Staccator

In order to play in a staccato style, brass and woodwind players have to be able to play fast and clear notes that are not only initiated by the finger technique of the player, but that are also initiated by the tonguing technique of the player. In this respect, in order to play fast and clear notes initiated by the tonguing technique, a player must be able to blow the air out of his mouth using the tongue. To blow the air accurately, the player needs to strengthen his/her tongue muscle and learn to control his/her tongue so as to blow the air with different speeds and at different frequencies.

Presently, brass and wind players have to practice the staccato technique using their musical instruments. In this respect, particular tongue exercises have been designed specifically for bras and wood wind instrumentalists for practicing this technique.

However, practicing the staccato technique using a brass or a woodwind instrument is difficult as the instruments mouthpiece exerts pressure on the lips of the player, and this pressure causes the player to flex multiple mouth muscles, which are unnecessary for practicing the tonguing technique used for staccato style of playing. Consequently, when these multiple mouth muscles are flexed, the player has a difficulty perfecting his/her staccato technique.

The Staccator works by concentrating solely on isolating the tongue muscle, in order to build its strength and so the player may learn to control their tongue muscle better.