Improve your BREATHING / air capacity! | Team Recorder

[@kimmeliankm]

I’ve been playing the recorder for 12 years and I have asthma, at first I blamed my poor lung capacity but really my problem was the opposite, I had enough air but wasn’t using it properly, I used way too much so I felt out of breath. Thank you for those tips, I’m sure they will help many people like myself years ago!!

[@MrNight-dg1ug]

Kimberly Melian u havent seen the video yet...

[@kimmeliankm]

Night Howl Yes I have, that’s why I said her tips will help people doing what I did years ago, not taking a lot but rather using the air properly

[@hgmvanderzanden]

Kimberly Melian iii

[@Frederer59]

Hi kmp, I used to have asthma but I took all grains and sugar out of my diet and it all went away. I still can get very slightly wheezy with certain red wines and animal dander but I think it was primarily the grains that affected me the most.

[@jonathonblues4006]

I have asthma as well and have the same problems - not watched the video yet - although about to

[@johnkymlloyd2929]

I am relearning the recorder, a daunting task, but I find Sarah's manner, engaging style and knowledge an enjoyable and hopefully successful journey for me... well done.. recommended.

[@_ch.ri_s._7964]

I have asthma, so this helped ALOT

[@idraote]

You're very right, the breathing technique for singers is very similar. I particularly love the tip on the "splat" breathing.

[@CavyWheek]

Great stuff Sarah, thanks! Every time I have a problem come up I search your videos and I find good tips and advice Every. Single. Time!

[@hakneyj]

Very useful exercises thanks. I use the splat technique as a singer. I think of it as just dropping my diaphragm and letting the air be drawn in.

[@meredith18352]

I just started on recorder 2 weeks ago and was amazed how quickly I was running out of air. The lack of back pressure really does make it a lot harder than I expected. I'm really enjoying it but think it will take a while for my fingers to learn the notes - all of the twisted chromatics are a challenge!

[@aprilmunday1152]

Thank you. I'll be adding those exercises to my practice time

[@britainonabudget]

Perfect timing! Restarting my studies and can't seem to breathe properly. You are a star!

[@RhinoDNA]

I taught myself the notes and have been able to read music my whole life...but breathing correctly...WOW that's a horse of a different color!

[@purnamishra8837]

hey sarah..i have picked up rechorder and already turned from soprano to alto.. though i struggled with my breathing...i do excersises that you recommend and its really helpful thanks..looking forward to more of your fantastic vedios

[@harrisonmin5190]

Great video! I really like this style of video. It's quite easy to absorb the info

[@krstech1269]

Thanks Sarah, very useful, love your energy and humor...

[@per-olovskogsberg4220]

Thank you for your videos. I'm learning to play the Quena but still get a lot of help from your teaching.

[@JasonCone]

This has proven very useful to me. Thank you!

[@arlin411]

I enjoy all of your videos, but this one was especially useful. I’ve heard some of this before, but you make it sound like fun. I also love the crab dress. Any chance you can do an interview with Kristine West?

[@lshin80]

Another super instructive video! Italian subtitles incomig next weekend, of course.

[@jimgrant7427]

A couple more ideas for tips. 1. Advice on learning to play the treble/alto up an octave. Some thing which is quite often needed. 2. Rather similar but advice on learning to play the great bass in C from the bass clef.

[@Team_Recorder]

+Jim Grant Good ideas Jin, thanks!

[@asbhagwat69]

This helps me with the recorder

[@CheukTheGreatestOfEverything]

Asthma: Let me introduce myself

[@temasekgirl]

Hi, Sarah! Your videos are amazingly concise and easy to understand. I'm so Glad I found your channel. :-) I started playing the soprano recorder in primary school. I have started playing again as a hobby and I realised recently that what I had learnt was the German fingering. I read that for high notes it's easier to play on the Baroque system recorder. Can you do a video about the differences in the two systems? Is it difficult to switch for people like me, who's only ever learned the German system?

[@Team_Recorder]

That's a good question Ashraf! It's not so hard to switch, as a lot of the notes are the same - and it's worth it. Thaks for the video idea :)

[@Nicolas_Yo]

Excellent video! It helped me a lot, thanks!!!

[@lemonemmi]

Sarah! I've tried to add an extra second every day since you posted the video! But I can not get past 9 minutes and 48 seconds! Help, plz! Jk, great video! Very good tips! Discovered your channel recently and been binge watching these.

[@jaylonsanders8402]

Can you do a video of the difference between recorders with a curved windway and a straight windway? I need some clarification because i am looking to buy more recorders that may have them. I heard they increase the resistance a bit and also help with producing high notes but I am not sure.

[@whisper4163]

Ive been thinking about getting a recorder.

[@queeneva4751]

Please help me. I had been playing the recorder for a whole month every day and I absolutely loved it and had been making quick progress. Then I saw this video in which explained how to breath to avoid damage to your voice. That was months ago and now I rarely play anymore since my throat starts to ache everytime I do. I never had that before. How do I get my throat to stop aching since this video didnt help this problem but started it. I want to play the recorder again!!!

