🚙 The Kan on journey - From Beginners to Advanced ✈️
The Elusive Kan On
The most common question I receive on my YouTube channel is about kan on. "I can't produce the higher octave at all." "My kan on sounds awful." "I'm supposed to change the note without changing the fingering?? How??"
Well, mastering kan on is a journey. Here is the typical process many people go through to master it.
Beginners: Can't make any kan on sound
When you cannot make any kan on sound, do the two things.
Take a low breath, hold, and flex your stomach muscles as you play Kan on. If that doesn't work, tighten your buttocks.
At the same time, think about raising your upper lip ever so slightly as if your tone is escaping from there.
If you don't get it, keep on practicing this until you get that higher tone.
t is hard to believe what you do at your lower body (stomach, buttocks, and even calves and toes) affects your shinobue playing. That's why many people have difficulty getting the kan on right. Just trust me!
If you don't know how to take a LOW breath, watch this video.
Intermediate: Kan on sounds bad
So you got your kan on sound! Congratulations! 🎉 However, many people initially create kan on sound with too much tension in their lips. This marks the beginning of your journey to improve the TONE of your kan on sound. How do you do that? By doing exactly what you did as a beginner but doing it better
To let go of lip tension, you must rely solely on your core muscles to propel your breath to create the sound. Your mouth and cheeks must stay relaxed. Otherwise, your sound will be tight and squeaky. To pass this stage, you must:
Learn to flex your core muscles while you keep your face, neck and shoulders relaxed. This takes coordination.
Even though your facial muscles may appear relaxed (watch Bunta sensei play - his face looks like he's doing nothing), there are specific facial muscles that need to be used in a subtle and particular way. It's important to strengthen these muscles through daily practice, similar to how a bodybuilder lifts weights every day to build muscle.
This is easier said than done and takes months and years. But as you go along, you will see your tone starts to improve, so keep on working!!
Advanced: Keep on working on relaxation and consistency
Throughout your life, it's important to maintain a relaxed mouth while playing kan on notes. As you play higher "kan" on notes (5, 6, 7) and "dai kan on," your mouth should feel wide open inside, extending all the way down to your stomach. Additionally, focus on maintaining consistency. Challenge yourself to keep your mouth, shoulders, and neck relaxed and stay grounded in your lower body, even when you're under pressure, such as when performing in public.
It always gets worse first.
When you are learning a new skill, such as relaxing your mouth, you may find it impossible to create any tone at first. You may feel like you are going backward, but keep on going! After mastering your new skill, I promise your tone will sound better than before. It's just part of a beautiful journey called shinobue: two steps forward, three steps back, then five steps forward!! 💓