How to Sing Better with Your Diaphragm

Michelle Mao
3 min readAug 2, 2022

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The diaphragm is a mass of muscle underneath the lungs that expands to regions beneath the rib cages. This muscle plays a significant role within the human body because humans can only exhale and inhale breath because of diaphragm contractions.

For singers, the diaphragm is even more important because it regulates the air in the lungs and affects how one breathes, which is a significant factor for singers. When singers employ their diaphragm while singing, they produce a fuller and more projected sound, protect their vocal cords, and have better control over their air usage.

Many amateur singers would love to understand how to harness the powers of the diaphragm and improve their vocal prowess. However, to achieve this, singers must first put themselves through some diaphragm-related drills.

For amateur singers who want to sing with their diaphragm, the first step is finding a good posture. While this might sound strange, a good, relaxed posture plays a significant role in singing because it enhances a singer’s breathing.

Once a singer has achieved a good posture, the next step is learning to draw breath into their diaphragm. To do this, singers should first relax their arm, shoulder, and facial muscles. Afterward, singers should inhale as much air as possible, then slowly exhale while sucking in their stomach. The singer should feel pressure in their diaphragm if they properly execute this drill. After this drill, singers should try to sing while drawing air from their diaphragm.

Next, singers should ensure their throats remain open while singing from their diaphragm. While this might seem weird, it allows air to move easily between the singer’s diaphragm and the lips, improving the quality of vocal sounds the singer produces. Singers can achieve open-throat singing by practicing in front of a mirror or picturing an object preventing their mouth from closing when they sing.

Also, singers should try to identify and separate their two voices. Every singer uses a distinct voice for high notes and another voice for low notes. When singers correctly identify and separate these two voices, their sound production becomes more dynamic. Singers can also avoid off-pitch singing when they properly separate their high and low-pitch voices.

Singers should warm up their vocal cords before singing. Like a car, singers must warm their vocal cords to prepare for extended use. Singers can warm up by taking deep breaths or belting out simple but sustained notes or scales while monitoring their breathing and airflow.

Finally, singers should practice singing high notes from their diaphragm. Typically, singers tend to begin high notes from their chest or throats. This makes it difficult and sometimes impossible to sustain the note for a respectable duration. Instead, singers should practice starting their high notes from their diaphragm for more staying power.

Singers should note that these drills and tips would only begin to yield fruits after consistent practice. Therefore, it’s important for singers who want better command over their diaphragm muscles to exercise them and practice constantly.

Also, singers should experiment with their voices constantly and try new things that would push the boundaries of their vocal abilities. Singers should also note that when they sing without their diaphragm, they start to feel some tension in their throat due to the strain they put on their vocal cords.

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Michelle Mao
Michelle Mao

Written by Michelle Mao

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Michelle Mao has been a member of the Screen Actors Guild since 2019 and has appeared in numerous film and television series.

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