The Beautiful Breathing Sheet

As flutists, we all know that breathing is essential to making beautiful music through our instruments, but sometimes, without heightened awareness, breathing can turn into something it's not! I created a shareable PDF called The Beautiful Breathing Sheet for Flutists in the hopes that students and teachers alike could use it as a handy and user-friendly guide for practicing the different aspects of breathing that can sometimes be challenging if not previously explored.

Included in The Beautiful Breathing Sheet are some simple but powerful "Do's & Don'ts," specific descriptions of different types of breaths that flutists need to be comfortable negotiating (including "Rhythmic Breaths," "Rhythmic Catch Breaths," and "Creative Catch Breaths"), as well as some of my favorite breathing YouTube videos, breathing books, and a brief "Breathing Body Map," created with some additional help by Lea Pearson (author of Body Mapping for Flutists: What Every Flute Teacher Needs to Know).

Please feel free to download, share, and expand on the ideas presented in this PDF so you or your students can approach breathing in a more natural, comfortable, and musically effective way!

Terri Sánchez is the newly appointed Assistant Professor of Flute at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, a Miyazawa Performing Artist, and the author of The Aspiring Flutist's Practice Book Series, published by Carolyn Nussbaum Music Co.. Visit her website and YouTube channel for practice tips, interviews, and more!