What Singers Get Wrong About Breath

Breath is a frequently misunderstood and sometimes ignored element of vocal technique.

Breath is often misinterpreted as the spearhead of vocal sound, driving sound forward like an arrow cutting through the air. In fact, breath is not the arrow, but the bow. Like the bow creates and stores energy to send the arrow on its way, breath is the power source of the voice.

Please note that this blog focuses on breath management for CONTEMPORARY voices.  (Singing pop, jazz, R&B, rock, soul, indie, blues, modern musical theatre...etc.) CLASSICAL (traditional or wester art) breath management techniques are different and will not be covered in great detail here.

Breath for singing is complex. This little blog barely scratches the surface! However, I would like to use this platform to address a few common breath myths! Let’s dig in!

Breath Myth #1: Breath carries sound

Truth #1: Breath is sound’s catalyst. 

Like a guitar pick hitting a string or a mallet striking a drum, breath is the power source of vocalized sound. It is a common misconception that breath shoots sound out of a singer’s mouth like a bullet! This can sometimes cause the singer to overwork the respiratory system while signing! Breath is not the carrier of sound, it is its catalyst. It sets the whole machine in motion! Let’s break it down:

Breath is first inhaled into the lungs. Some of that breath goes on a journey back up the windpipe, through the larynx (more commonly known as the voice box), and passing through the vocal folds (more commonly known as the vocal cords). This is called airflow. The interaction between the vocal folds and breath causes the folds to vibrate! This vibration produces sound waves that resonate and voila: your voice! Without breath, there would be no vibration, no sound waves, and no vocal sound.

Soundwaves produced by this interaction actually travel on the air that was already within your vocal tract! Sure, some of the soundwaves may hitch a ride on air that was cycled through your respiratory system, but for the most part, soundwaves travel on still air that fills the resonant space it’s in. (Watch my Vlog called The Science of Sound for Singers for more details on how sound travels.)

Breath Myth #2: Airflow is the only aspect of breath that matters to the singer while singing.

Breath Truth #2: Breath for singing is multifaceted!

After inhaling, breath serves two important roles in vocalizing.

1. Whenever you make a vocal sound, there is some breath that flows back up the windpipe. This is called airflow. Airflow’s job is to set the vocal folds vibrating! Airflow is the star quarterback of vocalized sound! You can get a sense of how much airflow is in any vocal sound by paying attention to the sound quality of your voice! More airflow sounds very breathy. Less airflow sounds very clear!

2. Simultaneously, some of your inhaled breath stays in your body (in your lungs and below the glottis). This is called subglottal breath pressure. (SGBP or simply ‘pressure’ for short) Pressure’s job is to set up and pressurize airflow! Pressure is the voice’s wingman! The more air you have in your lungs, the higher the pressure. You can get a sense of your own levels of breath pressure by paying attention to the intensity of your voice. More pressure sounds more intense. Less pressure sounds less intense!

Pressure and airflow are a unit. One does not exist without the other.  They are inversely related, meaning when one goes up, the other goes down and vice versa! Depending on how much airflow it is used and how pressurized it is, you'll get different vocal qualities! A powerful, clear, and rubust sound is produced with higher levels of pressure and lower, efficient levels of airflow. A gentle, breathy, and sweet tone is generally produced by lower levels of pressure and higher levels of airflow! There is an entire spectrum of pressure and airflow to be explored by a curious singer!

Breath Myth #3: Breath ‘Support’ requires hard work and arduous effort from the respiratory muscles

Truth #3: Breath ‘Support’ is largely intuitive

First of all, the term ‘breath support’ is unclear and most people dont’ agree on what it really means! What is being supported? What is doing the supporting? It’s all a bit vague. The word “support” is quite divisive in the vocal world.

The term ‘support’ implies there is a powerful effort behind it. It’s easy to assume that this requires some sort of effortful muscle contraction in the core. (or even more painfully the throat or face!). However, this is not the case.

For what they’re worth, I’d like to offer my two cents in the argument: Here is my technical answer: Subglottal, pressurized breath produced by a balanced inhale supports pressurized airflow as it makes contact with adducted vocal folds to produce vibration at the onset (the first moment of singing) and throughout phonation (ongoing singing).

More simply put: Breath supports breath. It’s so beautifully simple. Inhaled, pressurized breath in your lungs guides and fuels the airflow that creates sound!

Of course, the respiratory system and muscles manage the dance between the inhale, subglottal breath pressure and airflow during onset and phonation. But for the most part, they do so subconsciously! The truth is that the lungs and the diaphragm are controlled by the central nervous system. They function without your conscious intervention. You never EVER have to over-think the physicality of breath. You’ve been doing it literally your whole life!

Over-contracting the respiratory muscles can cause tension. This tension affects the voice negatively. It’s easy for a singer to perceive this as a weakness or a failure and they may try to contract those muscles even more. More tension is created. You can see, it’s a vicious cycle. When singing, it’s generally a good idea to let the respiratory system do its thing!

Instead of relying on conscious muscle contraction, singers can use other means to manage the levels of pressure and flow while singing. Means like strengthening and coordinating those muscles through SOVT (semi-occluded-vocal-tract) exercises like lip bubbles and singing into a straw! Singers can also use metaphors and imagery like resistance and grounding to help them support their voices in the way that they intend to. Simply thinking down to reduce tension in the neck, chest, back, and shoulders has a huge effect on a singer’s ability to successfully manage breath! This makes controlling elements of support such as airflow and pressure much easier!

Breath Myth #4: More breath is always better.

Truth #4: That depends on what you mean by ‘more’ and what you mean by ‘better.’

We now know that breath’s role in vocalizing is dual. There is the pressurized air that stays in the body and the airflow that facilitates vibration in the vocal folds. So when you think about producing a vocal sound with ‘more’ breath, you must ask yourself, do I mean more pressure or more airflow?

More pressure means increasing the intensity of your vocal sound. This is ideal if you’re trying to create a powerful, clear, and robust sound like a belt! Too much pressure though and you risk trapping air under the folds, causing pressing and vocal strain!

More airflow means increasing the breathiness of a vocal sound. This is ideal if you’re training the higher register or producing a gentle, whispered sound. Too much flow though and you’ll end up with so much uncontrolled airflow that your sound becomes limps and difficult to manage!

The word ‘better’ is also subjective. If you intend on producing a high, belted, and climatic vocal moment, high pressure and lower airflow may be the right call! If you’re voice strains habitually and you’re trying to reduce vocal tension, low pressure and higher flow are just the tickets!

If you’re going for a vulnerable, emotional, and tender vocal moment, you can consciously lower pressure and increase airflow by thinking about producing a gentler, breathier sound. 

In Conclusion…

Breath is a complex area of vocal technique. It is not a one-size-fits-all kind of thing! Many singers intuitively create sustainable and stylized levels of pressure and airflow. Some singers habitually over-pressurize or over-use airflow, depending on their previous habits.  Some singers benefit from learning about the anatomy of their respiratory systems, while this information may make others become overwhelmed and unconsciously tighten their bodies!

This is why one-on-one singing lessons are so important for understanding the voice. (And I swear this is not an attempt at self-promotion!) Each individual singer needs to understand breath from the perspective of their own experience. You can’t read a blog (sorry!) or watch a Youtube video to get to know your own voice! It takes mindful and self-reflective practice to get to know how you use breath for singing today and how breath can serve your voice better tomorrow! Understanding that breath is multifaceted is the first step!