Bone graft surgery on front teeth

**William Bua** · 04-09-2010, 06:14 AM

The post says it all!
I just finished my last procedure on my 4 front upper teeth. I had bone graft surgery 17 days ago and just had an appliance installed that consists of a wire band that was cemented onto my front teeth on the back side of the teeth. I just tried to blow for the first time in 17 days. This is going to be one heck of an adjustment. I have a new set of chops whether I like it or not.

Has anyone out there had anything similar? Any suggestions other than playing a lot? I will be limited for a few more days as far as how long I can play in one sitting.

**jazzbluescat** · 04-09-2010, 07:35 PM

Nope. But, take it easy, and good luck. Sounds like a hell of a procedure, especially for a sax/horn player.

**Andym63** · 04-09-2010, 08:02 PM

Hello.
I had bone graft surgery done a few years ago.My to front upper teeth got knocked out during a misunderstanding with someones foot about 25 years ago when i was a young military musician.
Back then the dentist fixed them with root fillings.unfortunately they came loose after an infection 20 years later,by that time the bone was gone.so i had to choose between a bridge or a complicated bone graft in order to facilitate inplants.After trying a bridge for a while I chose the bone graft and inplants. I find that the inplants are better than my original teeth ,because they are straight my originals where a bit uneven and to sharp in places. The procedure was painful but well worth it. the teeth feel almost the same as my originals except for the lack of what i can only describe as "Suspension springs" my dentist says that it is because natural teeth have collagen in them that act like springs.
good luck
/Andy

**gary** · 04-10-2010, 12:02 AM

Ouch!!!! Best wishes on your new embouchure and a speedy recovery.

Regarding like procedures, just a word of encouragement. It is much easier to adjust embouchures on sax than on trumpet and Chet Baker, after loosing his teeth and having to use dentures, which really inhibit a trumpeter's ability to play, found a new way of playing that allowed him to have pretty much the same abilities as in his best days (although at a reduced volume). If he could do it, it's a piece of cake for you. We're all looking forward to your success in this new phase of your playing.

**William Bua** · 04-10-2010, 05:56 AM

Thanks gentlemen!!
I talked to my tech who is also a great player, and he suggested working on long tones to find the sweetspot so to speak. I know he's right, but I have never been a huge fan of practicing. I play music when I have the horn in hand. Now is my opportunity to do some much needed work on my chops. I heard that Coltrane worked on long tone an hour a day. Now that the teeth have calmed down and I am slowly adjusting to the appliance, tomorrow is bug my wife with long note day.

**jazzbluescat** · 04-10-2010, 02:35 PM

Good luck, Bua. And you'll be amazed by what you can get into with long tones.

**gary** · 04-10-2010, 05:43 PM

You know, Bill, regarding long tone practice, it doesn't have to drag you down. You can take a tune you like and play it very, very slowly concentrating on your tone quality. A combination of this with the introductory exercises in the Top Tones book should do the trick. Actually, I never play long tones. If I feel like I need to get back to isolating just my sound (from technique, articulating, etc.), I will play some slow-moving melodies written especially for vocal tone production like the Concone Vocalises; not nearly as boring as playing one tone at a time. Of course, it goes without saying, that one has to be really concentrating on the tone to make this productive.

**William Bua** · 06-03-2010, 04:48 PM

Update:
I am officially back!! I just did a 4 day jazz festival and played a lot of hours. I was expecting to have problems with stamina, I didn't at all. The tone came back after a month, but I was worried about having tone 4 sets into a long night. I survived a cutting contest and a blues gig after playing 6 sets straight. I am still doing some adjusting to the new chops so to speak, but I know I can play well again and I am not scared of playing and having my teeth become projectiles anymore.

**mascio** · 06-03-2010, 05:00 PM

Sweet! Swing hard Daddy-O!

**jazzbluescat** · 06-03-2010, 06:28 PM

Originally Posted by William Bua

Update:
I am officially back!! .....I am not scared of playing and having my teeth become projectiles anymore.

Good to know for those in the audience front row, too.

**wheels410** · 06-03-2010, 06:54 PM

Congratulations, William. I can relate the pain and uncertainty of having bone graft surgery on my front teeth. My two front teeth are now implants, and they're stronger and better than what I had before, (long history of tooth injuries to my front teeth starting from a young age). I too went through a period where I couldn't play which was a bummer. I too wondered if it would be the same, or if I would have to relearn everything.

I'm very glad to hear that you're back playing and doing well!

Jeff

**saxguymatt** · 06-03-2010, 07:04 PM

Hey Bua, I had no idea that you were having sugery. Glad to hear that you have been able to overcome the difficulty. I had a crown done on one of my front teeth (no where neer what you're going through) but I did find I had to make a subtle adjustment so that I was not putting too much pressure on that tooth against the mouthpiece. You've got both front teeth to worry about. Like I said, glad to hear you are overvcoming it!