Deep Breathing

Breathing and Meditation

Proper breathing is an integral and vital part of meditation. It helps release toxins, open your chakras and facilitate mindfulness. Below, I have listed some simple exercises to aid in deep breathing. Not only will these techniques help with meditation, but you will find that your voice will become more melodious. I majored in music in college (Berklee College of Music) and took many years of private voice lessons, most notably training under the renowned Dante Pavone* in Boston weekly for two years, which taught me many of these breathing techniques.

Three Steps to Deep Breathing

In order to experience deep breathing, first you will need to identify and experience the three types of breathing that comprise it. For this first exercise it is better to lay down on your back if possible. Place your right hand on top of your navel and your left hand on top of your chest. Start by observing and concentrating on the natural flow of your breath for a few cycles. Get in tune with your natural rhythm.

1. Abdominal breathing

• With your first inhalation, concentrate on intentionally sending the air towards the navel by letting your abdomen expand and rise freely. Focus on expanding your abdomen with air. Frequently, we think when we take deep breaths that our abdomen sinks in. How many times have you taken a deep breath and tried to suck your gut in. Stop doing that. It's not natural. Your abdomen should always expand when you take a breath. This will take practice.

• Feel your right hand rising while the left hand remains almost still on top of the chest.

• Feel your right hand coming down as you exhale while keeping the abdomen relaxed.

• Continue to repeat this for a few minutes without straining the abdomen, but rather allowing it to expand and relax freely.

• Repeat this ten times, and then return to your natural breathing.

2. Thoracic breathing

• Without changing your position, you will now shift your attention to your ribcage and diaphragm area. Your diaphragm is a flat muscle under your ribs. Focus on isolating it and stretching it flat. This takes practice, but it is vital to strengthen this muscle. .

• With the next inhalation, think of intentionally sending the air towards your rib cage instead of the abdomen and flatten that diaphragm.

• Let your thorax expand and rise freely, allowing your left hand to move up and down as you keep breathing. We have a tendency to think that if we take a deep breath, our chest should sink when instead it should expand.

• Again, isolate your diaphragm and focus on making it flat causing your chest to expand when you take a breath.

• Your right hand should remain almost still.

• Continue to repeat this breathing pattern for ten repetitions.

• Return to your natural breathing.

3. Clavicular breathing

• Now, the last part, with your next inhalation, repeat the thoracic breathing pattern.

• When the ribcage is completely expanded, inhale a bit more thinking of allowing the air to fill the upper section of your lungs at the base of your neck.

• Feel the shoulders and collar bone rise up gently to find some space for the extra air to come in.

• Exhale slowly letting the collarbone and shoulders drop first and then continue to relax the ribcage.

• Do ten repetitions, return to your natural breathing.

Dante Pavone was first and foremost an opera singer and opera instructor. His story is fascinating and I hope to write about it in more detail in the future. He expanded his training by developing one of the first programs in popular singing, breaking from the traditional operatic style. Most pop singers before the late 50's and 60's were classically trained. Dante was a pioneer in developing training for singing popular music. He taught, and was contacted by, such singers as John Lennon and Paul McCartney (Beatles), Mick Jagger (Rolling Stones), Aretha Franklin, Grace Slick (Jefferson Airplane), Steve Tyler (Aerosmith), Stephen Stills (Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young) Peter Wolf (J .Geils Band), James and Livingston Taylor, Tom Jones, Donna Summer, Jonathan Richmond, Julianna Hatfield, Andy Pratt, at their prime and the list goes on and on. One day John Lennon and Paul McCartney showed up unannounced at his door handing him a blank check! Singers from New York City Opera Company used to sneak away from their teachers and come to Boston to study with Dante who would cure their wrecked voices from their famous opera teachers they had in NY. To this day, I do not know why he put up with me for so long. I stopped my lessons with him my second year at Berklee (stupid me).

- Julie O'Hara 2023

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