Quote Originally Posted by Gina Willis View Post
Re: Weird mouth movements -- Other than making oneself keep breathing (great tip), has anyone else conquered this habit, and how? Does forcing a pasted-on smile work (just because the mouth can't do anything else if it's smiling all the time)? Or maybe that could just increase muscular tension too.
Forcing a smile will create as much tension as whatever else you’re doing. A relaxed smile (cuz, hey, music is fun!) has helped me. Also, watch some early Chris Thile videos on YouTube. You’ll feel terrible about your playing, lol, but won’t feel so bad about your facial contortions...