Oboe versus flute breath control

by Morgan Browning
(USA)

Question: I play oboe (I have been for about four years) and with it, a lot of people think that it requires so much breath just because it's double reeded. I am so used to using a little/medium breath, that I keep finding it very difficult to play the flute for longer than 13 seconds. I have been playing flute for about 1 month, and I know the bottom half of the chromatic scale. What can I do to get the breath support correct? Is it not really wise that I go to the flute from oboe?

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Answer: It does take good breath support to play the oboe, as you well know. The difference between the oboe and the flute is that the oboe uses the air so much more efficiently. All of your air is focused directly into the instrument through the mouthpiece (reed) and almost none of it is lost. Thus, you can play a long phrase and still have air left over at the end of it. Frequently, reed players will expel air at the ends of phrases because they still have some in reserve.

Now consider the way the flute is played. You blow across the tone hole, not directly into a mouthpiece or reed. A lot of air is lost because it isn’t focused. Good flutists will be able to play long phrases, of course, but flutists just can’t compete with oboe players for how long they can play on a single breath.

For example, I played the alto sax in high school and college. Now I play it about once every few years. Yet I can still play a longer phrase on the saxophone than I can on the flute.

This doesn't mean you can't play the flute, just realize that you're looking at a different use of your air. Don’t expect to be able to play a phrase as easily on the flute as you can on the oboe. For me, this is the hardest aspect of playing the flute. But you can get better! Work on long tone studies and breath support. Gradually work up to playing longer and longer phrases.

See my breath control page and info on long tones.