Introduction to Breath Support for Singers

by Robert Overman, Greensboro College Artist-in-Residence

What do we singers mean when we talk about breath support? Why is it important?
How is it done? Well, the first two questions are much easier to talk about than the third,
but lets take a stab at all three.
Breath support is the steady and controlled release of air for the purpose of creating a
smooth and consistent flow while singing. Support is important because it enables every
other aspect of singing. Proper support utilizes muscles primarily in the lower abdomen
that keep pressure away from the vocal cords and the throat and promotes efficient
singing. In my opinion, of all the key aspects of singing, none are more important that
support and focus. If you have one, it is easier to achieve the other.
How do we support for the purpose of singing? First, it is important to know that there
are many ways to breathe and many ways of discussing the technique of breathing as a
singer. There seem to be some widespread misconceptions about breathing as well.
The diaphragm, often referred to by singers as the place where breath is supported, is
actually an involuntary muscle. We do use the diaphragm, but we do not control breath
flow with the diaphragm at least not directly. We use the muscles around and below
the diaphragm the lower abdominal muscles to guide the flow of air.
When you inhale, there is a natural tendency to allow your chest to inflate as the air
flows in, and to collapse as the air is released in exhalation. To breathe for the purpose
of singing, place your chest in a fully expanded position. This sometimes feels unnatural
and even somewhat uncomfortable at first, but after sufficient practice it becomes
second nature. When the breath flows in, try to gently push out the lower abdominal
muscles, which can be felt as low as the top of the pelvic bone, and feel expansion
around your entire body below the waist and in the back. Sometimes it is easier to
experience this lower torso expansion by bending from the waist at a 90-degree angle
to the floor, exhaling all breath and then slowly inhaling, feeling the outward pressure of
the expansion against your lower abdominal area in front, in back and on your sides.
Once you have the feeling of lower expansion during inhalation, we reverse the process
for the purpose of exhalation. Gently pull or tuck the lowest muscles you can control in
your abdominal wall inward and upward while gently squeezing the buttocks and lower
back muscles. The chest should remain fully expanded throughout this entire process.
The only muscles moving should be below the stomach area. You might feel a gentle
expansion in the upper abdominal muscles as you contact the lower muscles. This is
simply displacement. The muscles above the area of contraction may move out to
accommodate the tucking and lifting of the lower muscles.
To practice this process, bend from the waist with the arms extended downward while
exhaling. As soon as you have fully expelled air from your lungs, inhale deeply while
raising yourself to a standing position with the arm extended to the sides at a 90-degree
angle to the floor. With the chest fully expanded and the lungs full of air, let the air out in
five rapid puffs by contracting the lower abdominal and back muscles (without inhaling
any more air this should all be done with one breath) and exhaling the balance of the
air in your lungs on the fifth puff. As you exhale the rest of your air with the fifth puff, let

your body bend at the waist to the floor with the arms extended downward and repeat
the process. When you have done five sets of this exercise (being careful not to get
lightheaded and dizzy in the process), you should begin to feel the coordination of the
muscles necessary for beginning breath control.
Obviously, this process cannot be taught merely through the written word and certainly
not in a few paragraphs, but these are the basics of breathing. There are many
scholarly publications that discuss breathing for singers in depth. My personal favorite
reference is a book entitled, Great Singers on Great Singing, complied by the late
Jerome Hines Metropolitan Opera and International Recording Star. Hines was a
leading bass at the Met for over forty years. His book is a fascinating record of
interviews with twenty-five of the greatest singers of the late Twentieth Century. I urge
you to read this book in order to sample some technical advice from some of the finest
singers of our time.
Recipe for success: Listen to, watch and read about as many great singers as
you can, taking the common denominators of vocal technique, especially breath
support, and trying to incorporate their principles in your own approach to
singing.