March 2024
Nose Breath
While many times in music you must take quick catch breaths with your mouth, when you come to rests in your music, take deep NOSE breaths. Why?
The mouth breath can fill only up to 1/3 of the lungs, while the nose breath can fill 2/3. The remaining 1/3 is always there to prevent the lungs from collapsing and sticking together on the inside.
The nose does three things to your breath that the mouth does not::
1. Cleans the air--using both mucus and the cilia (like tiny hairs) to catch dirt and dust
2. Warms the air--blood vessels are quite close to the surface; heat transfers quickly;
3. Moistens the air--the long way through the nose picks up moisture from the mucus
Because of these positive actions, the body has nerve endings in the nose that trigger the intercostal muscles of the rib cage. As a protective mechanism from dry, dirty, cold air, this allows the ribs to lift in your back, thus allowing you to draw a deeper breath than with the mouth.