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CHAPTER III |
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CONCEPTS OF BREATHING |
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D
efinition. Breathing or respiration is the act or process of drawing air into the lungs for oxygenating and purifying the blood, and its subsequent exhalation. (W) A full explanation of the respiratory function may be found in any standard work on physiology. The following resume, gathered from Starling's Human Physiology [713, p. 841 ff.] is given here as a brief reorientation for the teacher of singing:
The constant renewal of air in the lungs is brought about by rhythmical movements of the thorax or chest cavity which cause ail alternate increase and diminution in their size. As the lungs swell up with each enlargement of the thorax, air (breath) is sucked in through the trachea or windpipe. This is inspiration. As the thorax relaxes it contracts and its capacity is diminished causing an expulsion of air and deflation of the lungs. This is expiration. Normally there is a slight pause following each expiration. The frequency of respiratory movement varies with age, muscular effort and emotional excitement, the normal frequency in an average, resting adult being about 17 or 18 per minute. Although breathing is essentially automatic it responds to volitional control. Therefore it can. be modified but not entirely repressed by the will. Volitional modifications of the primary act of breathing may take place in singing, often causing greatly altered and accentuated respiratory movements. During inspiration, the thorax is enlarged in all dimensions, from above downwards by the contraction of the diaphragm and in its transverse diameters by the movements of the ribs.
Breathing is important to the singer because normal voice production or phonation depends upon the presence of a steadily expiring stream of breath. Therefore, concepts of breathing relating to the regulation arid control of this stream of breath are of primary interest to the teacher of singing.
Of the 428 concepts of breathing gathered from 702 vocal texts, articles and reports of interviews with professional singers, 58 statements discuss |
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