Tootsall

Check this one out! It might have been written by a "fair to average"(!) horn player, but the human body is the same.

http://freespace.virgin.net/pip.eastop/html/breath.htm

W Scott

Thanks, Tootsall. The article is 100% right on. It's so much easier to teach the breathing technique than it is to describe it---but this article does an excellent job.

Bill

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Gabriel is NOT a woodwind player!

dizforprez

"Breathe like a baby, play like an angel"

Arnold Jacobs

Drunken Jedi Master

Another thing to remember about correct breathing that my private lessons teacher is that the inhalation is a small part of the breathing process. It is exhalation that should be a primary focus. Not only is breathing out in a relaxed state important, but you should be aware of points in the air column where air could be impeded. Make sure that your neck is centered both across your shoulders and between your chest and back, your tongue doesn't intrude into your throat, but that it doesnt press against the lips either, that the tonge is never arched so high that the air column is blocked between the tongue and the palette, and that the center of your lips are loose and flexible so that they can respond to different air speeds and pressures. A word about air speed. The best analogy I've heard is that your air is a moving car. In the low registers your air is a big buick, moving at 30 miles an hour. As you ascend in the registers it becomse a sportscar moving at 40, 50, 60, on up to 100 miles an hour and faster. Thinking in analogies is a good approach because it allows your muscles to react in a more natural way, than thinking, alright, my lungs are contracting to force air through my larynx and into my mouth, which can tend to overtense those muscles, which then cause many other muscles in your body to fatigue rather quickly. Anyway I hope this helps you with your breathing.

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Life is a leading tone to a bigger world

dbacon

Kewl post. I like the sports car thing, I'll use that teaching this concept to students.

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Dave Bacon

Trumpet Dude

Yeh, that helped alot.

Thanks,
TD

dizforprez

very cool DJM, nice name too ;) !

Mark Hughes is also big on the sports car analogy. A car in positive motion (acceleration) responds and handles better than a car in negative motion (braking) and a skilled driver( such as a race car driver) speeds up to get out of trouble not slows down.

Any incorrect tension is the equivalent of driving with the hand brake on.

dbacon

Another fine analogy! I'll be using this as well, you can never have too many of these. You never know which one will spark that "AHA" moment.

Thanks guys for bringing these to the party!

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Dave Bacon

MPM

Well ... I wasn't going to go here ... but I'll give it one last shot. I've tried on several sites to talk about making playing the trumpet easier, backing off, "NOT" using so much air ... getting rid of tension ... and it always seems as though when you say something like," it can be easier than the way you are doing it", someone wants to argue to the mat.

Ok ... playing the trumpet doesn't take any more air than it takes to talk. It's a thing of taking the air in in a relaxed manner, ""and"" letting or pushing it out in a relaxed manner. It doesn't take muscle. A little support yes. If you have tension in your body, that's the way you are going to sound, tense!

Breath "LOW" ... back off ... use air speed, not volume, keep a relaxed and open throat & chest ... "less body compression".

Bear

Is air everything? Definitely not, but it is a MAJOR factor in making our voices heard. There are plenty of "tricks" out there to help you breathe better, the most popular being yoga, martial arts, swimming, just a lot of cardio and being in shape... That's all nice n dandy and it works.

My teacher here at Tech, Mr. William Strieder came up with an ingenious idea to demonstrate and assist the breathe. Simply take a straw, wrap a ponytail holder around it a few times and attach it to your bell bend to where the straw will be in your mouth as you play the horn. Now take a small pinwheel (party favor kind, make sure it works first) and attach it through the loops in the ponytail holder so when you blow in one end of the straw, it moves the pinwheel on the other end.

Now the idea is that you want that pinwheel to rotate as FAST as possible at EVERY dynamic level, EVERY range, and NOT to pulse during tounging (single or multiple). With this little "trick" you can see what you are doing with your air. Also, after doin' it for a while and taking the straw away, you find you have a lot more air to play with with helps increase endurance, pitch consistency, tone, etc. Do NOT force anything, take breathes when needed. The idea is to get it movin' as fast as possible but also still stay physically relaxed.

I could keep goin' but it's 2:30 in the morn here where I'm at, just got home from a late gig and am exhausted. Let me know how it works for ya. It's helped me tremendously. Also, do NOT use rubber bands (ruin the laquer/plating) and do not use ponytail holders with the metal on them (scratch, dent the bell bend).

Good luck and God Bless.

Tim