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by Spencer Neal on June 5th, 2004

Spencer Neal

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What exercises can I do to help me sing from my diaphragm?

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  • by john lipian on March 21st, 2005

    john lipian

    When people say "sing from your diaphragm" they are really referring to control of breath flow through the larynx.

    Everyone sings from the diaphragm naturally, since the diaphragm is an involuntary muscle associated with breathing. One cannot breath at all without the use of the diaphragm.

    What is really being referred to is "controlling the diaphragm", or its ascent to a full exhale position when singing. If the diaphragm rises too fast, the lungs will empty their air faster resulting in poor sound quality and endurance.

    The control of the diaphragm is done through the rectus abdominus (stomach) muscles, as well as the intercostal (rib cage) muscles. If these muscles are kept taught (not overly tight, as some voice teachers suggest), then the diaphragm can be prevented from spilling out all the air as if you were just exhaling.

    Another for of breath control involves the closure of the glottis, or space between the vocal folds. You must keep the folds pressed together to keep air from leaking out too fast. Think of it like a valve used to control water flow through a pipe. If it is wide open, water spills out quickly. If it is mostly closed, only small amounts of water go through the pipe over time.

    Balance of the glottis closure with the rectus abdominus/intercostal muscles as the breath is expelled through the larynx constitutes what one generally refers to as "breath control".

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