We all know how to breathe – we do it all the time. But when we sing, we have to adapt our normal breathing patterns to give us more control and capacity. This means becoming conscious of exactly what’s going on.
Breathing happens from your diaphragm, not your ribcage. We do NOT breathe by raising and lowering our shoulders; while they may pull up on the ribcage, they don’t expand it. Watch a professional singer; they don’t move their shoulders!
Breathing comes from the diaphragm, the muscle below the lungs. As you breathe in, think of your diaphragm dropping and the air flowing into your lungs. Let your stomach and your abdomen move outwards naturally; it’s okay.
If you must use your ribcage, think of it only as a reserve tank. It is in fact called “rib reserve”, and it should be used only if you know there’s going to be a sustained passage. Even then, think about your ribcage expanding, not your shoulders rising. Use your diaphragm breath first, then the rib reserve if you need it.
Stand or sit up straight (more on posture in another tip) so the air has a clean drop into your lungs. It can then also flow more easily out through your mouth.
Credit for the following tips goes to musicnotes.com, who are a great source of information as well as one of the largest publishers of downloadable sheet music in the world.
Exhale on a Hiss
A widespread (and very impactful) breathing exercise is one in which you will inhale for a specified amount of time, and then exhale on a hiss or “sss” sound. Find a metronome, or download a metronome app, and set it to 80 bpm in 4/4 time. Next, practice different amounts of time inhaling an exhaling. Remember that as you inhale, you should be breathing from your diaphragm, not your neck and shoulders. You can use this chart as a guide to get yourself started:
| Inhale | Exhale “sss” |
| 4 Counts 4 Counts 4 Counts 4 Counts 2 Counts 2 Counts 2 Counts 2 Counts 1 Count 1 Count 1 Count 1 Count |
4 Counts 8 Counts 12 Counts 16 Counts 4 Counts 8 Counts 12 Counts 16 Counts 4 Counts 8 Counts 12 Counts 16 Counts |
Challenge yourself with this exercise and time how long you can exhale on a hiss before you run out of breath! Just make sure that you give yourself time in between each inhale so that you don’t get lightheaded.
The diaphragm is a dome-shaped, muscular and membranous structure that separates the chest and abdominal cavities in mammals; it is the principal muscle of respiration.
The Straw Technique
Another excellent breathing exercise is exhaling or humming a tune through a straw. When your breath is concentrated through the straw, you are solely focusing on breath support since your face and body will be remaining still. You can follow the same format as the “hiss” exercise, or you can hum the song(s) you are working on through the straw. You can inhale through the straw, or you can inhale outside of the straw if you feel lightheaded. Next, use your exhaled breath to carry your hum through the straw. Try and hum an entire song–it’s harder than it looks!
Make sure you are not biting down on the straw, but gently placing it between your lips so that all of the air you exhale is exiting through the straw.
Lay on Your Back
Laying on your back is another useful breathing exercise because it forces you to breathe with your diaphragm. Try singing through one of your voice pieces while you are laying on your back and place your hands on your stomach. Each time you inhale, you should feel your stomach expand, and your diaphragm move down. As you exhale, your diaphragm should move up and your stomach should flatten.