[@Team_Recorder]

It sounds like your throat is tense- it can help to yawn before you play to relax it. You don’t need any throat tension at all for the recorder so it doesn’t sound good to have pain there. Try blowing without the instrument as if you were blowing up a balloon- and that’s the feeling you need when playing!

[@randallwells2892]

I purchase, at your recommendation, The Modern Recorder Player and have found it much too tedious for an intermittent beginner at the age of 72. I much prefer "The Recorder Player's Companion" by Francis Blaker. You always provide useful tips. Remembering them all , well.....I try.

[@honeychurchgipsy6]

Randall Wells - try the Gudrun Heyens book that Sarah also recommended - her exercises are very intuitive and easy to follow. She uses diagrams and imagery to help, and gets you to really think and feel how your breathing works. Volume 1 is great too - so much stuff to learn - so little time!

[@rrssna]

Hi Sarah. This has interested me for a while, both theoretically and practically; thank you for addressing this topic. Interestingly, it appears that the elastic recoil when exhaling produces air pressure that is too high for the flute, thus flute players are actually recruiting muscles, such as the abdominal muscles, and even the accessory muscles in the neck, to act as antagonists to expiration when playing, i.e., acting as inspiratory muscles even if they are exhaling. I suppose expiration muscle activity is involved, but it seems it is much less than we had thought. As a low-pressure woodwind instrument, I would image this mechanics should also apply to the recorder. What do you think?

[@ejerichogonzalez]

This helps Thanks😁

[@billybiggs6766]

Hopefully you see comments from your older videos because I really need your advice. From another video you made I decided I wanted a Tenor Recorder. I have been playing just soprano and really wanted a lower tone. Just this week I was able to get a second hand one for a really decent price. Down side is it only has one key so no C# for me. The problem I am having is consistently getting Middle C and Low D to play without going high. If I can blow very slow without a tiny bit of overblowing I can sometimes, and I do mean sometimes, hit the Middle C. It seems to be rare that I can get it right. So my question is, am I not using the correct technique or is there possibly a problem with this second hand instrument? It was built in the 80's just so you know the age, but it still looks really nice, like very little wear.

[@Team_Recorder]

I do see my old comments 😊 The instrument could need playing in- a little every day, and you may notice it loosens up and is easier to play in the low register after 2-3 weeks of playing in. I notice that with my larger recorders too! Otherwise, it could be a couple of tweaks for your technique- my video ‘How to hit the low notes’ covers this. Best of luck!

[@billybiggs6766]

@@Team_Recorder Thank you so much for the help.

[@aidencanen628]

I've been watching your videos and they are amazing! I have also been thinking about learning to play the recorder. I was wondering if the tenor recorder is a good recorder to start off on. I love the deep sound. I would love it if somebody could answer! Thank you!

[@honeychurchgipsy6]

Aiden Canen - depends on your age and size. If you are an adult with reasonably long arms (my arms are too short and I need a knick Tenor (bent neck)) you should be fine with the Tenor. However, depending on what you want to play you should remember that most solo/lead parts in Baroque music are written for the Alto. The good thing about the Tenor is that you can play anything written for the Soprano as it is in the same key, so the notes are the same, it just sounds an octave lower; the Soprano actually plays an octave higher than what is written on the stave whereas the Tenor plays them as written, so the lowest note on the Tenor is middle C. You can get some reasonable plastic tenors (look on Ebay for secondhand Yamaha or Aulos) but a wooden one will set you back quite a few hundred pounds - whereas you can buy a good Dolmetsch, Moeck or Mollenhuaer Alto in a cheaper wood (Maple or Pear) for a lot less. Good luck whatever you decide - I love playing my recorders - when I'm feeling a bit down I go in the bedroom and just play through all my favourites for hours - cheers me up and annoys the neighbours - LOL!!

[@OsisKpop]

I love your Videos❤️

[@jannijboer1124]

didaktisch zeer goed Sarah, ik gebruik vaak de doedelzak als uitleg over supported breathing.

[@mariansyk]

If you are a singer is it easier to control your breath? It's been a month I am playing and I don't have any problem with the breathing. I breathe in phrases as if I was singing.

[@lillekorn]

I am a beginner at recorder, and have recently bought an alto (Mollenhauer prima) because I really enjoy the low sound. However, I found I have huge trouble with my breathing: all the notes from C upward are a full semitone flat. So it this just a problem with not blowing hard enough and needing to improve my air capacity (I do have asthma, but I have also run a couple of marathons and have no trouble with the soprano), or something else? I double check that the instrument is assembled tightly every time.

[@michaelayers4174]

I had this problem with my Adler alto. I had to shorten the recorder by carefully filing and sanding the head and body at the headjoint. Mollenhauer is a good make and i wouldn't touch it without first making sure you can assemble it properly at the joints and having it checked out by a technician.

[@lillekorn]

@@michaelayers4174 Thank you. The obvious thing (the one I didn't think of for about a year) was to contact Mollenhauer. It turns out the plastic head piece was flawed and they sent me another instrument. Here's a lesson learned: when in doubt, contact the manufacturer.

