Breathing for singing and speaking: breath support

What changes when you speak or sing

At rest, breathing in and breathing out take almost the same time. A 2023 paper on speech breathing, by Werner and colleagues, sums up what's known: at rest the inhale takes up about 40% of each cycle, and in speech that drops to about 10%. Air comes in faster, and the exhale, which is what produces your voice, gets longer and leaves at a slow, steady rate.

Singing pushes that further. Phrases run longer than in speech, and the breath between one and the next is very short. So the work isn't in taking a lot of air. It's in rationing it.

What breath support is

Voice teachers often use the Italian word appoggio, from the verb appoggiare: to lean or support. The teacher Francesco Lamperti defined it in the 19th century as the support given to the voice by the muscles of the chest, especially the diaphragm, acting on the air in the lungs. He also described the lotta vocale, the vocal struggle: the muscles that breathe in keep working to slow the air's exit while the muscles that breathe out push it.

In 1986, American voice teacher Richard Miller wrote in The Structure of Singing that appoggio can't be reduced to breath management, because it includes resonance as well. Terms and definitions vary from one school to another. What nearly all of them share is the picture: your chest doesn't collapse as the phrase starts, and the air leaves because you let it, not because you shove it.

What's been measured in singers

There are few studies, with very few people. In 1985, Watson and Hixon measured rib cage and abdominal movement in six classically trained baritones. They concluded that the abdomen sets the diaphragm and rib cage in a favorable position, that the rib cage regulates pressure and airflow, and that the diaphragm works mainly on the inhale. What each singer believed he did when breathing matched poorly with what he did.

In 2016, Salomoni, van den Hoorn and Hodges compared seven professional singers with four untrained people. At rest they breathed the same. While singing, the abdomen accounted for about 35% of air movement in the singers and about 14% in the other group. The singers varied a lot: one with more than twenty years on stage breathed almost like the untrained group. The authors suggest that a good voice can be reached by more than one route.

These are descriptions, not proof that one way is better. And they leave a practical lesson: sensations mislead.

How to practice in silence

These two exercises train the measured release of air without using your voice. Do them seated, with your chest open but not stiff and your shoulders loose.

• The singer's exhale. Breathe in through your nose for 3 seconds, silently, letting your belly and lower ribs open. Release the air through your mouth in a thin, even thread for 12 seconds. Every two breaths the release grows by 2 seconds, up to 20. That's 10 breaths.
• Air for wind players. A quick breath in through the mouth, 1.5 seconds, and a long, steady stream out through pursed lips for 10 seconds, for 3 minutes. It's closer to the catch breath between two phrases.
• If low breathing is hard to find. Start with Belly breathing, lying down, until you feel your belly move without your shoulders rising.

For speaking: classes, meetings, long calls

The U.S. National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) recommends supporting your voice with deep breaths and not relying on your throat alone. It says that talking from the throat, without supporting breath, puts a great strain on the voice. It also advises drinking water, resting your voice through the day, and not speaking or singing when your voice is hoarse or tired.

In practice, support in speech means giving yourself permission to breathe. Finish the sentence, close your mouth, let the air in, and go on.

If what you need is to walk into a presentation feeling settled, that's a different job. For those minutes there's Before you speak in public: 4 seconds in, a 2-second pause and 6 seconds out, for 2 minutes.

Common mistakes

• Taking too much air. Filling to the brim tightens your neck and throat. A comfortable breath is enough if the air leaves in a thin stream.
• Spending it all up front. If you're empty in five seconds, close your lips a little more and release less at the start.
• Braking the air with your throat. The brake is in your lips and your torso. Your throat stays open.

When to find someone who can listen

A silent exercise trains your air, not your voice. For vocal technique, nothing replaces a voice teacher who hears you. And if you're hoarse, your throat often feels raw or strained, or you have voice changes that don't go away, the NIDCD recommends seeing a doctor to find the cause. You may be referred to an ear, nose and throat specialist or a speech-language pathologist.

If the long exhales make you dizzy or tingly, drop the pattern and breathe normally. If you're pregnant or have a heart, lung or blood pressure condition, check with your care provider first.