A Brief Discussion on "Breath Control" When Playing the Saxophone

As we all know, playing the saxophone is inseparable from breath control. To a certain extent, mastery of breath directly determines the level of your saxophone playing, which is often referred to as "tone quality." Below, we will discuss this from several aspects:

1. Breath Control for Playing Low or High Notes  

Many beginners, including those who have been practicing for a while, often encounter difficulties producing low notes smoothly, while high notes tend to sound thin or even shrill (sometimes resembling a "scream"). This is a classic issue of breath control.  

Since many people start without guidance from a teacher, they rely on instinct when playing. As a result, when playing high or low notes on the saxophone, they adopt a "whistling" approach to embouchure control—that is, "the higher the note, the tighter the lips and the quicker the breath." In reality, however, the pitch of the saxophone is already determined by the keys. All we need to do is "deliver air" to the saxophone to vibrate the reed and produce sound. The more air delivered, the more fully the reed vibrates, resulting in a fuller tone.  

To achieve this, when playing high notes, you must relax the pressure of your lips on the mouthpiece and open your throat to push the air upward as much as possible. When playing low notes, similarly, keep your lips relaxed and your throat open, allowing the air to flow slowly and abundantly into the saxophone to vibrate the reed in the low-frequency range. If your lips are too tight or your breath is too quick and forced, it will disrupt the reed's low-frequency vibration, making it harder to produce low notes.  

"Quick" breath: refers to fast airflow speed.  
"Slow" breath: refers to slower airflow speed.  

Whether the breath is "quick" or "slow," you must ensure there is sufficient air when playing the saxophone. Therefore, when playing high notes, the breath should be "quick but ample," and when playing low notes, it should be "slow but ample." When beginners struggle to control these two types of embouchure and breath, high notes either fail to sound or come out "dry and thin," while low notes are prone to cracking.  

2. Stability of Breath  

Breath stability training is an extremely important discipline. It determines whether you can produce a stable saxophone tone through your control of embouchure and breath. This kind of training is an essential part of learning the saxophone. Only through extensive practice can you develop sufficient breath stability; otherwise, the sound produced will be "unsteady and lacking substance."  

Breath stability training depends on several factors:  

a) Even breath (consistent breath intensity)  
b) Fixed embouchure  
c) Sensitive hearing  

These three elements are indispensable. Hearing, in particular, is crucial—the pitch of the sound we produce must be judged by our ears and fed back to the brain to fine-tune our breath control. This practice can be achieved not only by playing long tones but also through any etude. It requires time and experience, and as you spend more time playing the saxophone, your control in this regard will gradually improve.  

3. Control of Breath Intensity  

The intensity of your breath directly determines the volume of the saxophone sound you produce. Meanwhile, the ability to control variations in breath intensity is key to achieving a good saxophone tone.