Why is breathing so important for a vocalist?

A professional teacher will immediately distinguish a beginner from an experienced vocalist by his breathing pattern. The main signs of poor breathing are:

1. A beginner simply does not have enough air to hold it, so his voice begins to tremble on long notes, falsehoods appear, the timbre becomes dull or the sound disappears completely.
2. Often the singer begins to take breath in the middle of the words, which distorts the transmission of the meaning of the song and its mood. This is especially evident in slow or, on the contrary, very fast compositions.
3. It does not fully reveal his timbre, characteristic intonation, even in some cases it is difficult to understand who is singing, soprano or mezzo, tenor or baritone. Without proper breathing, good vocals are impossible.
4. This happens because a layman only breathes at the tops of his lungs, so he does not have enough breath to hold the entire phrase to the end.
5. To reach the end of a phrase, vocalists begin to hold it with their throats, making significant efforts. This is very harmful to health, which is why vocalists with poor breathing often develop sore throats, inflammatory diseases, as well as laryngitis and hoarseness. Correct breathing eliminates all these problems and the voice begins to sound smooth, rich and beautiful.
6. Without proper breathing, the voice becomes harsh, shrill and unpleasant. He may have a characteristic shrill sound, and when he needs to sing quietly, his voice disappears. As a result, the vocalist cannot control his voice, make it quieter and louder, richer and richer, and quiet notes do not sound. Correct breathing will allow you to change the volume of your voice, while it will be heard even on the quietest notes.

Establishing your breathing will not require significant time and effort from you, but you will be able to sing beautifully and freely for a long time, without signs of fatigue or sore throat after vocal lessons. Most vocalists master it within a few weeks, and some master it on the first try. True, breathing patterns for choral and solo singing are slightly different.

If a vocalist who sings solo cannot take his breath on a long note, then many choral works are constructed in such a way that it is impossible to stretch out one note on the breath. Therefore, when one of the performers takes his breath, the rest hold the note, while the conductor controls the sound, making it louder or quieter. The same thing happens in an ensemble, only the singers themselves control the singing.

How to learn to breathe while singing – exercises

In fact, there is nothing complicated here. The main secret of how to breathe correctly when singing is to breathe deeply and evenly. It should be taken not with the shoulders, but with the lower abdomen. At the same time, the shoulders do not rise; they are free and relaxed. This needs to be checked in front of a mirror. Place your hands on your stomach and take a deep breath. If you do everything correctly, the hand on your stomach will rise, and your shoulders will remain relaxed and motionless. Then try taking a deep breath and singing a phrase or just stretching out a long sound. Stretch it out as long as you can. This is the feeling you need to sing with. Daily breathing training will help you get used to this feeling.

How to breathe correctly when singing a romance or song? You need to take the sheet music and see where the commas are. They indicate breathing between phrases or in certain places to create a special effect. Teachers advise taking a breath before starting the next phrase in the text. The end of the phrase should be extended a little and made quieter so as not to create the feeling that you are short of air.

How long does breathing training take? If we are talking about individual exercises, then no more than 20 minutes a day, but in general the process of singing itself is the best breathing trainer, provided that you sing correctly. Here are some simple exercises:

1. You need to take a watch with a second hand, take a deep breath and exhale on the sound “sh” very slowly. The norm is 45 or 50 seconds for an adult.
2. Try singing a slow phrase with an economical exhalation on one sound or a vocal exercise. The longer the phrase, the faster you will learn to sing long notes and phrases on your breath.
3. This is more difficult than the previous exercises, but the results are worth it. Good luck and good results!