Answers to your questions
On this page you will see answers to some of the most interesting questions we have received.
Q. I really appreciate your advice about breathing. My problem is that I
have to really concentrate on proper technique to do this correctly. Do you
have any advice about making this something that I do correctly, automatically?
A. Thank you for reaching out to us! This is an excellent question - it often takes many years of intentional practice to get the breathing apparatus working without really concentrating on it. It is helpful to spend a bit of time on it at every practice session, especially using simple exercises that allow you to focus on breathing. (There are a number of sample exercises in our book that will work well for this.) Then as you work through more complicated exercises or repertoire, try to remind yourself of your breathing from time to time, especially at the beginnings of phrases. Like any physical pursuit, breathing technique needs to be learned and then practiced before the body will adopt it as an unconscious mode of operation.
We know that singing is a 'spiral curriculum' - there are a number of aspects of good singing that require regular attention so we come back to them again and again. Breathing is one of those aspects. Even as a professional singer, I still think a fair bit about it!
Good luck and keep singing!
A. Thank you for reaching out to us! This is an excellent question - it often takes many years of intentional practice to get the breathing apparatus working without really concentrating on it. It is helpful to spend a bit of time on it at every practice session, especially using simple exercises that allow you to focus on breathing. (There are a number of sample exercises in our book that will work well for this.) Then as you work through more complicated exercises or repertoire, try to remind yourself of your breathing from time to time, especially at the beginnings of phrases. Like any physical pursuit, breathing technique needs to be learned and then practiced before the body will adopt it as an unconscious mode of operation.
We know that singing is a 'spiral curriculum' - there are a number of aspects of good singing that require regular attention so we come back to them again and again. Breathing is one of those aspects. Even as a professional singer, I still think a fair bit about it!
Good luck and keep singing!