Just breathe...

The word inspiration comes from the latin inspirare, literally meaning 'breath into'. As vocalists we breathe into sound. Early understandings of the word were also connected to spirit, once again very closely linked to what we do as singers. We breathe life or spirit into the sound.

Breathing is both voluntary and involuntary, influenced by how we feel, what and how we think and our ways of doing and behaving. No other life sustaining physical function is like it - breathing is unique.

Understanding the importance of breath, its connection to sound and how we might both consciously and unconsciously influence its function is a fundamental and crucial part of vocal education. Before every vocalisation we need to focus not simply on the breath but we must bring our attention to the mind, the body, and the spirit.

The mind: Before we sing, meditation is an ideal approach to preparing ourselves. It brings our attention to the self, our thinking and what we are about to do and helps us to focus on the breath mechanism. Many performers find meditation prior to performance is an essential part of their preparatory routine, as fundamental to success as the warm up.

A simple meditation which incorporates breath awareness makes us more mindful of our physical self. This means we are prepared for an intentional approach to sound making.

Try the following steps:

• Sit in a comfortable position with your feet flat on the floor and your spine straight but not rigid. Be aware of the feeling of the chair against your back and under your legs. Find a position where you feel secure and comfortable.

• Allow your gaze to soften or the eyes to close, and become aware of your breathing. Change nothing, simply allow your awareness to centre for a while on the sensation of the air entering and leaving the body as an involuntary behaviour.

• Bring your attention to the parts of your body which shift or move upon inhalation. Be aware of how these shifts and movements feel as the exhalation begins and ends. Become aware of the 'turning point' between inhalation and exhalation and how this feels. Continue until you feel connected to the movement of the natural breath.

• After a minute or two, deepen your awareness of the breath by counting through the inhale and exhale. Notice how many counts you naturally inhale for and then how many you exhale for. Allow yourself to focus on the counting without making any attempt to change or influence the flow of air.

• Next, intentionally count up to 8 on the inhale and then 8 on the exhale - you are now moving from involuntary to voluntary. Focus on keeping the flow to 8 steady counts at least 8 times. Keep the breath steady and avoid rushing.

• Once you have completed this step, just sit for a moment or two, allowing the body awareness to really seep in and letting the breath return to its involuntary flow. Notice any changes to the breath for a few moments. Slowly open your eyes and bring your attention back to your surroundings. Take a minute or two before commencing the next step in your vocal preparation.

Bringing the attention to the breath in the above helps us to focus our attention on one of the core parts of our singing process - the 'breath - body - mind' connection. This simple little meditation helps us to align posture, still the mind, and focus on the breath and the self - the sound making machine.

Prepared for breath, prepared for sound, prepared for song!