This subject came up on another forum and thought it worthwhile discussing here.
Why do some brass players insist on blowing loudly thru their horn when emptying the water/spit from their horn? This is really not necessary IMHO. In fact, blowing too hard actually pushes the water in a slide past the water key instead of allowing it to fall out. The euphonium/tuba/trumpet/Tbone is an open tube so there is no suction keeping the water in the horn. Just opening the spit valve or water key will allow most of the water out. Maybe a slight puff of air to help break any surface tension - but no loud pffft'g is necessary.
There's one eupher in our section that insists on blowing real hard when emptying his horn of water. He just has to get every last drop of water out of his horn. What he's really hearing gurgling around in there is the water blowing PAST the water key. This past Saturday's concert with guest conductor Maestro Loras Schissel, this guy blew so hard during the director's talk to the audience that I saw 8 or 10 heads turn to see what the noise was all about. So what if you only get 98% of the water out. That last 2% will come out the next time you empty.
Can you tell this bugs me?