Breathing and support are hotly debated topics among singing teachers. One of the first things new students often say to me is that they’ve been told they had poor breath control or diaphragm control.
There are some teachers who focus almost entirely on breathing and supporting that breath with their singers, and some who don’t.
I’ve also known some pretty incredible singers who swear that their particular breathing technique is essential to their singing success.
I’m not here to claim that one way is more right than another. If it’s working for you, more power to you. If it isn’t, or you’re still having some vocal issues that aren’t being solved by better breathing or more abdominal support, here is my personal take on breathing and support for singers.

BREATHING AND SUPPORT AREN’T MY FIRST PRIORITIES
If there are issues at a vocal fold level, adding more air for the folds to resist will generally make a problem worse. Here’s what my priorities look like:

ELIMINATE EXTRINSIC MUSCLES
If a voice is strained or “tight” or the larynx is moving up and down with the pitch I need to make sure the singer knows how it feels to sing without un-needed muscles getting in the way. I would first make sure their voice is released and easy throughout their range.

INCREASE CORD CLOSURE
If the sound is too “breathy” or airy (like a sigh) then there is too much air escaping and not enough being resisted by the vocal cords. To add more “cord closure” I’ll use an exercise that will increase the percentage of time the vocal cords stay fully closed between vibrations, thus increasing the amount of air being resisted by the vocal cords. Try saying “mm-mm-mm” like you see your favorite dessert – you’ve just increased your air resistance or “cord closure”.

ADD MORE AIR SUPPORT
Once issues at the vocal cord level are addressed I will gradually add more air support to the equation – as long as we can maintain an equilibrium of cord closure and muscle balance.

Of course, if I notice someone is hyperventilating and “shallow breathing” (lifting chest and shoulders to breathe rather than filling up with a “low” breath) I will immediately redirect/retrain them to relax their top half and breathe more deeply – more to keep them from becoming light-headed. Generally, though, I find that more relaxed and efficient air resistance leads to better breathing.