Professional musicians have long intuited the power of breathing to shape phrasing and calm nerves. Violinist Augustin Hadelich has an excellent video on breathing and performance anxiety. Cellist Nicholas Canellakis even created a video parody of breathing cues. Recent research validates these instincts: a 2016 study in Tokyo, tracking 15 pianists, found that musicians naturally synchronize their breathing with musical structure, developing consistent breathing signatures across performances that reflect their interpretive approach¹. Research confirms that controlled breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system, reducing anxiety and improving focus², which is equally valuable for athletes and musical performers.
The Tokyo study revealed that breathing patterns actively organize musical architecture. Breath intervals shortened during faster tempi and remained remarkably consistent across multiple performances, suggesting breath integrates with musical memory. German research with flutists³ has shown that expert musicians anticipate musical events through changes in breathing rhythm, using breath as a form of preparation. While cellists do not breathe through their instruments, conscious breathing can be an effective tool for phrasing, timing, and emotional preparation.
Practical Applications
The research suggests specific ways cellists can integrate breathing into daily practice. Each musician must discover their own rhythm, but these approaches provide starting points:
During Technical Work:
Long bow warm-ups: Breathe in on down bows, out on up bows to coordinate breath and movement, mirroring what Hadelich describes as balancing relaxation at the frog with energy toward the tip (2'43" in Hadelich's video)
Before difficult passages: Use deliberate inhales as preparation and reset. Hadelich notes that conscious breathing helps him remain relaxed during challenging transitions where bow control becomes crucial
Technical exercises: Practice breathing consciously alongside scales and etudes.
For Musical Expression:
Phrase beginnings: Inhale before new phrases (NOT always on a down bow or at the frog). Hadelich extends this by thinking of musical phrases as having a conversational quality, like “speaking to the audience or singing to the audience with lyrics,” both forms warrant different approaches to breathing.
Musical peaks: Exhale after climactic moments through phrase endings. Hadelich uses breathing to smooth transitions during soft passages and maintain continuity in difficult moments
Performance anxiety: Use breath to reset after mistakes rather than dwelling on errors. Hadelich advises viewing adrenaline as excitement rather than anxiety, using conscious breathing to channel that energy productively
Beyond the Cello:
Daily routine: Incorporate breathing exercises like Baduanjin or other structured practices that transfer to musical performance
Mundane tasks: Develop an awareness of how much or little you breathe when performing daily tasks. When do you find yourself breathing deep or shallow?
Speech and singing: Try singing a musical phrase and notice when you breathe. When do you breathe during conversation or giving a speech?
The goal of practicing conscious breathing is to develop personal awareness of how breath supports technique and expression. Students benefit from experimenting with different approaches. Some coordinate breath with shifting, others use it for dynamics or anxiety management.
Ultimately, breathing practice prepares us for breathtaking performance by simulating the conditions we'll face onstage. As Hadelich demonstrates, the more we integrate conscious breathing into our daily routine, the more automatic it becomes in high-pressure situations. By making conscious breathing as routine as scales or etudes, cellists develop both the technical control and psychological resilience that enable truly breathtaking performance, when musical intention and physiological preparation unite in service of the music.
References:
Chaffin, R., et al. (2016). Relationship between Musical Characteristics and Temporal Breathing Pattern in Piano Performance. PLOS ONE. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4963403/
Zaccaro, A., et al. (2018). How Breath-Control Can Change Your Life: A Systematic Review on Psycho-Physiological Correlates of Slow Breathing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-92017-5
Rodger, M., et al. (2024). Coupling of anticipation and breathing in expert flute players during musical performance. Frontiers in Cognition. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cognition/articles/10.3389/fcogn.2024.1425005/full
Sports Performance and Breathing Rate Research (2023). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10224217/
Respiratory techniques in sports performance (2024). https://rsdjournal.org/rsd/article/view/46759
©2025. S. Aaron Wong. All rights reserved
