If you go searching for a definition on Wikipedia, you’ll find the following –
“Circular breathing is a technique used by players of some wind instruments to produce a continuous tone without interruption. This is accomplished by breathing in through the nose while simultaneously pushing air out through the mouth using air stored in the cheeks.”
Why are we discussing this? I think it’s pretty interesting, and I mentioned it in the previous blog post about piano-itis. Being able to play notes without having to stop and breathe, makes it possible for horn players to develop one of the bad habits that piano and string players sometimes fall into – playing musical ideas that are too long, poorly phrased and the equivalent of musical run on sentence.
In spite of that, and the fact that I’ve never tried to seriously play a wind instrument, I find it impressive that you can learn how to do this well enough to use in a sophisticated musical setting. Here is a video that demonstrates how to do it –
It’s certainly not something you find yourself doing in your daily life. But, if I ever take up a horn – it would probably be a tenor or alto saxophone, I think it would be fun to try.
Explore the possibilities!
Matt
It's a Musical Life 