# Do You Drink During Performance?



## Rhys (Feb 7, 2018)

Talking about water...  
I'm potentially designing a water bottle aimed at orchestral performers and was wondering what current instrumentalists habits are. 
In breaks in play do you drink a lot, a little or not at all? Do you use both hands? Look at the bottle or just reach for it? what sort of vessel do you currently use? 
Any insight would be fantastic as I've only performed as part of a short lived band and am coming from a place of ignorance.


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## MarkW (Feb 16, 2015)

A little flask hidden in the bell of a tuba goes a long way toward helping pass the time between notes.


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

no, but I like to cough, especially when it's being recorded


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## Heck148 (Oct 27, 2016)

Yes, keeping hydrated is most important - esp during hot weather, or if the performance hall is hot...
container really isn't important. as long as the H2O is wet!!


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## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

I'm a winds player and I know it dries you out, particularly flute and brass playing. It also depends on the venue, some places have really dry atmospheres. In ensemble playing, perhaps mostly orchestras (which I haven't played in since my youth) there are moments when you don't play for large numbers of bars, but you still need to keep your eyes on the score to know when to come back in. 

In those days there weren't bottles of water everywhere like there are now, but I did have a plastic bottle with a spout and grabbed it whenever I could. Once when I was in a brass band marching on 'walking day' (UK tradition) we had those things that cyclists use with a tube to a bag or bottle of water! Very useful it was too.

I suppose the trick is to be well-hydrated before you start (and to have been to the toilet), to drink small sips during rest periods and between movements. The situations I play in now are much more informal and its not a problem to just reach for the bottle between movements. This is going to be more difficult for orchestra players playing long movements and having less space where a bottle won't get kicked or lost or roll off the stepped podium area.


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