Blackout

[OldBandsman]

Chris....

Maybe I don't understand how you're making those tones. Are they marked piano or fortissimo?

Lots of air going through the horn isn't usually necessary for playing up around and above middle C. It's more important to have great air pressure at your diaphragm and let the air out slowly through nearly closed lips.... They gotta be loose enough to buzz up there but that shouldn't take much air. Sometimes its good to rethink how you make sounds. Air pressure, controlled flow, think pitch and buzz.

[dtemp]

Chris....

Lots of air going through the horn isn't usually necessary for playing up around and above middle C.

I stongly disagree. I've always been taught to use plenty of air in the upper register. When playing high, all you are doing is changing the frequency at which your lips are buzzing in the mouthpiece. You don't need less air to make this happen, and usually more helps a lot. You have to let all the tension out of your body (lower those shoulders, watch for "vice grip" on the thumb ring, raised eyebrows etc.) and let the air do the work. Think about "playing" the notes, not "hitting" them. If you stress out about them, you'll only tense up more making it near impossible. Practice in front of a mirror, watch your shoulders and face and RELAX. It will come. Trust me, I've had upper range issues before and these techniques really helped me. Good luck man.

[Dylan King]

I use the least amount of air in the upper range on both the Yorkbrunner and the little F tuba. I think the amount of air needed to vibrate the lips at high frequencies is directly related to an individuals lip size and shape. I have very thin lips and it is easy for me to get the high vibrations, but I suspect a player with big lips would have to produce more air flow to get them moving at the same rate.

The mouthpiece may be an issue as well. I do think that people strain way too much in general when playing up high, especially in the cosmos. I think mellow, steady flow is the way to go. Let the horn give it the loudness and the lip give it the pitch and the soul.

[tubaman5150]

Remember that amount of air is not the same thing as air speed. A good deal of air is needed to play in any register, but only fast air will do for high playing. Faster vibration = higher pitch and slower vibration = lower pitch.
As for your blackout, you may be hyperventilating a bit. If you've been pushing alot air and feel light headed, try taking a few breaths through your tuba. The added CO2 should set you straight. Just hope and pray your tuba has been cleaned recently.

[KevinBock]

Don't stand up so fast next time, and take a deep breath, the chances are is that you are taking huge breaths and not getting all the carbon dioxide out because you indeed don't need an exorbitant amount of air up there IF IT IS USED PROPERLY don't force it, and take some risks by playing the high notes as soft as you can and you'll get an understanding of what kind of rate YOU need.

[Tom B.]

If you were still feeling strange and fell 3 minutes after stopping, there could be something more seriously wrong. All the hemodynamic and respiratory abnormalities caused by playing should have corrected themselves within that period. You should go see your doctor.

Tom

[tubatooter1940]

Chris,
Too many years ago I was an 8th grader who tried a stunt on a dare.It involved taking as many rapid breaths as possible for one minute while squatting low to the ground,then standing straight up and with nose held and mouth tight shut,blowing as hard as possible and not letting any air escape.The result was my falling out on the ground in a dead faint and staying out for some 30 seconds.This scared me into not repeating such foolishness and I remember hearing from my friends father who was a doctor that I ran a serious risk of causing a stroke.Play your tuba with force and enthusiasm but this approach is fanatic and could be deadly.
You can be a good horn man and live to a ripe old age.God be with you.
tubatooter1940

[Anterux]

I never passed out. however, I sometimes have a sudden headake (?) or dizziness when trying to play higher then I need.

I dont know if I use a lot of air in the upper register. but I feel I do. I feel I put there a lot of fast air. if I dont the notes start to come dirty and thin.

if you start to feel dizzy take a rest. dont push it more then you have to. no one will thank you for that. probably.

[Rick Denney]

...than I stood up, felt a mild euphoria, and WAM!!, I hit the floor...

I actually doubt that it was air at all that caused this, but rather a blood issue.

When I have head rushes from standing up too fast, it is almost always because I'm dehydrated. Remember that playing a lot promotes dehydration because of all the air being aspirated. Especially at this time of year, when the air in heated buildings becomes dessicated, you must consciously drink the water you need.

Being a little hyperventilated will make it worse, of course. And repeated breathing through loud passages will indeed cause hyperventilation. But there's nothing you can do about that except give your body a chance to equalize its oxygen supply before you risk becoming vertical.

Rick "thinking that the upper range requires a large supply of air, but doesn't use it as fast as the low range" Denney

[Tabor]

There is a good section in the "Song and Wind" book about breathing through the horn to retain Co2. Also remember that the volume of air that you use and the speed of your airstream are two different things.

Wow, that passing out sounds kind of scary. That has never happened to me. I hope that it was just an O2 and Co2 issue.

Tabor

[dtemp]

I don't know if this is the case, but you might want to make sure you've put food in your belly a reasonable amount of time before playing. Low blood sugar along with excersise (and we all know playing tuba is excersise) will cause you to feel light headed. Take precautions, next time you might injure yourself (or worse, the horn!.... kidding).

[Uncle Buck]

If you have passed out, and you don't know why, you ABSOLUTELY need to talk to a doctor about it. It was probably induced by something related to your tuba playing, but it might be something that could happen other times as well. Passing out is serious, and depending on the circumstances when it happens, can be extremely dangerous.

I don't want to give medical advice, but I agree with Rick that this could be a blood, rather than an air, issue. When you were playing high, were your shoulders and neck tense? Tense enough to slow or block blood flow?

Don't risk injuring yourself next time - go talk to a doctor.