Breath Mark

[leigh anne]

What is a breath mark? Is it a rest or what?

[quantum]

Think of a person that speaks in a monotone voice, with no inflection or distinction between words.  Think of a person that speaks so fast and can seemingly go on for ages without ever stopping to take in more air.  Think of a document with run-on sentences that last for an entire page and mix so many ideas together the reader does not know where one starts and another ends.  These scenarios would be analogues to music that does not contain a breath.

A breath mark is exactly what it says it is, a breath.  Just as we breathe when we speak to clarify our words, to create natural pauses in our sentences for punctuation, and distinguish between various ideas, we must also do the same in music.