Saxophone beginners Help, How do I stop becoming breathless on long pieces.

[muzza]

yes, it is by Mahler

 

[dsimmons12]

Hi everyone, am new here..also a beginner in playing sax, and am encountering the same problem which i probably cant handle. Id really love to learn and am gonna go ahead and try your advices..thanks

 

[muzza]

Welcome. You may want to introduce yourself at "The Doorbell"

Enjoy learning the Saxophone, it's certain a challenge but I'm finding very rewarding.

With this classical piece it appears I needed to add more breath points and stick to them, as suggested. The Jazz pieces are written in phases or for vocals so there are natural breaks where I must be slipping in breaths, I was not aware I was doing.

 

[kevgermany]

I've been working on Solveig's song from Peer Gynt. Same problem, event hough it's originally a song. Marking the score was the answer. Hasn't stopped me murdering it, but at least it's good enough for my wife to be prepared to work on it with me now.

 

[Tenor Viol]

I've been working on Solveig's song from Peer Gynt. Same problem, event hough it's originally a song. Marking the score was the answer. Hasn't stopped me murdering it, but at least it's good enough for my wife to be prepared to work on it with me now.

Composers can be inconsiderate about breathing (or they wrote it for someone with exceptional breath control). Some composers, such as JS Bach, just don't take prisoners - a common complaint from both singers and wind players. In a choir (I assume you coud do this in a big band horn section - possibly) there is what is known as 'choral breathing'. This is where members of the section stagger their breathing so that they don't take it at the same time as their neighbour (critically, they mustn't sound the consonant at the end of the word).

Because the music is printed on a page, we assume it has veracity and accuracy. However, much of what is on the page may be an editor's interpretation. Perhaps they didn't put in breath marks as they expected the performer to sort themselves out, in the way that baroque composers often didn't include ornaments as they expected the performers to improvise and put appropriate ones in themselves.

 

[muzza]

I also noticed most Jazz pieces do not include breath makes or ornaments. I now do not mind this , since I enjoy listening to the pieces and workout phasing, articulation, etc. I also enjoy finding other versions and see how they differ and give it a go. I enjoy "Ballard of the Month" thread for this reason and one day may be at a level to able to post my version of the tune.

Starting out I did find this frustration, as I knew the example version/play alone had more going on than was on the page, but no experience to know what. However, I guess it has made me a much better listener and forced me to work things out.

 

[kevgermany]

When I first started my tutor would put breathing marks into my music. He'd do it by humming the tune, adjusting the phrasing till it sounded right, then mark it. He did it to a couple of pieces I was struggling with earlier this year. Remember to take a breath on pretty much every rest as well.

 

[Corona4007]

hey muzza, my teacher has focused me on breathing through 2 bars at a time only. He then stops me if I have carried on an it's obvious I'm not going to make it through the next set of bars. For me that has helped me look ahead only in terms of 2 bars at a time and breathe (and look at the following notes) accordingly.

 

[muzza]

Yep, I had ended up breathing about every 2 bars, but now been able remove some of the breaths marks to make the piece sound better.

What I found was a lot of the problem was tension. I normally play this at the start of practise session and focusing very hard on getting it sounding good. But at the end of a practise session I tried it again and bingo it came together. I was relaxed and not focusing solely on the tone. So I need to be aware of tension generated by over thinking/playing the piece.

 

[jrintaha]

What's your physical condition like? Do you exercise?

All the breathing techniques and tips presented here are of course necessary, but another way to further improve would be to work on your lung capacity and oxygen uptake, that is aerobic exercise. I cycle over 100km a week (usually pulling two kids in a Croozer bike trailer behind me), go to the gym 1-2 times a week and do some bodyweight exercises at home. Incidentally, running out of breath is one of the few problems I have not run into. 🙂

Also, I've noticed that I sound better, and not by any small margin, if I play right after some exercise. I don't know if it's because my muscles are already tired and thus perhaps more relaxed, or if it's easier to control my breath after getting my pulse up a bit, or if I just generally feel better after exercise, and thus play better. Has anyone else noticed a similar phenomenon?

 

[muzza]

Physical condition is not a problem.

I cannot recall any difference in my sound or practice, when I play after a workout.

Like exercise, I have found I need to have some recovery time between practises. For example, a morning practise after a long afternoon practise the previous day, does not always go so well.

 

[aldevis]

Physical condition is not a problem.

A tear on my eyes if I think of my meeting with Pepper Adams. he definitely wasn't in his best physical shape, but his sound was truly huge.