To help demonstrate this, we identified the two primary muscles of inhalation: the diaphragm and the external intercostals. Watch this short video and take special note of the location and motion of the diaphragm in relation to the rest of the torso.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WMt_1jw47Q
We also identified in our lessons where it is that you all tend to notice engagement or expansion in your own bodies when you take a real singer’s breath. Based on who you are and how you are built, you may not feel things exactly the same way as other singers. For instance, larger people (endomorph body types) tend to take deeper abdominal breaths whereas people with smaller builds (ectomorphs) tend to be more ribcage-oriented in their inhalations.
In The Vocal Athlete by Wendy LeBorgne and Marci Rosenberg, the authors point out that studies have confirmed that elite singers do not all use the same strategies for breathing. They say that we all tend to develop an individual pattern that works based on what we are being asked to do: speaking vs. singing, singing classically vs. belting, singing while standing still vs. singing while dancing, etc.
This is all the more reason to bring breathing more into our consciousness and notice how we breathe in different situations. Then we can observe what our default habits are and decide if they could be replaced by more efficient practices. But if we don’t take the time to even notice, we’ll never know.
Of course, the other main reason breath is so important for singers is that it tends to calm our nerves, center our energies, and bring an internal focus to our singing. It’s no accident that activities like meditation, prayer, and yoga often begin by bringing our attention to the breath. From there we are more attuned to what we are feeling and to how our emotional and physical selves align.
Inspire.
Now go practice.
I think its interesting to think about the comparison to singers breath to a yoga class. We all think of breathing when doing yoga, or an acting class, but its somehow one of the HARDEST things for me to control while singing. I think I also notice my stomach expanding, perhaps that's due to my size. Im planning to more consciously think about my breath use in my songs this semester.
ReplyDeleteI have noticed these past weeks that I tend to be very rib cage oriented when I breath, and especially upon deep breathing when I can often feel the expansion through even my back most ribs. Throughout my time in the program, I have been told that everything begins with and comes from your breath. Like the authors of 'The Vocal Athlete' said about different breathing for different activities, different breathing also come in with different moods and feelings. I think that being aware of how you (and others) breath throughout various circumstances is invaluable for actors/singers and developing our technique.
ReplyDeleteI've often had difficulty maintaining a deep inhalation during my singing, though, often beginning to exhale and contract my abdomen and ribs the second I start singing. This is something that the instructor from the last masterclass noted, and could be adding to my struggle to maintain breath support. I think that getting comfortable with sustaining my appoggio is something I really need to nail down in order to reach my potential as a singer.
I know that one of my biggest larger struggles with breathing is planning the breaths. When I breath, and this probably has something to do with my large stature, I breath fairly low and deep, however I often run into problems with not planning breaths as effectively as I could within a piece and expelling to much air too soon, meaning I don't continue to think of that leaning idea of appogio after I take the breath. I definitely think, though that by working an appogio exercise into my practice, with the conscious effort going to that feeling of lean and expelling as little air as possible through the exercise, it helps to replace the bad habits and then after the exercise I can let the super focused work go, and as I move onto working on songs the breath management carries over. It's about replacing poor habits with good habits.
ReplyDeleteWhen I am focusing on continuing to keep my lungs expanded, I feel lots of movement in my rib cage, but when I don't specifically focus on it I tend to notice my stomach. I tend to have lots of difficulty with breath control, so it is something that I have been trying to focus on while doing warm ups and practicing my songs away from home. One thing that I really need to focus on is remembering to breathe deeply when I'm performing. I have noticed that when I'm asked to perform in front of others I lose my deep breathing and therefor lose my support system. I think if I can focus on breathing throughout performance, and practice the proper techniques, my performance quality with improve immensely.
ReplyDeletePS. I'm so glad you wrote about this, Brian. Now I can go explain it to Greg (lol).
HA!
DeletePracticing with keeping specific chosen breaths is very important. It sometimes goes to the wayside because we think of all the other things like communicating the text properly , or conveying the emotion. I know if I don't practice religiously the given breaths it is hard to give a clean performance of the text. It makes it harder as a singer and singing itself presents challenges. Why add more to singing than needed ?
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to breathing, I tend to usually forget. It is something that I need to work on to really know when to breath during a song. It is important to breath correctly during singing to be able to hold notes longer and sing higher too. I know that Brian taught me to breath a large breath in and sing out while relaxing my stomach. This technique helps me with stamina while singing and control. I also think, there is a lot to focus on while singing, like words and actions. I am really working on being well rounded when I sing and not forget important aspects.
ReplyDeleteSomething that I've always been fascinated with in terms of my appogio is the difference between maintaining the space and breath in the rib cage vs. low breath. It is a lot easier and dare I say more natural looking and sounding to keep the expansion in your rib cage while sustaining a note. BUT I do think its more beneficial to keep the low breath sustained, so In practice sessions I do a set of breaths of each and then combine them and then add vocals to it and that nicely aligns everything quite well. I also find it odd that the low breath is harder because thats where I naturally breathe as do most people, so how come what I do 90% of the day is so hard to do for 10%. The More You Know
ReplyDeleteBreathing has always been of a great importance to me: Growing up with regular meditation and yoga, and studying the Strasberg method of acting as well as singing, I've come to understand how vital it is; not only to remain calm and collected, but also to allow a release, and provide a certain preparation and confidence in ones body. However, I do struggle with taking breaths of the right size, as more often than not I breathe for much longer than necessary, and don't use all of the air in my diaphragm. So I think I need to work on controlling my breathing, rather than extending it.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that we utilize our breath so differently even when singing different styles. In hindsight, I feel that when I am singing classically, I take a breath that feels a lot "taller" to me. This sensation is perhaps because of the lifting of my soft palate for classical singing. When I am preparing to sing in a more musical theatre style, the in breath feels more horizontal to me. As discussed in the blog, I do feel that when I breathe in, I feel the breath expand me more about the rib cage than anywhere else and perhaps since I have a tendency to have more front life than back life in my rib cage, I also feel the expansion more in front of me than in my back.
ReplyDeleteI have always put an enormous emphasis on breath and used meditation a lot to calm myself down in a stressful situation. My breath has always had a elongating effect on my body, even though it goes both ways automatically, it just gives the sensation of getting taller. When I sing though, I tend to take very unhealthy and sharp shoulder breaths. So, I do need to work on my breathing in the situation that I need the most.
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