Ways to Improve Breathing

While looking through the latest copy of the International Trombone Association Journal, I noticed a website listing for Will Kimball, who is Associate Professor of Trombone at Brigham Young University and a professional alto and tenor trombonist. Among other interesting pages, there are two articles on breathing, which are summaries of scientific research and medical studies. “Respiratory Training” and “10 Ways to Improve Breathing” both caught my eye and I found several points worth mentioning here. I agree with all of the points in the articles but I will discuss just a few here because they relate to my interest in awareness of breathing and the effects posture, pedagogy and self-use can affect how we breathe. To read the articles (which I also recommend), click the link at the end of this text.

 

From “Respiratory Training”

Neural Adaptations: Tzelepis points out that, in addition to changes in the muscles themselves, there are actually neural adaptations to training that make the muscles more efficient. As is commonly known, muscles normally exist in paired sets of agonists and antagonists—one pushes, the other pulls. In relation to the respiratory muscles, Tzelepis observes, “Excessive cocontraction of antagonists may limit full motor unit activation of agonists, especially during complicated and precise tasks.” That is, muscle groups may sometimes incidentally work against each other, limiting their own success. However, he notes, “With training, the amount of cocontraction is usually reduced, thereby allowing greater activation of agonists and greater net force generation.” In other words, the respiratory muscles, like other skeletal muscles, begin working in a more coordinated, efficient fashion after training.

• Granted, the benefit of neural adaptations mentioned here come from using breath resistance training,however such adaptations also occur as a result from doing Feldenkrais lessons. By giving your nervous system a chance to sense co-contraction, say in the movements of breathing, it will eventually find a way to reduce them. Clients in privates sessions and classes often report freer, easier breathing after a Feldenkrais lesson.

Shifting Attention: An important pedagogical concept that has not been discussed up to this point is the fact that many players have plenty of respiratory ability—they may have a relatively large vital capacity and higher than normal lung function measurements—they just fail to use it. Respiratory training is likely to help bring the player’s attention to breathing in general, which alone is likely to improve performance. This is apparently the way Arnold Jacobs, the famous tubist and breathing pedagogue, often used breathing tools: to help bring players’ attention to the importance of breathing for tone production and to help condition them into better breathing habits on their instruments.

• This is exactly what happens in a Feldenkrais lesson, the student begins to shift his/her attention, which allows him/her to sense more accurately how they are breathing. Arnold Jacobs wrote that often students would think they were doing something that they were taught but actually doing something else, which might be contra productive.

From “10 Ways to Improve Breathing”

5) Allow full expansion

Though sometimes a foreign concept to musicians, it is a common piece of workaday knowledge among physiologists that the bellows of the human respiratory system consists of two parts: the diaphragm and the rib cage (Tobin 31; Johnson 256). Using only the diaphragm, as is sometimes advocated by musicians, eliminates approximately one third of the vital capacity (Sebel 28); other studies indicate that this loss could even be higher than a third (Bergofsky). There are clearly many cases in which musicians require a full vital capacity breath, not just two thirds of their vital capacity. Also, since maximum expiratory flow is possible only near total lung capacity and decreases progressively as lung volume decreases, the matter of full expansion obviously affects lung function as well as lung volume (Johnson 263). Movement of the rib cage portion of the bellows occurs mechanically through what physiologists often call the “bucket handle” motion of the rib cage, wherein the rib cage (a series of bucket handles connected at the spine and sternum) moves upward and outward upon inhalation, downward and inward on exhalation. If the rib cage remains fixed (whether in an upward position, downward position, or anywhere along its range of motion), its mechanical purpose is obviously thwarted. That is to say, the rib cage must move up and down, in and out, in order to work as a bellows (Johnson 263). At no point, whether through training, concentration, or superhuman effort, can a person cause the diaphragm (not to mention the lung itself, which is passive and completely without muscle) to simply take over the rib cage’s portion of mechanical movement, whether during inhalation or exhalation.

If rib cage motion is inhibited and only the diaphragm is used during inhalation, the efficiency of the entire respiratory system is compromised. Respiratory physiologists have shown that the respiratory system works best as a whole, not through isolation of individual muscles like the diaphragm (hence the term respiratory system). Studies demonstrate, for example, that respiratory muscles other than the diaphragm do not simply offer mechanical assistance to the diaphragm. Rather, these muscles actually work together and “coordinate so as to optimize diaphragmatic function” (Goldman and Mead) (emphasis added), with “substantial coupling” between the muscles of the rib cage and the diaphragm (Boynton et al.). In other words, the diaphragm does not work as efficiently by itself as it does in combination with the other respiratory muscles. Again, it is a respiratory system, a system that uses many muscles and interlocking movements.