[@musamaturah4693]

I learnt alot 😁

[@deniseorr9504]

Something else you can do is swim as part of your exercise routine. Especially swimming underwater. It teaches you to expand your air capacity and release your breath in a slow, controlled manner.

[@luckybarrel7829]

All covid patients be like F

[@melmilford1859]

I am an oboe player who picked up the recorder recently for fun. On the oboe, there is a lot more resistance because of the tiny reed opening. I always exhale before inhaling to get rid of any old, excess air. Is this necessary on the recorder as well? Or do you simply take in less air so you would theoretically be using it all between breaths?

[@skytower1662]

In my experience, nearly every wind instrument allows you to use all of your air before it expires, (except double reeds of course, and even then the larger double reeds will consume more air). You are correct, oboe is a pressure based instrument. (In fact if you aren't careful, you can bruise the muscle wall and cartilage around your lungs very easily on oboe. Ask me how I know) She did mention "dead air" though

[@melmilford1859]

Thanks for the reply! I didn't know you could bruise muscle walls. Yikes!

[@skytower1662]

@@melmilford1859 at least twice a year, every year from freshman onwards. I was probably pushing myself way to far past the dead air mark, meaning I was warring with the need to refresh the air or keep playing, and the quiver of the muscles would do damage. It sucks because its very serious pain if you breath past a certain point, so even like yawning would be agonizing, and near every breath hurt.

[@BartBe]

6:34 but after a while quite relaxed...

[@UkuleleSioni]

Hi Sarah. Thank you for another great video. I’m wondering if you’re familiar with Adriana Breukink’s theory about natural born inhalers and exhales, partly determined apparently by your time of birth, and how she makes different beaks on her Eagle recorders for each type of breather? Any chance you could comment on that theory (and on Eagle recorders)? I find it intriguing. Thank you. Blessings.

[@Team_Recorder]

I do know her theory! But I don't know *enough* about it to reeeeally comment - I'm not sure which I'd be for example, and haven't looked into it a lot. But it's definitely interesting!

[@honeychurchgipsy6]

John Bird - Sorry, but it sounds like woo when it gets connected to when you were born - sounds like astrology! I have read Adriana's information several times and honestly just find it confusing; I think "yes that's me" and then "no I don't do that" and so on. Trouble is, I appear to have random attributes of both types and I suspect we all do; it's probably more down to learned habits than anything else.

[@tomm54321]

Being the cynic that I am, I suspect it's to obfuscate the fact that she doesn't offer the more technically demanding curved windway! What magicians call "misdirection"...🙂

[@UkuleleSioni]

Yup, I have the same confusion and similar doubts myself. I read and think, I'm an inhaler, no, I'm an exhaler. But Adriana Breukink seems to have a good reputation as a recorder maker, so I want to take her seriously. Maybe, Sarah, you can do an interview with her, or perhaps she would let you demo her two (or three) types of beaks?

[@honeychurchgipsy6]

John Bird - I don't think that these ideas about breathing - whether correct or not - discredit her as a recorder maker: there's no doubt that she designs and makes some amazing instruments; I'd love an Eagle but can't afford one! My main concern was the idea that our style of breathing can be connected to the time of year we are born. I do think we all have different styles of breathing when playing, I'm just not certain whether it's as simple as being an inhaler or exhaler; but I might be a bit of an anomaly owing to having a condition that makes all my muscles contract/tighten when I try to do deep breathing exercises (Chronic Myofascial pain syndrome). Like a good sceptic, I'm always prepared to be proved wrong too.

[@agnesness925]

how many seconds should a beginner be able to hold a steady note?

[@bunrai]

I play a flute before and have some sense of how to have a good tone. BUT and I'm struggling breathing in too much for soprano recorder. :(

[@expensivemagic4754]

(for myself honestly) 4:15

[@rubenmsk]

sarah please make a review of the yamaha yrf-21 the recorder fife pleeeease pleeeease!!

[@imperatorcaesardivifiliusa2158]

I play my recorder with my nose, so half of the air is wasted anyway, idk how much this could help. Why do I play my recorder with my nose? Idk

[@FruityHachi]

I don't get the "splat" technique the motion of splat when you splatter something on a canvas or on the floor is away from your body, not towards your body it would make more sense to call exhalation "splat" technique, not inhalation, so at first I was doing exhalation and had to come up with a different name and association to understand how you're inhaling the air

[@Team_Recorder]

Ah, I see! It’s an acronym for ‘singers please lose abdominal tension’, so intented more as a way to remember the technique that describing what it actually is, if that makes sense

[@FruityHachi]

@@Team_Recorder oh, ok, so I was doing the inhalation wrong too I think I get it now

[@kraftwerk974]

Thought it was James Oliver speaking !

[@msmall9762]

Warm up on the recorder

[@PureMarketingMedia]

I don’t get it and hold it supposed to be helping us exactly

[@MrNight-dg1ug]

No videos play. Stuck at 0...cant remember what I did last time it happened...cold hands. Stuck. Aw. Hard to type Edit: *Restart to fix*