- For centuries, singers and singing teachers alike
have known how crucial good air flow is for good singing.
Since the advent of singing pedagogy
way back in the 15th and 16th centuries,
there have been some breath management methods
that have come in and out of fashion.
One of the more prominent modern-day methods
is known as appoggio.
What is appoggio, does it work for all singers,
and perhaps more importantly, will it work for you?
I've got the answers to these questions
as well as a breathing exercise coming right up,
I hope you'll stick around to learn more.
♪ Sound check ♪ (upbeat music)
♪ Check one, check two ♪ (audience cheers)
Good day, my name is Dr. Dan,
and I'm a contemporary singing voice specialist.
Welcome to Voice Essentials where everybody sings.
Now, I've been teaching voice for over 20 years,
and when I first started to instruct singers,
it soon became apparent to me
that breathing was a key aspect of good singing, duh.
During my university years, the main breathing method
that we were instructed in
was a technique called appoggio,
and the pedagogue we all turned to
as the authoritative voice on the subject
was none other than internationally respected,
classical singing teacher, Richard Miller.
Miller, in his widely acclaimed book,
The Structure of Singing, states that,
"Appoggio cannot narrowly be defined as breath support,
"as is sometimes thought,
"because appoggio includes resonance factors
"as well as breath management."
Here Miller is noting the inescapable connection
between breath and resonance.
The scope of this video doesn't allow us
to fully explore the relationship between the two,
but it is worth noting that all four components
of the voice, the breath, also called the actuator,
the vocal folds, sometimes called the vibrator,
the resonators and the articulators all interact
with one another as a non-linear system.
Every singer aims to develop a coordinated system
that is harmoniously working to produce free-flowing sound.
So, back to appoggio,
because I want to answer Jubynher's question,
what is appoggio?
Well, put simply, appoggio is the combining
of thoracic and abdominal breathing.
Scott McCoy explains that, "This is often referred to
"as balanced breathing or through the Italian term appoggio,
"from the verb appoggiare, which means to lean on."
You see, when left to their own natural inclinations,
most bodies have a tendency to breathe high,
invoking an action called clavicular breathing.
Now, if all you want to do is exist on the planet
and exchange carbon dioxide for oxygen,
then clavicular breathing will suffice.
But, the moment you need
to control how that transfer takes place,
the rate at which it happens as well as the management
of pressure both below and above the vocal folds,
the high orientation of clavicular breathing
is found wanting.
So, if most people naturally have a tendency
to breathe high, it stands to reason
that some training might be necessary.
Ingo Titze, in his book, Principles of Voice Production,
writes, "In the inspiratory phase, abdominal muscles need
"to be trained to relax quickly and completely
"to allow maximum downward movement of the diaphragm."
Titze goes onto to explain that learning
to manage the outflow of air is important also,
stating, "Another problem is the management
"of excess subglottal pressure
"in the early stages of expiration,
"especially if the phrase to be sung is long."
I've observed that most beginner singers tend
to not only breathe high, they also tend
to use the larynx in a valve like fashion,
which in turn creates tremendous amounts
of pressure directly beneath the vocal folds.
Learning to manage both the inflow and outflow
of air assists significantly with tone,
dynamics, pitch and stamina.
But not everyone believes that appoggio is the way to go.
Now, recently, a new kid on the block
called Accent Breath Method has been advocating for change.
Actually, it's not all that new, having been developed
in the 1930's by a Danish speech therapist,
Professor Svend Smith.
Now, Leda Scearce explains that, "This approach has
"a heavy emphasis on breath support
"and targets modal voice, TA-dominant register.
"The patient," well, in this case, the singer, "Is taught
"to use rhythmic abdominal contractions
"to produce accents as fricatives and closed vowels."
So, which method is best, Appoggio or Accent?
Now, I know that here in my hometown of Brisbane, Australia,
appoggio, in some circles, is a dirty word,
with Accent Method being taught to student teachers
with the fever of a religious cult.
And I get it because appoggio has its shortcomings.
But does this mean we should throw the proverbial baby
out with the bathwater, personally, I don't think so.
In my teaching experience, I have observed the benefits
of both, which is why I have both Appoggio
and Accent Method type breathing activities
in my exercise collections,
Dr. Dan's Voice Essentials 1 and 2.
Now, to be clear, I am not a certified teacher
of Accent Method, but the exercise we will do together
in a moment from Voice Essentials 2
employs the technical ideals of accent.
But before we get practical,
allow me to note one critical point.
The latest research tells us
that everybody breathes differently.
Leborgne and Rosenberg write, "Generally speaking,
"endomorph body types tend to be abdominally based
"in their patterns, and ectomorph body types
"tend to be rib-cage based."
The Endomorph body type is bigger,
broader and tends to carry more body fat,
whereas the ectomorph body type is generally leaner
with less muscle mass.
So, if you're a larger person, you're more likely
to feel movement around your tummy when you breath,
making it easier to manage the breath abdominally,
whereas if you're on the skinny side of things,
you're more likely to feel activity
through the expansion of the ribs.
So, what does this all mean?
Well, Scott McCoy sums it all up very nicely, noting that,
"Regardless of the specific method used,
"the goal of breath support in singing is to provide
"a stable supply of air at the correct pressure
"for the desired pitch and loudness."
I guess what I'm saying here is many roads lead to Rome.
Let's now tread one of those pathways using Exercise 20
from Voice Essentials 2.
This activity uses sibilant fricatives
to exercise the abdominal wall in an agile manner.
Let's do the activity together.
(upbeat music) (Dan buzzes)
You'll notice that we are using the sounds
of (buzzes) and (hisses).
These sounds place the pressure in the mouth,
but articulate the movement of the air
from the abdominal wall,
ultimately training the larynx to remain free from tension.
I recommend doing these activities
after you've done the appoggio exercises
found in Voice Essentials 1 because the appoggio activities
help to build better management of breath pressure,
enabling a more consistent breath stream.
You can download both Voice Essentials 1 and 2
via the link below if you want
to do further work in this area.
And if you'd like to learn more about how your voice works,
then click on this video here.
It'll help you to understand a little more
about the non-linear production
of sound we discussed earlier in the video.
I'll see you again soon, I'm Dr. Dan, sing well.