Course › Chapter 2: Breathing for Wind Instruments › 2.5 Understanding Valsalva and Avoiding Hesitation

2.5 Understanding Valsalva and Avoiding Hesitation

What’s Going Wrong?

Sometimes, instead of freely blowing air into the instrument, you take a breath, close your throat (glottis), and then try to blow against it. That’s the Valsalva maneuver—the same thing your body does when you’re about to lift something heavy.

• Great for deadlifts
• Terrible for horn playing

Closing the glottis blocks the free flow of air through the instrument and creates tension in the throat, neck, and upper body. When this happens, the air gets “stuck,” and the note doesn’t speak cleanly. You get:

• Hesitation at the start
• A stutter or delay
• A feeling of pressure with nowhere to go

Watch the following video for a clear demonstration of the Valsalva maneuver and how to avoid it.

The good news is that you can breathe in and breathe out without ever closing your throat. One way to encourage this natural flow is to keep the air constantly moving, always either breathing in or breathing out. Think of the turn at the top of the inhale as an active U-turn, like a tennis player going from the backswing into forward contact.

But, it’s also ok to take a second to pause for a millisecond in between your inhale and exhale. This can be important for accuracy in the high range for example. But, don’t worry, you can breathe in, wait, and then breathe out without ever closing your throat! In fact, this is what is happening between sounds when we speak; it’s what happens when you play staccato passages correctly. Practice this open-throat “pause” away from your instrument. Try this right now:

• Take a breath
• Simply Pause (but don’t close or grab or lock anything)
• Let the air fall out

If your throat stayed open, that felt easy and natural. If it didn’t, you probably felt a “block” or pressure buildup. The goal in wind playing is continuous openness—not “locking” anything.

What It Should Feel Like

Think:

• Air flows—it doesn’t get “released”
• The body supports—it doesn’t “brace”
• The throat stays open and passive

Don’t hold the air—just delay the flow.

Why This Causes the Stutter

When you close the glottis:

1. Pressure builds behind it
2. The body has to “break through” to start the note
3. That delay = the hesitation you hear

Fixing It: Simple, Effective Strategies

When teaching breathing to your students, the most important principle is to keep it simple. Overly complicated explanations about expanding the stomach or filling the back with air tend to confuse students and can lead to tension. Instead, encourage students to just blow—freely, naturally, and without overthinking the mechanics.

1. Get the Tongue Out of the Way

The tongue decorates the note—it doesn’t create or even start it. Practice breath attacks and all different note lengths, including staccato articulated passages without the tongue. Then add the tongue just to help clean up the front.

Think:

• “Air first, tongue second”
• Or even: “The note starts because of air, not tongue”

2. Use a Nasal Breath Reset

Have students take a slow breath in through the nose. This is an excellent reminder of what a relaxed, full breath feels like, because the nasal passage naturally slows the airflow and encourages deeper inhalation.

• Naturally relaxed
• No throat closure
• Calms nerves (bonus)

Then match that same feeling when breathing through the mouth. Nasal breathing is also a useful calming technique before performances or auditions.

3. Air Playing (No Instrument)

Ask students to “air play” by blowing a steady stream of air against the palm of their hand (without the instrument).

• Change speeds (fast / slow)
• Keep the flow steady and shaped, as though playing a real phrase
• Notice what your body does without being told

This is where students actually discover “support” instead of guessing at it. This approach is far more effective than telling students what they should feel—let them discover it through the sensation itself.

4. Stop Overthinking “Support”

Abdominal support is essential for wind playing, but it does not need to be externally forced or consciously tensed. When you maintain a steady, constant stream of air, the abdominal muscles engage naturally to regulate that airflow.

• You don’t need to visibly tense
• You don’t need to “lock” anything

Avoid asking students to “tighten their abs” or “push from the gut”—this language often leads to unnecessary rigidity rather than the responsive, flexible support that good playing requires.

Good support is a result, not a command.

5. The Cleansing Breath

For a more relaxed inhalation, try a cleansing breath: from your normal resting state, exhale past your usual reserve—blow out more air than you think you have.

Try:

• Blow out while silently saying “lalalalala”
• Then let the tongue rest gently against the lower teeth
• Then inhale easily

You will find that the inhalation is deeper and more relaxed than a normal breath. This triggers your body’s natural breathing response.

6. Arnold Jacobs Timing Exercise

A classic from Arnold Jacobs: Use a metronome and cycle through each version four times. Using a breathing bag can help if you feel lightheaded. Take breaks as needed.

• Inhale for 2 beats, Breathe out for 4
• Inhale for 1 beat, Breathe out for 4
• Inhale for ½ beat, Breathe out for 4

The goal: fast, full inhale without excess tension and no throat closure. This trains the body to take in a full, relaxed breath in increasingly short windows, mirroring the real demands of performance where breath opportunities are often brief.

7. Use a Breath Trainer

A ping pong breath builder (a tube with a small ball inside) is an excellent tool for getting the airflow going.

• Encourages continuous airflow
• Gives immediate visual feedback—students can see the ball rise and stay aloft
• Makes it harder to “cheat” with tension

8. Always Finish the Phrase

A hidden culprit: lazy endings. A common habit among developing players is to let the ends of phrases fall apart—losing tone quality or air support in the final notes. If the air collapses at the end, the next entrance is much more likely to trigger Valsalva.

Instead:

• End with a steady, supported tone
• Or a controlled taper

The end of the phrase sets up the beginning of the next.

Remind students to end every exercise, etude, or phrase with intention. The last note deserves just as much attention and air as the first.

Watch the following masterclass for additional breathing exercises and demonstrations.

Quick Self-Check

Before you play, ask:

• Is my throat open?
• Is the tongue relaxed?
• Am I blowing, not bracing?

Bottom Line

The Valsalva maneuver sneaks in when we try to control too much. Great wind playing comes from:

• Open throat
• Relaxed tongue, neck, and abs
• Trusting the body to support naturally

Or, in the spirit of keeping it simple—just blow.