5 Secrets to Improve Breath Control for Your Singing Voice

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5 Secrets to Improve Breath Control to Master Your Singing Voice

In today’s blog, I will lay out the secrets of how to improve breath control and not only access deeper breathing but learn how to control the breath to retain air in your lungs and end the struggle with running out of breath early.?

These secrets are curated over 40 years of teaching voice inside of my Cole Vocal Method?. The Cole Vocal Method? (CVM) is a complete master holistic voice-building system that builds a resonant, resilient and healthy professional singing voice. Based in vocal science and biomechanics for over 100 years, CVM? is a complete singing method that dramatically improves vocal production and performance while protecting and preserving the health of the singing voice.?

You can learn the Cole Vocal Method? inside of my Vocal Freedom Circle, an 8 module program you can join at any time from the comfort of your home. Members also receive access to our LIVE Monthly Vocal Studio Coaching + Q&A Calls. Click here to learn more about the Cole Vocal Method and the Vocal Freedom Circle.?

Here are my 5 Secrets to Improve Breath Control to Master Your Singing Voice. I hope it helps you master your breathing and get control over your voice!

1. Learn how to breathe diaphragmatically

Has anyone ever explained to you how to breathe diaphragmatically in a way you’ve understood? If not, you’re not alone! It is often misunderstood by singers and vocal coaches. If you’ve been doing my Singers Gift Vocal Warmups for a while, you’re probably a bit ahead of the curve – because we get you started breathing diaphragmatically, but if not, I’ll tell you the secret!?

It starts with moving the ribs. This is where breathing diaphragmatically begins.?

You see the lungs are shaped like triangles with the deeper reserve of air in the lower portion of the triangles. In order to fill this portion of the lungs, the diaphragm which is tucked up under the ribcage needs to descend. In order for the ribcage to descend the lower ribs need to swing outward.?

Let’s do a quick exercise:??

• Put your hands firmly on your ribs.? Exhale.
• Now hold your ribs firmly with pressure and breathe slowly into your hands feeling the gentle swing outward of the ribs.
• Do you feel the ribs slowly expand and swing outwards into your hands?
• The trick is to breathe slowly and not too fast and you’ll feel the ribs move.?

This is the beginning of breathing diaphragmatically.?

2. Decrease tension in the neck and intercostal muscles

Most problems with breath control stem from tension in the neck, upper back, and intercostal muscles. Tension in these muscles inhibits diaphragm movement and causes shortness of breath. The intercostal muscles are the 28 muscles that wrap around the ribs. You can feel them when you press your fingers in between your ribs.

Try this Neck Stretch:

• Let your neck gently slump forward.
• Take a deep breath into the upper back and let your head fall more.
• Take another breath into the upper back and let your head fall forward even more.
• How much can you let go of the back of your neck and head?

If you feel pain or tightness here, it is an indication of excess tightness and tension in the neck.

Try this Breathing Exercise to release upper back and intercostal muscles:?

• Sit in a chair.
• Place your elbows on your knees and your fists under your chin.
• Breathe into your back.
• Feel the back expand as you inhale.?

This exercise helps to open up the upper back and intercostal muscles and the back of the diaphragm where it attaches to the spine.?

3. Improve your alignment to free your diaphragm

We live in a “forward head” world! Because of modern devices and working on computers or cellular devices, most people’s heads sit slightly in front of their body.?

Given that the weight of the head is 10-15 pounds, this puts inordinate strain on the muscles of the neck and upper back. This can inhibit the diaphragm movement and causes problems with connecting with your deeper breath that supports your singing voice.

Improving your alignment will help you free the diaphragm and give you access to deeper breathing.?

Try this:

• Stand against the wall with your feet in front of you about 1.5 to 2 feet. In other words, lean your hips and torso against the wall with your feet in front of you.
• Tuck your pelvis to get your lower back flush against the wall as best as you can.
• Lengthen your neck and place your head against the wall.
• Now come away from the wall and try to maintain your posture.

If you can’t get your lower back against the wall, this is an indication of shortened muscles in the spine that can result in a forward head.

If you can’t place your head against the wall without struggling in this position, it is also an indication of a forward head with excessive tension in the muscles of the upper back and neck.

Yoga and stretching daily will help to keep the spine lengthened and healthy. For more intervention, work with a masseuse and chiropractor (both) to lengthen these muscles and align your spine.

4. Breath is fuel. Learn how to keep air in your tank

One of the secrets of mastering breath control, after you learn how to breathe diaphragmatically, is to learn how to retain air in the lungs.

Being able to keep air circulating under the glottis (opening of the vocal folds) is the key to retaining air in your lungs, thus giving your voice air in the tank to sing on.

When air goes out too quickly, usually at the onset of the phrase, the singer loses that valuable reserve to sing on. Step number 5 below will show you how to control this.?

5. Keep the ribs expanded on onset

Has anyone ever explained how to control the breath while you are singing in a way that actually helped sustain more breath? If not, you’re not alone! It is often so misunderstood by singers and vocal coaches.?

But today I’m going to show you a real secret behind real vocal breath control.?

In order to sing with plenty of breath, you need plenty of air circulating under the glottis? (the opening of the vocal folds). When you are able to keep air in the lungs the diaphragm stays down and you are able to sing much longer with better quality sound and breath control.?

The secret starts with the action at the first moment of sound.?

Let’s do a quick exercise:

• Hold your ribs firmly with your hands with the thumbs on the back ribs.
• Breathe slowly into your ribs feeling them swing gently outward.
• Now, at the first moment of exhale notice what happens with the ribs? Did you notice the ribs move inward on the exhale?
• Now let’s sing an AH and notice what happens with the ribs at the first moment of sound? Did you notice the ribs move inward at the moment of sound?
• Most singers will feel the ribs collapsing slightly inward. Even a small amount of inward motion loses a lot of air. This causes you to run out of breath early and then you end up falling back on your throat and ruining your voice.
• Now let’s try that again but focus on keeping the back ribs where your thumbs are expanded at the top of the sound – almost moving outward on onset.
• Breathe in and sing “AHHH” keeping the ribs expanded at the onset of sound instead of collapsing in.?

This is the start of mastering breath control for your singing voice.?

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This post helps you get started, but it’s only the beginning. What would it feel like to finally reach your vocal potential and feel an actual transformation in your voice in just 8 weeks? Come join the thousands of singers worldwide who have already transformed their voices and vocal health with the Cole Vocal Method?. Set your voice free in only 20 minutes a day with these powerful vocal techniques found only here! Click here to find out more.

About Cari Cole

Cari Cole is the CEO / Founder of caricole.com and CCVM: Label Without Walls. She is a Holistic Vocal Coach, Artist Development Expert, A&R Director, and Songwriter based in New York City helping artists for the past 38 years. She is a mentor for Women in Music and The Association of Independent Music Publishers. Her latest venture, CCVM a label services company, provides artists with a seamless path from creation to completion. After 30+ years of observing the overwhelm and challenges that artists face, Cari pulled together the best top creative professionals and designed a new approach to supporting our artists.

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