Arnold Jacobs' Breathing Exercises
It is very helpful for brass players to practice large volume movements
of air away from the instrument and music.
By doing this, the body learns the correct processes much faster.
Eventually these processes will unconsciously transfer to his or her
playing. Within a few weeks these
exercises will begin to produce results, but they must be practiced for six
months or longer for them to move into the subconscious.
At that point they will replace old breathing habits.
The player's breathing habits will be changed forever.
The body will be learning new skills.
It must be remembered that the goal is large volume movements of air, not
large body movements. While doing
these exercises it is helpful, however, to exaggerate the physical phenomena to
ensure that the body learns proper movement.
It is also wise to establish motion independent of the air.
This helps the body learn function and teaches the player that body
movements alone will not guarantee proper air flow.
When the player goes to his or her instrument, these exercises must be
forgotten. The player must get into
art, not mechanics. It will be
helpful to the player to spend twenty minutes per day with increased awareness
of function. During this time the
player should observe that a large breath is being taken and that it is flowing
freely from the body. In time these
awarenesses should be forgotten ‑‑ they will have entered the
subconscious level of the brain and will have become a natural part of the
playing.
Exercise
No. 1
1. Fill lungs to the count
of 5 while raising arms above head
2. Drop arms on count 5
3. Retain the air with an
open throat
4. Gradually exhale
5. Do this exercise in front
of a mirror with 6 repetitions
6. After a week, do this
exercise in 3 counts
7. After another week, do
this exercise in 1 count
Exercise
No. 2
1. This exercise is done
while walking
2. Inhale through the nose
for 5 steps – a slow,
smooth inhalation of large quantity
3. Exhale through the nose
for 5 steps
4. After a week, perform the
same exercise in 3 steps
Exercise No. 3
1. This exercise should not
be done until Exercises No. 1 and No. 2 have been practiced for
2. Take a breath in thirds
(partial breaths, not Yoga breaths)
3. Pause between each
partial breath and observe how it feels
4. Exhale in thirds
5. Pause between each
partial exhalation and observe how it feels
Exercise
No. 4
1. This exercise may be done
only after Exercise No. 3 has been mastered
2. Take in 2/3's of a breath
and pause
3. Take in last 1/3 of
breath and pause
4. Exhale 2/3's of a breath
and pause
5. Exhale last 1/3 of breath
Exercise No. 5
1. This exercise may be done
only after Exercise No. 4 has been mastered
2. Inhale fully and pause
3. Exhale fully
4. This exercise must be
done for three months
Exercise
No. 6
1. After Exercise No.
5 has been completed, this exercise may be done
2. Inhale for 1 count – complete
inhalation
3. Exhale for 3 counts – complete
exhalation
Exercise
No. 7
1. This exercise may be done
only after Exercise No. 6 has been mastered
2. Inhale for 1/2 count – complete
inhalation
3. Exhale for 3 and 1/2
counts – complete
exhalation
Exercise
No. 8
1. This exercise may be done
only after Exercise No. 6 has been mastered
2. Repeat Exercise No. 7
with a faster tempo
Exercise
No. 9
1. This exercise is for
those who need help breathing from the diaphragm area
2. Put hands on stomach with
the middle finger tips on the navel
3. Spread fingers over
stomach
4. Push stomach out without
breathing
5. Pull stomach in until
"you touch your backbone"
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5
while breathing
7. Try to establish a range
of motion
8. Do this quite a few times
a day
9. The use of the hands is
to ensure correct motions – nerve impulses alone from this region
Exercise
No. 10
1. This exercise is to help
the player learn to develop air pressure without large muscle contractions
2. Inhale fully
3. Begin to exhale rapidly
through partially closed lips
4. Continue to blow, but
block lips with finger held sideways
5. Do not change anything in
blowing muscles
6. "Pop" finger
away and continue to exhale
The following exercises are designed to help the player
learn to use large quantities of air while remaining relaxed:
Exercise
No. 11
1. Take a large breath
2. Count out loud, pausing
after each number ‑‑ the throat must remain open during pauses
3. Use very little air while
speaking
Exercise
No. 12
1. Inhale
2. Exhale in the most unrelaxed
manner possible
3. Inhale
4. Exhale as relaxed as
possible
5. Transfer the quality of
step 4 to the instrument
Exercise
No. 13
1. Hold a book at arm's
length
2. Blow the pages apart
Exercise
No. 14
1. Hold a lit match at arm's
length
2. Blow it out
Exercise
No. 15
1. Imagine holding a
drinking straw with a bean inside it
2. Blow the "bean"
across the room
Anything that improves the vitality of the brass player
will improve his or her playing and mental attitude. Exercises such as running, swimming, etc. are very good.
It should be realized that exercises like these contribute to the
player's general health, but they do not transfer directly to the breathing
skills needed by brass players. Only
exercises of the type listed above will do that.
An excellent overall test to determine that breathing is correct and
involves large volumes of air is to take three full breaths in close succession.
If everything is correct, this will produce the first stage of
hyperventilation.
If hyperventilation is encountered during these exercises, the player should breath into some type of bag, recycling his or her own air. This will enable the player to continue practicing them for a longer period of time.
