Use of air & breath control - for recorder players, singers and other wind instrumentalists

Manuel Antonio National Park  • 

In this video I will discuss the mechanics of breath support and take you into 5 basic exercises to become conscious of the diaphragm and to start controlling it. Don't forget to activate the subtitles if you prefer them! Especially the 5 exercises are totally suitable for any musician working with air! Even for those of you who would like to connect more with your breathing (always good for any musician, artist, person...), I recommend doing all five exercises! Link to the document: https://lobke.world/documents Please subscribe to my webpage e-mail list for news and updates! Versión española de este vídeo (sub PT/IT): https://youtu.be/Wy_npY5MrNE I will tell you about "belly breathing" (using the abdominal muscles) vs. "chest breathing" (using thoracic and cervical muscles) and their influence on breath support. Specifically for the recorder I will discuss the role of the nose (sometimes accidentally leaking) while playing and its consequences. Then we will go into 5 essential breathing exercises that will really help you. First, to engage and become aware of the diaphragm: 1. Breath of Fire (yoga) or The Panting Dog 😄 2. Consonances like P, T, K A slow and steady exhalation exercise: 3. Condensation on a mirror Feeling how not only the belly but the entire core extends: 4. Bending forward with your hands on your back Working on a good breath technique starting at automatic body response: 5. Opening up (and helping by continuing the movement) I do stress the importance of practising breathing in front of a mirror, so that you can see if you are moving your shoulders or chest, which we don't want. The basic tone of the recorder should be smooth. Vibrato is an ornament. I explain the two types of controlled and ornamental vibrato: air vibrato & finger vibrato. A very important tool to improve your sound on the recorder comes next. This is finding the center of each tone. I explain my concept of the center and the range where we are still in tune. The center is where each tones resonates most, where the recorder is most comfortable. And the last theme is the 4 parameters of a tone. Low tones need slow air, high tones need fast air. But air can also be broad and thin. This creates 4 possible combinations, in which broadness of the air is the most flexible parameter, used for the beginning of dynamics on the instrument, as well as for musical character.