Oh the variety of products and cures which have been suggested! The trouble is that probably different things work with different people, and perhaps, especially with so-called "alternative" remedies, there is a placebo or psychological effect, or the patient was about to get better naturally anyway. Anecdotal evidence in the case of medical problems is no substitute for properly controlled scientific tests (I am not a doctor by the way so have no vested interest in this respect). Perhaps in the USA where cold dry winters are the rule, dry air may be a problem (perhaps accentuated by air conditioning which would lower the relative humidity further), but in the British Isles our winters tend to be damp and mild. Anyway, even when coughing, my throat hasn't been dry, if anything the opposite. As I have stated, fortunately on the night of the performance, my coughing did not materialise. However since then, if I talk or sing for more than a short time, it tends to re-appear, with a certain amount of phlegm. I am about to try a Cider Vinegar/Honey mixture which a friend of a friend of my mother recommended. I have also seen a doctor, but all he gave me was some antibiotics (which act against bacteria not viruses, the latter being the cause of colds). About 6 winters ago I had a cough (not always bad) which went on from December to at least late April, so this one which has lasted about 2 months is not as bad as it sounds (I have never smoked by the way and do not work in a dusty atmosphere). Incidently why were there THIRTY-FIVE different postings to Mudcat on varieties of cigarettes; what has this got to do with folk music? I am sure there must be 1 or more smokers newsgroups on the Internet where they can ruminate to their hearts content about different brands, etc. One problem which occurs with me regardless of whether I have a cold is the build up of moisture/saliva in a tin whistle or harmonica, after playing for a little while. This tends to reduce volume or distort the note, though not evenly, so certain notes (perhaps especially the higher ones) sound worse. I use a brush to remove moisture from the whistle though the effect soon builds up again. I also find that the upper few notes in the upper octave on a whistle tend to sound very shrill. Holding the whistle to the side (like a flute) or vertically from the chin, rather than more or less horizontal, seems to help a bit though is less comfortable and may also reduce the volume. I have noticed that much better players do not seem to have these problems (perhaps I just tend to produce a lot of saliva!). Any suggestions on how to overcome these problems would be welcome.
|