3 Magic Breathing Exercises To Transform Your Singing Voice
Did you know that the way you breathe can (AND DOES) transform your voice?
When you understand the mechanics of breathing, you understand that every single breath you take sets your whole body-mind (and voice!) in preparation for something specific.
This means that you can train your breath to make singing eaaaasy!
Start here… 3 super magic exercises that you can try right now!
3 Magic Breathing Exercises To Transform Your Singing Voice
Wings exercise – to train effective short breaths within songs
You can use this breathing exercise for singing to build voice resilience and to increase your breath capacity. And in my students, I use it specifically to have them train a super, super important skill… which is the ability to take quick breaths through the mouth silently.
When you sing songs, you breathe through the mouth. Usually, singers don’t train this skill, so they end up breathing in a way that makes singing unnecessarily difficult.
This exercise trains that ability little by little so you will be able to take breaths within short phrases in a manner that is functional to singing.
How to practice ‘wings exercise’ correctly to transform your voice
A few things to have in mind to correctly practice ‘wings exercise’ to train your breathing muscles for effective and magic singing!
1.The exercise involves coordinating your breath in this manner: inhaling while bringing your arms up to the sides (watch the video for a demonstration!), and exhaling while bringing your arms back down.
Sounds easy? Maybe. But there is a challenge here. You will have to do this in a specific counting. While the exhaling will always last 8 counts, the inhaling will change every repetition.
This way, you will train your breathing muscles and your breathing flexibility, which you need to sing songs… after all, within songs, the available time for inhaling is constantly changing! Which is why this exercise is sooo good. You will really be ahead of singers who don’t train this important skill (which are majority!)
2. Super important: make sure you inhale THROUGH THE MOUTH and completely silently. It might take a while to achieve this, so keep practicing until you get it. I can’t emphasize enough how important this singing skill is.
3. Do all the repetitions of each round without a pause between them!
Now finally, the exercise!
- inhale in 8 counts, exhale in 8 counts
- inhale in 4 counts, exhale in 8 counts
- inhale in 2 counts, exhale in 8 counts
- inhale in 1 count, exhale in 8 counts
- inhale in a finger snap! Exhale in 8 counts
Lower back breathing for singing – the best way to achieve a low and stable larynx for singing magic
In singing it’s crucial to develop the ability to naturally expand your low back when you inhale. This is important because it’s the most functional, organic, and healthy way to naturally bring your larynx down without pushing it, which brings you the best results in your voice.
There are many ways that you can activate your lower back breathing. Usually, we have this breathing possibility locked because our pelvis is not in a neutral that allows it.
A low back breathing exercise for singing that you can try today
This exercise will help you easily discover your low back breathing.
1. Position yourself against a wall so your back is touching it all along the spine.
2. Bring your hips to touch the wall and your shoulders. Your head is free, not touching the wall.
3. Start walking your feet forward and bending your knees, while keeping your shoulders and your shoulders touching the well, until all of your lower back is in contact with the wall.
4. Bring your hands to the sides of your body, below the ribs. Inhale normally, without making any extra effort, and in a silent manner.
From this position, it might be easy and natural for you to feel the expansion where your hands are and in your lower back, feeling that the contact with the wall increases. Watch the video for a demonstration!
Try to feel this expansion when you inhale for vocal warm-ups and songs.
Arms up breathing exercise for singing
This exercise is great to train your inhaling muscles not only to work with flexibility but also to stay active while you exhale. This builds breath support, which is crucial to singing with power without damaging your voice, and to allowing your vocal muscles to work in a differentiated manner (that means, doing whatever you want with your voice healthily and functionally!)
For this exercise, choose a singing warm-up or the phrase of a song you want to sing.
When you take your breath right before singing, do so while opening your arms up to the sides. Make sure that you are only bringing your arms up to the sides, and not your shoulders! Your head remains in a neutral position. Make sure you are not pulling your chin up!
For a more clear demonstration, watch the video!
When you start practicing this exercise, do it slowly. If you breathe in and move to fast right away, it won’t be as effective, as you will still be fighting your old habits. To change bad habits we need to move slowly at first!
When you sing your chosen exercise or phrase, hold your arms to the sides. This will keep some inhaling muscles active while you sing, which will train your body to naturally build breath support when you sing.
Very important… make sure that you don’t hold your breath before singing!
Interested in learning to sing in a functional and super-effective way? Join ‘The Functional Singer’ Program!
I help people to develop their voice and singing from a holistic approach. I teach vocal lessons in person in Auckland, NZ, and online. Also stay tuned for my new online singing programs!❤️
My greatest passion has always been the voice, music and energy arts.
My personal and artistic journey has led me to understand that the voice and the body are fully connected, and that includes not only the physical body but also the mental, emotional and spiritual body.
Through holistic vocal training you not only learn to become a great singer while taking care of your voice, but you also improve your mental and physical wellbeing❤️
AUCKLAND CONTEMPORARY SINGING SCHOOL - COPYRIGHT 2024 ©
leave a comment