

[Music, “Tico-Tico no Fubá” Zequinha de Abreu, Performed by Terry B. Ewell]

So, we're going to go on to teeth and facial muscles. 

You can play without teeth. Well, I apologize. I want to give a shout out. There are a couple of very young friends of mine that are here tonight. Kayanna is a colleague of mine in the U.N. Symphony, and she's on the Health and Wellness Committee of IDRS, which is brand new, and we hope to keep this going. So, if you've got questions, you want to volunteer, if you need some information, she's sitting in the back right here.

Okay, teeth. You can play with misshapen teeth. You can play with braces. You can play with whatever dental work you've got going on. You can play without teeth. But if you start running into problems, that's when all hell will break loose.

You need your teeth to support your facial muscles, to support your face before everything starts to collapse. It does change in embouchure, no matter what instrument you're playing on, regular, regular checkups with somebody you trust.

If you need, and don't be afraid of, a second opinion. If you are having an issue and you need some major work, go to a specialist. Go get a team of specialists. There's all kinds of things that can be done before it gets to the point where you will lose all your teeth.

Frank can talk about that. I can talk about that. That's for another time. But let's take care of what you already have, no matter what it is, and go from there. Minor work is fine. You do not have to give up playing at any point.

There's also a problem you can have with TMJ (temporomandibular joint disorder). And if you've got that, physical therapy. Yes, you can have cortisone shots, you can have Botox shots. don't want it there I want it here that's a whole other thing you can get Botox in there but there are physical therapists. I am very fortunate my physical therapist is also a chiropractor it actually comes from your neck and your shoulders and you can go into all of that and that alleviates a lot of the pain and a lot of the pressure along with night guards if you can tolerate those. Night guards keep you from clenching your jaw and grinding your teeth all night long. Veneers, caps, implants. yes.

Number one, you're right about it being from the shoulders and neck. And number two, I had a, I guess you call a night guard, for the top teeth, and so the surface is smooth. So, you know, my lower jaw can kind of shift around.

And so, I want to say it's 100% and it's about 95% better. They just have a lot of pain and clicking and clacking and all that. And so, night guard work.

They work. You cannot play with dentures. They cover your palate for people that don't know that. You cannot play any instrument with dentures in it. If there's anybody here that knows how to do it, I'll let me know.

Yeah, the other thing is, and this is all serious stuff, but whatever you play, I want you to play it to the teeth, okay?

Make sure that happens. Can I change my seat?

There's a question back there, yep. Well, I have a question about your inhale with TMJ, very well. Yeah. If your toe and your jaw feels better, it's crazy, then I don't see it.

This is good to know. Okay. Go on.

[Music, “Tico-Tico no Fubá” Zequinha de Abreu, Performed by Terry B. Ewell]