Take a deep breath and call me in the morning.

This is apparently going to be chapter two of my sixth book. (NOT!)

My recent posting on the subject of the term and physical action of Appoggio and reaction to it has got me off on another tangent. I have heard, and been taught, so many different and disparate methods of singing breathing that I feel the need to put in print the method I use in my own teaching.

My first voice teacher, when I was in high school, was an aging tenor who emphasized the need to have very strong abdominal muscles. He would have me stand on his stomach in my stocking feet while he lifted me up and down. I was six feet, three inches, even in high school. It's a wonder I didn't kill him.

So the first point I will make in talking about breathing is: Don't do this! It won't help the singer and you may do damage to yourself.

When I went to college I studied with a soprano who never said a great deal about breathing, so I have no idea what her theory was on the subject. Apparently, many voice teachers have little or nothing to say about breathing.

Point two: Breathing is the absolute basis for singing. It is important that as a singer and/or a teacher you figure out how to incorporate a good breathing technique into your vocal equipment.

The first woman I studied with in New York City emphasized the use of the umbilicus muscle. That's the muscle right around your belly button. She wanted us to tug that muscle each time we began to make a singing sound. She had students who sang at the Met, so for them I guess it must have worked. Either that, or they simply ignored her suggestion. I know that I did.

Two of my students from years ago also did some work with Eleanor Steber. She was a very great singer. Apparently she taught this umbilicus thing, too. I still don't advise it.

Point three: Don't yank on your belly button, or anything else down there, when you are singing. Yanking creates tension; tension creates bad singing.

The next two teachers I studied with never had much to say about breathing at all. They both had students who starred at the Met so they must have been doing something right. Not that everyone who sings at the Met is a great singer! But I learned other important things about singing from each of them that I use in my own teaching to this day.

So here we are. One from Column A and one from Column B.

Or none of the above.

My theory, which I arrived at through about sixty years of teaching and coaching voice, is based on the fact that everyone breathes. That is an important part of living. The body seems to know how to keep us breathing all night long when we are asleep. We don't have to wake ourselves up and say, 'Breathe, dummy!' In fact, nearly everyone breathes deep, belly breaths all night long, however they may breath during the day or when they are singing.

Perhaps we have hit on something. Deep breathing is so easy to do you can do it in your sleep. Why not do it when you sing?

This is where my method of breathing begins. Singing breathing should be deep and relaxing, while still being energetic. Just as our abdominal muscles move in and out all day and night long when we are doing other things, they can probably do that when we sing without our getting in the way. Because that's exactly what we do when we push or pull abdominal muscles while singing. We get in the way of a natural physical activity and create tension. Tension is the killer of good singing.

Many people, for one reason or another, develop a habit of using a high breath all day long. This is not particularly healthy but if all you are doing is sitting, standing, chatting, who cares? Some people develop the habit of holding their abdominal muscles to look thin. Get a size larger shirt and stop holding. It is not sensible to breath one way all day long and then try to breath correctly when you start to sing. It probably won't happen.

For singing YOU MUST OPERATE FROM A FREE, LOW BREATH. End of story.

Now, how do you find this free, low singing breath if that is not your habit? Here is how I work with a new student in solving this question.

First of all, check your posture. Your body should be in a tall, straight, easy line. No zigs and zags. Elaine Brown, my conducting teacher from years ago, suggested that we imagine a pendulum hanging down the center of our body. Centering. This is easy to do. This easily gets our body into a comfortable, straight line.

Your collar bone should be the highest part of your rib cage.Learn to maintain that position without tension or stress. This puts our rib cage in the optimum position for singing in a free, relaxed way. Or just for every day good breathing. Do not feel that you are holding your body in this way, just allow it to find this position as comfortably as possible.

I then suggest to my students that they mentally transplant their lungs from their actual locale in the rib cage to the space below the belly button. No real surgery required. Place your hands in this area and say to yourself, 'These are now my lungs'.

Now inhale and fill them.

ALWAYS INHALE THROUGH THE MOUTH FOR SINGING! A nose breath will cause you to hold your lips together, shut your teeth, and send your tongue to the roof of your mouth. This is not the optimum way to prepare to make a singing sound. You have just completely closed your instrument. Nose breathing is fine for 'keeping your motor running' during musical introductions and phrases where you are not actually singing. But to sing, breath through the mouth!

Through your easily opened mouth (no pushing down), inhale, listening for the sound of 'Ah or Aw' as the air goes down your windpipe. There is no way you can get a high breath using this inhalation. I've tried; I always get a deep, relaxing breath.

Allow the air to go down in a lively manner. A slow inhalation will mean an unenergetic response of sound. I sometimes have singers bounce a tennis ball to feel the rhythm of inhalation to sound. When the ball hits the floor, Inhale, when you catch it, Sing. This does not give you time to fiddle around with the air you just inhaled. Do not inhale and hold the air for a second. One of my teachers wanted us to do this. What this does is cause your vocal cords to close and your epiglottis to close. Your body assumes you are going to swallow and it doesn't want you to drown. This is a natural defense the body employs to keep you from choking. Vocally, when this happens, you will need to blow open the cords and epiglottis to make a singing sound. This is unattractive and not healthy for your larynx.

There are various breathing exercises you can do to practice this kind of 'Singing Breathing'. I mention several in my various books on singing.

You should create an imaginary curved line just behind your head around which the inhalation speeds and comes right back out as sound.

Singing should be a relatively easy occupation. I am amazed at how complicated many singers make it out to be.

Of course, we must go beyond this initial stage of developing a good breathing technique. As singers and teachers we must work on singing  a musical, emotional phrase, singing every language as if we were a native of that country, developing ourselves into a musical artist.

Nobody wants to listen to technique.

But without this underpinning, this method of breathing on which to send our song into the world, no one is going to want to hear a poorly performed song either.

To be a good singer, or a good oboeist, or whatever, we need to develop all of our musical skills.

Breathing is the basis of all the other musical qualities we possess. Learn to use it wisely.