BREATH SUPPORT: Why and How We Breath Differently For Singing
The Inspiratory Hold / Appoggio
The difference between how we breathe for singing and how we breathe when speaking or resting lies in how the airflow is regulated. In speaking or other daily activities, we tend to inhale and exhale more shallowly and in more equal amounts. During singing, we usually need to inhale quickly and deeply, and exhale slowly and steadily as we sing a phrases. In addition to the need to elongate the rate of expiration, singing also requires management of air pressure to aid the function of the larynx and the vocal folds within it. This requires muscle control and coordination of the diaphragm and supporting respiratory muscles like the intercostals that we don't need in normal speech. This is the part of breathing for singing that needs to be developed through training: daily habits of involuntary breathing need to be overridden with intentional control to enhance and extend breath management capabilities.
The main goal of breath management or "support" while singing is to exercise control over the amount, pressure, and rate of air being expelled from the lungs. With good support we can have a steady sound, a reliable amount of air for each phrase, and manage subglottal pressure so our larynx and the vocal folds inside can do their job of turning air into tone.
When it comes to supporting the tone of the voice, most quality voice teachers advocate for the 'inspiratory hold' or appoggio approach (Italian for "support" or "to lean") to breath management. The appoggio technique can also involve the use of resonance as a buttressing element to the support, but we'll get into that in another section.
Appoggio requires that our inhalation muscles stay engaged as we sing/exhale. In order to delay the collapse of our ribs and lungs, we slow down the rise of the diaphragm (the relaxing of the diaphragm) by continuing to use the inspiratory muscles as we sing/exhale. This centuries old concept was expressed by renowned teachers of the past such as Giovanni Battista Lamperti who sometimes paraphrased it as 'singing on the gesture of inhalation.' During appoggio, we rely on the secondary muscles of inspiration to help keep the diaphragm lower - the position it attained during inhalation. These muscles are primarily those that wrap around and between the ribs (the external intercostals and the interchondral part of the internal intercostal muscles). The abdominal muscles must remain relaxed so the abdominal wall and lower ribs at the sides and back will remain expanded throughout most of the breath cycle. By 'supporting' with the inspiratory muscles, we keep the diaphragm lower and the lower ribcage expanded. This expanded position of the ribs and thoracic cavity helps keep air in our lungs (this expanded space maintains the vacuum in our lungs, so air can't escape) and therefore reduces subglottal pressure at our glottis. Too much subglottal pressure can force us to call on extrinsic throat muscles to help stabilize the larynx and manage the extreme upward force of air (so much tension - a very bad thing). This leads to unsteady volume and tone, tense and pressed phonation, and potential vocal injury.
In summary, students of voice need to learn how to extend the normal breath cycle by remaining in the inspiratory position for as long as is both possible and comfortable. Helpful tips: maintain a raised sternum (but not raised shoulders or clavicle), avoid collapsing the ribcage, and allow the muscles of the lateral abdominal wall to stay pliable and maintained close to the position of inhalation. This vocal posture is often referred to as the 'inspiratory hold'.
~ M. Welsh
The main goal of breath management or "support" while singing is to exercise control over the amount, pressure, and rate of air being expelled from the lungs. With good support we can have a steady sound, a reliable amount of air for each phrase, and manage subglottal pressure so our larynx and the vocal folds inside can do their job of turning air into tone.
When it comes to supporting the tone of the voice, most quality voice teachers advocate for the 'inspiratory hold' or appoggio approach (Italian for "support" or "to lean") to breath management. The appoggio technique can also involve the use of resonance as a buttressing element to the support, but we'll get into that in another section.
Appoggio requires that our inhalation muscles stay engaged as we sing/exhale. In order to delay the collapse of our ribs and lungs, we slow down the rise of the diaphragm (the relaxing of the diaphragm) by continuing to use the inspiratory muscles as we sing/exhale. This centuries old concept was expressed by renowned teachers of the past such as Giovanni Battista Lamperti who sometimes paraphrased it as 'singing on the gesture of inhalation.' During appoggio, we rely on the secondary muscles of inspiration to help keep the diaphragm lower - the position it attained during inhalation. These muscles are primarily those that wrap around and between the ribs (the external intercostals and the interchondral part of the internal intercostal muscles). The abdominal muscles must remain relaxed so the abdominal wall and lower ribs at the sides and back will remain expanded throughout most of the breath cycle. By 'supporting' with the inspiratory muscles, we keep the diaphragm lower and the lower ribcage expanded. This expanded position of the ribs and thoracic cavity helps keep air in our lungs (this expanded space maintains the vacuum in our lungs, so air can't escape) and therefore reduces subglottal pressure at our glottis. Too much subglottal pressure can force us to call on extrinsic throat muscles to help stabilize the larynx and manage the extreme upward force of air (so much tension - a very bad thing). This leads to unsteady volume and tone, tense and pressed phonation, and potential vocal injury.
In summary, students of voice need to learn how to extend the normal breath cycle by remaining in the inspiratory position for as long as is both possible and comfortable. Helpful tips: maintain a raised sternum (but not raised shoulders or clavicle), avoid collapsing the ribcage, and allow the muscles of the lateral abdominal wall to stay pliable and maintained close to the position of inhalation. This vocal posture is often referred to as the 'inspiratory hold'.
~ M. Welsh