What do we really know about breathing for singing? Breathing specialist Barbara Tanze returns to explore the evolving science of airflow and pressure regulation in the singing voice. We discuss what research tells us about the diaphragm and respiratory muscles, and why what singers feel may not reflect what is actually happening physiologically. Barbara also introduces the Flexiflow, a tool that gives singers immediate feedback on airflow and pressure, helping them explore breath coordination without complicated anatomical instructions. Along the way, we question what “breath support” really means, whether breath should always come first in vocal training, and how a more individual, exploratory approach could help singers better understand their voices. Here we go!
WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST?
0:56 What’s changed since 2022?
3:10 What we do know about the body, pressure and airflow
6:30 Barbara’s burning question
8:07 Common breath management issues in singing
11:18 What is typically happening in the body during exhalation?
20:33 Where does ‘breathing’ sit in the hierarchy of vocal training?
24:41 Using balloons as props
33:40 The Flexiflow
About the presenter HERE
RELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKS
Singing Teachers Talk – Ep.45 Discovering Optimal Breathing
Ingo Titze
Johan Sundberg
Singing Teachers Talk – Ep.253 The S-Word: Why It’s Time to Rethink ‘Support’ in Singing Teaching
A Copernican Shift: Reframing How We Think About Breath in Singing by Heidi Moss Erickson
Singing Teachers Talk Podcast – Ep.271 Singer & the Self: Rethinking Singing Teacher CPD
MDH Breathing Coordination by Robin De Haas
ABOUT THE GUEST
I work at the intersection of voice, movement, physiology and learning.
My passion for this field grew out of a simple question: what if understanding how the voice actually works could give singers and speakers more freedom, rather than more rules to follow?
I trained as a professional singer and vocal pedagogue, and spent years working as an opera singer. Performing professionally taught me the realities of developing, maintaining and relying on a voice under real performance demands – and also made me curious about why some approaches to singing work for one person, but not another.
That curiosity eventually took me beyond traditional singing instruction. I became increasingly fascinated in functional anatomy, breathing, movement, manual approaches and, ultimately, in how people actually learn to coordinate their voices.
Today, I work with singers, speakers and professional voice users who want to develop, rebuild or better understand their voices.
I don’t believe there’s one ideal way of using the voice. Every voice is shaped by an individual combination of anatomy, movement, experience, habits, goals and context. My work combines vocal pedagogy with physiology, breathing coordination, motor learning and specialised hands-on approaches to the jaw, tongue, breathing and structures involved in voice production.
Sometimes that means refining an already highly evolved vocal skill. Sometimes it means finding a way back after vocal difficulties. Sometimes it means investigating the nervous system and why something that should work simply doesn’t.
The starting point is always the person and the voice in front of me and communication based on mutual respect, kindness and safety.
Alongside the work in my private studio, I teach at the Akademija za glasbo, Univerza v Ljubljani, where I work with future classical voice professionals and teachers.
I’m currently pursuing doctoral research into expiratory pressure regulation in singing, combining biomechanics, mental models and inquiry-based learning. My research grows directly out of the questions I encounter in my practice: what are singers actually doing, what do they think they are doing, and how can we help them explore more effective ways of coordinating their voice?
For me, research and practice are not separate worlds: Each keeps challenging the other.
This curiosity also led me to develop the Flexiflow, a patented tool that provides visible, audible and tactile feedback of airflow, with and without phonation.
I developed the Flexiflow because aspects of vocal function that matter enormously can be surprisingly difficult to perceive. Making them more tangible creates opportunities to observe, experiment and discover rather than simply being told what the body and voice should be doing.
The Flexiflow as well as balloons in general are now part of my teaching, workshops and individual work whenever necessary, and it continues to evolve alongside my research.
I also created Take a deep breath, Charlie, an interactive children’s book exploring breathing and voice through storytelling, play and participation published in 2023 by New Voices Publishing.
Both grew from the same question that runs through my work: how can we make something complex easier to experience, explore and understand?
My professional background includes a Master of Arts in vocal pedagogy from HEMU Lausanne, a three-year professional diploma in manual therapy, advanced training with Walt Fritz, an advanced certificate in MDH Breathing Coordination, and a certification as Breath Science Practitioner. I continue to develop my practice through teaching, research and international professional ongoing education.
Instagram: @btbreathing & @the.flexiflow
