Breathing exercises are important to all musicians, but carry extra weight in a marching band. They can help the members learn to manage air properly, allowing for ease of playing while being physically active. Conduct breathing exercises as you would playing exercises, with the whole band or sections working on them together and in time.
Air capacity
Normal, day-to-day breathing does not require filling the lungs entirely. Breathing exercises can teach musicians the full breathing capacity of the body, allowing them to take in more air to be used for both playing and marching.
Begin with a simple exercise to warm up. Instruct the band to inhale for four counts and exhale for four counts, keeping time like you would when conducting music. Repeat this pattern for about thirty seconds. Remind the musicians to inhale to the fullest and exhale strongly but in a relaxed manner.
To work on increasing capacity, instruct the band to continue inhaling for four counts, but decrease the exhale by one count every cycle. This will produce a pattern like inhale four, exhale four; inhale four, exhale three; inhale four, exhale two. Repeat and exhale for one, then for half a count. The students should be attempting to completely fill the lungs on each inhale and completely empty them on each exhale.
Once a half count is reached, instruct the band to inhale fully for another counts and hold the air in. When they feel entirely full of air, instruct them to take in small "sips" of air, taking in short breaths every few seconds without exhaling. This proves that even when one feels entirely full, there is still room for more air. After about ten seconds of "sipping," allow everyone to exhale in a completely uncontrolled manner and relax. This exercise can be repeated a few times.
To make it more difficult as time goes on, change the speed of the count. Slower and faster tempos require the musicians to control their air in different manners. You can also increase the time for "sipping."
Controlling the exhale
In addition to improving the capacity to inhale, breathing exercises can also help students control air on the exhale, allowing them to play longer and stronger without breathing and providing greater efficiency of air use.
This skill can be practiced using a variation of the exercise above. Begin again with a steady inhale four, exhale four. Instead of decreasing the exhale, increase it by a count each cycle: Inhale four, exhale five; inhale four, exhale six. Instruct the students to always fully inhale and fully exhale steadily over the counts. When first starting these exercises, go up to an eight-count exhale. After the eight-count exhale, inhale for four and exhale eight again, but this time instruct students to hiss at the end when they believe they have run out of air. They should continue the hiss to the farthest of their physical abilities.
Allow a few deep relaxing breaths, and repeat the exercise once or twice. Over time, try to have students exhaling for nine, ten or more counts.
Tips and Warnings
Have the band mark time with their feet during breathing exercises. It's always good practice for a marching band to be moving its feet in time.
Remind students to sit down if they are at any point feeling dizzy. Breathing exercises can cause students to feel lightheaded, especially if they are not accustomed to working out.
At no point during the exercises should students be holding their breath (except at the end of the exercise in section one). Students should always be either inhaling or exhaling, taking the full counts provided to do each.
Breathing should always be done through the mouth for these exercises.
Have students form their mouths in an O, like they are playing or whistling, to mimic playing conditions as much as possible.