•  (My emphasis)

In my clinics and workshops at more than 20 universities and conservatories around the nation, this has probably been the most common problem among the hundreds of musicians whose vital capacity I have measured: they are afraid to relax and let everything move when they inhale (possibly because they are afraid they might do something wrong). When they do finally relax, take a big breath, and allow everything to expand and do its job naturally without trying to isolate muscles or execute involuntary actions, their vital capacity measurements invariably improve.

 

• This is a big one and something I also discuss in my book, “The Dynamic Musician Series: Dynamic Stability and Breath, Vols. 1 &2.” I won’t say more here because Will has said it all, except that I too encounter many musicians who have learned to keep their chests still.

8) Relax

Tension in either the abdominal muscles or the expiratory muscles of the rib cage (intercostals) during inhalation limits the respiratory system’s ability to expand and contract, thus decreasing lung efficiency and lung volume (Murray 106; Goldman and Mead). Both general tension (e.g., overall tension resulting from performance anxiety or poor practice habits) and local tension (e.g., tension resulting from attempts to hold individual parts of the respiratory system in a fixed position) are clearly counterproductive to ventilation. In addition, surprisingly, studies of professional wind instrumentalists and vocalists have shown that, although performance results are very similar, specific breathing patterns among successful professionals are remarkably varied (Cossette, Sliwinski, and Macklem; Nelson 40; Thomasson and Sundberg; Watson et al.). Research has shown that the specifics of breathing, including the ratio of diaphragm to rib cage use, sequence of muscle recruitment, and the visual external manifestations of breathing, vary significantly according to individual build and body type (Hoit and Hixon; Wade). In other words, our bodies naturally do what is most efficient for their given build. Studies have also demonstrated that, regardless of claims sometimes made to the contrary, professional musicians have very little control over the individual muscles of the respiratory system, particularly the diaphragm (Wade), as well as a very inaccurate physiological awareness of what is actually occurring when they breathe (Watson and Hixon; Wade). Research would seem to indicate that it is more efficient for musicians to simply relax and allow natural forces to take place according to each person’s unique build and body type, rather than exerting unnecessary mental and physical energy trying to change what is largely an involuntary process. Finally, the benefits of yoga on lung function (see studies listed under “Practice deep breaths,” above) are presumably at least partially related to relaxation.

 

• Once again, this also relates to co-contraction but it makes an important point: That breathing is largely an involuntary process and each person breathes differently. As stated in “The DMS” the best way to know if you’re breathing well is: “when sitting or standing feels comfortable, breathing feels free and easy and you are able to produce a tone quality which is appropriate to the musical expression as well as pleasing to the ear.”

 And lastly, this may seem obvious but I often find that very little is known about posture in musical education.

9) Maintain good posture

For various physiological reasons, lung capacity decreases by about 2 percent from standing to sitting, then about 15 percent from sitting to supine (lying on your back) (Campbell and Davis 20). “Semi-supine” posture (reclining or slouching) has been found to be significantly less efficient than sitting (Koulouris et al.). Lung function is also best when standing; both FVC and FEV1 are “slightly but significantly higher” when standing than when sitting (Townsend). This difference in posture is important enough that the American Thoracic Society recommends documenting exactly what posture is used during all breathing measurements (American Thoracic Society “Standardization of Spirometry”). In short, it makes sense to stand if you can while performing; if you cannot stand, sit up straight.

 

• Posture is the main topic of The DMS volume 1.

So this has been a long post and I want to thank Will Kimball for letting me use parts of his articles for this post. To read the full articles go to: http://www.kimballtrombone.com/breathing/

 

If you are interested in trying out some FM lesson for musicians, you can get mini lesson from my DMS podcast and you can order “The Dynamic Musician Series: Dynamic Stability and Breath, Volumes 1 & 2” digitally or in hard copy from the links below.

From iTunes

or direct

Thanks for reading!

If you have any specific questions or comments on breathing and posture, send me e-mail and I’ll try to respond in a future blog. Until then, breathe well!

Comments

[Frora Bosh]

Nice article.I like the advice on breathing because during singing w lost control in our breathing in high notes. Now I think I can sing high notes also...Thankssss.

[wow magic sing]

i am very fond of singing and I really admire those who can sing high notes.This information will help me a lot.thank you for sharing..

Seth