[TPIN] Air pressure while playing

[Paul Dhuse]

I found the relevant paragraph in Fletcher and Rossing _Physics of Musical 
Instruments_ (Springer Verlag), p.391.

"The actual blowing pressures used for brass instruments vary widely with the 
instrument and the music being played (Bouhuys, 1965).  A soft. low pitched note 
on the French horn can be produced with an air pressure as low as 3 cm 
water-gauge (0.3 Kpa, 0.042 psi), while a high note played loudly on the same 
instrument may require more that 60 cm water-gauge (6 Kpa, 0.85 psi).  Trumpet 
players use even higher blowing pressure, up to 10 kPa (1.45 psi), but an upper 
limit is set by normal diastolic blood pressure in the arteries of the neck, 
which is not much higher than this.  Attempts to play even louder lead to 
dizziness or even collapse!"

I don't think we'll be able to hire ourselves out as tire inflators.

(unit conversion to psi mine, please correct me if I've converted wrong.)

I also found my notes on this, stuck in book, from the last time we had this 
discussion. :-)

-- 
"Ahh, the trumpet. Now there's an instrument on which one can truly embarrass 
himself!"  (G. Keiller to G. Bordner)

Paul Dhuse               Home (408)985-7149        Mobile (408)318-1161