Yeah, well, I have a problem with breathing when playing the Saxophone. I can read the music just fine and play the notes just as good as anyone else, but whenever I play, I have trouble with breathing, like while I`m playing and blow a lot of air into my cheeks get red because I`m blowing to hard(Come on, be mature guys, you know what I mean). Something else I`ve noticed, is that, when I blow alot of air, I start to get this nasty feeling in my throat. Sometimes I often feel out of breath after playing. I play both the alto and tenor saxophone for band and this breathing problem often seems to affect the tone of my saxophone and is even worse during marching band.

If anyone else has ever had this kind of problem before, I would really like a solution to it, like, do you guys have any breathing tips to use while playing the saxophone? That would really help.

You will have to give me a bit more information.

Which sax does it occur on more often tenor alto or both? That should eliminate weather it is that sax or if it is something your doing or using.

What is the facing of the mouthpiece that you are using, is it more open or close (open would require more air) facings are listed many different ways, usually numbers like 5 or 7 etc...

What strength reed are you using? As a general rule of thumb (definately not always the case) the harder the reed the more of a closed face mouthpiece that you should use, and vise-versa. How tight is your emboucure, are you biting too hard? Check the thread "lower lip hurts."
Play on a strength reed that is comfortable for you.

Does your sax have any leaks? If you suspect it does, take it to a repair shop, you may need a costly repadding.

More than likely it is one of these area`s, you shouldn`t have to blow hard at all to make a sound, not even when playing loud.

Keep Playing
CJ

First check for any damage on the sax, and if it`s fine you just need to practice your air. A good excercise is to play a chord and hold it for 4 measures, then againg for 8, then for 16, then for 20, and so on. After practicing that you learn to hold your air out much longer and remember to keep straight up and open throat and breath through your mouth! When I first started sax, I had breathing problems because I`d always breath through my nose and not get enough full, steady air.