No, no. This is old jazz usage that began with saxophone and other horn players. It may be from the sound of the word "sax," or from the player "swinging." From there any musical instrument became an axe. "Chops" is from use of the jaw and lips to play those instruments. It takes strong "chops" to make a good embouchure. That jazz slang also was extended to other instruments, probably in the 1950's. The reference of "chops" to lips is old--it predates jazz by a long way.
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Last edited by Howard Klepper; 08-06-2008 at 10:15 AM.
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