Good singing posture plays a vital role in unlocking your true vocal potential. It's not just about standing up straight; it's about aligning your body to optimize your breathing, resonance, and vocal control.
While lying on your back may seem unconventional, it's a technique that many voice teachers have used for years to help their students improve their singing abilities.
In this post, we'll explore the benefits of practicing singing while lying down and how it can positively impact your overall posture and vocal performance.
Have you ever tried to sing seriously while lying on your back? It may seem silly, but it's a regular voice-teaching exercise that music professionals have been using for years in their studio lessons.
So many different teachers are using this for beginners because it works for so many aspects that beginner singers suffer with.
Before we go over these benefits, note that you want to practice while lying down at first, but you'll then want to find these same elements in your singing when you attempt to stand up.
You're not likely to be using this technique for actual live performances, so don't get too comfortable with it now! Let's look at five ways laying down while singing can help you sing better. Get active and try it now if you can!
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Lying on the floor automatically puts your body in a great position for singing. Too many times, you'll see singers restricting themselves with a poor hunched posture.
Bad posture can make you sound nasal, affect your pitch, and limit your singing range.
Again, remember to mimic that same good posture you get from lying down and singing once you stand up and get in a normal position to sing. You'll only want to use that lying position as a good reference for what needs to be done while standing.
Many singers get their breathing wrong when they first start learning how to sing correctly. So many people (including the old me) think that to get a good deep breath in from your diaphragm, you need to suck in your stomach.
This is not true and is limiting your breath support!
Grab a book and lie down on the floor with your back in a relaxed position against the ground. Place that book on your stomach, and begin to take deep breaths in and inhale out with a hiss that isn't forced.
You'll want to see the book rising as you breathe in and expand your stomach, and slowly, yet evenly, fall when you exhale. The more that book rises, the better your breathing ability will be throughout long sung phrases.
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Once you've done the breathing exercise with the book above, you may notice that you feel more relaxed and less anxious already, which will also help bring confidence to your posture.
Better breathing can quickly calm you when you pair it with good posture and not having to look at someone looking back at you when you're singing.
Beginner singers will like lying on their back since it can be awkward to sing in front of others when you first start doing voice lessons or performances.
Just remember that, as I said, this is only a starting practice point, and you'll want to work your way back to standing with the same good breathing and posture.
Closely related to your posture, your tightness and tension can also be reduced when you sing while lying down on your back.
A lot of tension that singers suffer from is focused right in the larynx and mouth area, and lying down automatically fixes that for you with this posture positioning.
Popular professor Richard Miller from the Oberlin College-Conservatory of Music wrote in his bestseller that "Lying on the back places the entire body, head to toe, in alignment, and the sternum is dissuaded from falling."
"In the supine position, the head, neck, and torso remain axial, and problems of laryngeal positioning, voice registration, and clavicular breathing are avoided."
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From the quote mentioned above, note that problems of voice registration can also be avoided when you sing while lying on your back.
This means that it will be easier to switch between your lower and higher register without feeling like you're going to crack or like you can't hit the notes easily.
Try to warm up while singing on your back by doing some vocal sirens up and down your vocal range at a loud volume.
Notice how good posture with good breathing and less tension will allow you to be more comfortable singing your higher and lower notes!
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