What Singer, In Your Opinion, Has A Very Big Lung Capacity?

[Rafael Lao Wai]

One of my favorite activities is singing, and I noticed that when I'm bloated, It's very hard to sing without straining the throat, not to mention that the frequency of breathing increases, since the edema takes up space in the belly area.

When I'm listening to a song, I like watching the recorded live version, to see how the singer behaves. One of the bands that I listen to the most is probably Keane, especially their first album, as well as their live shows from 2003- 2004( which there are quite a lot of, as far as I know). The lead singer Tom Chaplin seems to have a very big lung capacity. He can sing without straining his voice, and he can exhale for a long time too. In all of the videos that I've seen from them performing, he seems to have a consistently flat belly. I never saw any bloating on his mid- section. He does have bloating on his face sometimes, which is interesting.

He's also very tall, which probably means he had access to good food while growing up, and satisfied his nutritional needs at least decently. He does seem to have a narrow palate though( mouth-breathing/ lack of mewing?).

From the bands that you listen to, did any singer stand out as having a lot of exhaling/ lung capacity?

 

[schultz]

Enrico Caruso

Can be tricky to figure out since a mic can allow somebody to sound loud, even if they are actually singing quite softly. Some performers can use the mic to their advantage as to not strain their voices (especially if they have 8 shows a week).

 

[mangoes]

Maybe great singers have a higher percentage of lung capacity than most people do (probably) but I think it’s more about how they use their breath efficiently

Morissette Amon a Filipino singer

2:57 - 3:11 sustained b4 straight into a whistle run without taking a breath
3:38 - 3:52 14 second phrase full of belting in her mid range
Interestingly she had a throat tumour apparently as a child

Park Hyo Shin a Korean soloist

4:16 - 4:37 a 21 second phrase!

Lisa Fischer, Rachelle Ferrell and David Phelps also all come to mind. For some more mainstream types Beyoncé and Barbra Streisand are really good at breath control

 

[Kingpinguin]

Aerosmiths Steven Tyler





Hitting that E6 note sounds like this top notes of an electric guitar. Being 71 years old his voice is basically unchanged even though decades later singing like a mad man and using drugs.

 

[Kingpinguin]

Matt bellamy from muse aswell insane voice. Really different and cool. Knights of cydonia here with enhanced vocals just let you hear some crazy sh it

 

[Hazarlar]

Dimash Kudaibergen

 

[mangoes]

Dimash Kudaibergen

+1

 

[Inaut]

David Hasslehoff.

Simply the best.

 

[dfspcc20]

No mention of Bill Withers? (longest recorded note of 18 seconds)

 

[methylenewhite]

From the bands that you listen to, did any singer stand out as having a lot of exhaling/ lung capacity?

I aware of one black metal band, it's vocalist really does have extreme capacity. I will not post here because of their far-far-far right political position which I don't support. PM me if you want.

 

[Jennifer]

Off the top of my head — Journey's Steve Perry, Queen's Freddie Mercury, Heart's Ann Wilson, Guns N' Roses' Axl Rose, Evanescence's Amy Lee, Metallica's James Hetfield, Linkin Park's Chester Bennington, Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl, The Guess Who's Burt Cummings, The Righteous Brothers, the Sonohra brothers, Pat Benatar, Meat Loaf, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Barbara Streisand, Aretha Franklin, Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli, Sarah Brightman, Idina Menzel, Charice Pempengco (now Jake Zyrus), Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Adam Lambert, Hozier, Ariana Grande, Josh Groban, James Arthur, Janis Joplin...

 

[TheSir]

He can sing without straining his voice, and he can exhale for a long time too. In all of the videos that I've seen from them performing, he seems to have a consistently flat belly. I never saw any bloating on his mid- section. He does have bloating on his face sometimes, which is interesting.

Flat midsection = activation of diaphragm. The diaphragm should contract inward and upward against the spine and lungs, flattening out the upper stomach (it's different from just sucking the stomach in). Doing so builds up diaphragmatic muscle tone, which then will give you precise control over how much you exhale. Producing voice requires very little exhalation, so when you learn to stabilize your exhale into a minute flow you are able to sustain the voice very long. Keeping the diaphragm contracted also gives effortless resonance and depth to the voice.

 

[Regina]

Enrico Caruso

Can be tricky to figure out since a mic can allow somebody to sound loud, even if they are actually singing quite softly. Some performers can use the mic to their advantage as to not strain their voices (especially if they have 8 shows a week).

Caruso was my first thought too. And Bjorling. Pavarotti no slouch.
Sinatra had big tank.

 

[yerrag]

Aside from lung capacity and breath control, I'd like to add from my perspective. I used to sing in a church choir, and I came to think that I can't sing well when I don't have breakfast before I sang in a morning mass. My voice would crack when I hold an extended note. I thought this self-made rule applied to everyone. Until I told my fellow bass about it, and he told me he never had breakfast before coming up to sing. It kept me wondering.

It wasn't until I did some therapies (it wasn't really so much therapy but a series of things done over the years) to improve my blood sugar regulation and the oxygen carrying capacity of my bloodand that I realized it was these things that made my voice crack so easily. It's all about energy, and if I'm low on oxygen and sugar, how can I have a steady unfaltering source of energy to drive my vocal chords?

Another thing that lends to have a bellowing voice is the way the nose and the face and the mouth are structured. They should all combine well to create a deep resonance when the vibration from the vocal chords come out. Having a good deep bass is just as important as being able to carry a high pitch. My brother-in-law, who is a composer and choir conductor, and teaches singing as well, told me that it's easier to train one to singing higher pitch than to make one lower his pitch.

One more thing: resonance is also important. If you hold two tuning forks of the same frequency, say 512, and hit one to let it vibrate, it will cause the other tuning fork to vibrate as well. This increases the depth and volume. Something like that is at work when we hear someone having depth in his voice. His body is well tuned to give that resonance.

 

[Rafael Lao Wai]

Great answers! Thanks, everyone. Lots of artists for me to look into.

@schultz I can see that being the case. Some singers even use play- back.

@TheSir That's a good point about the importance of the diaphragm. I think this explains why some people report getting a weak voice when they feel bloated. And as you and @amaranthine said, knowing how to properly make use of the organs that are involved in singing may be more important than just having a huge lung space.

@yerrag Yeah, with less energy, the body won't be vigorous. Hitting notes will be harder, and remembering lyrics as you sing sing will be much more difficult too. Also, very interesting about voice depth and resonance. I do find it easier to sing notes between G3- F4 than notes that are below that range.