[Harp-L] Teeth query

[Patrick Ellis <harpwales@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

anybody out there help?

4.5 months ago i had an accident on my bike which resulted in me landing on my mouth on some hard paving. this took a big chip out of each of my two front teeth. i pretty promptly had them filled. they look fine.

the irony of the situation is that just prior to the accident i had got my self my first restaurant solo harp gig using chromatic and diatonic, with and without backing tracks.

i postponed the gig for a month or so, gave my teeth a couple of weeks to recover and then took up practicing again. i had to put in plenty of work to get my set up to a reasonable level. i practiced hard for a month. just before the gig i had to stop altogether as my teeth were starting to hurt and the vibrations from the harp flet like they were running up into my forehead making playing uncomfortable.

i did the gig, about 1 hour twenty mins in 20 min slots, and it went very well for a first one but by the time i got to the end i couldn't really have played any more. too uncomfortable.

since then i've backed off a lot to let them recover but they don't seem to be improving much. i have no pain when at rest but they complain and sometimes my gums even bleed if i've been playing for a while. i did some busking over christmas with mixed results. i did see a second dentist a month or so ago and he reshaped the repair on one of them, the one that causes the most problem, and that did seem to improve the situation a bit.

i accept that as someone moving on down life's slippery track my body doesn't repair as fast as it did when i was younger but i want to play, i've worked hard to get my stuff to the level it is and in fact following the financial mayhem we've all had to sit through recently, i need to play. 

anybody got any advice, suggestions, shared experience, magic ointment, mouth guards they can offer/suggest?

would be much obliged.

www.youtube.com/user/therealharpwales

peace n love

patrick