A dotted slur indicates that singers should not breathe between those notes. What is this instruction commonly labeled as?

A dotted slur indicates that singers should not breathe between those notes. What is this instruction commonly labeled as?

• A. Slur
• B. No Breath
• C. Breath Mark
• D. Cadenza

Answer: (B)

Breath control in vocal notation is what this is about. A dotted slur means the notes should be sung as one continuous, connected phrase without taking air in between. That specific instruction is commonly labeled No Breath, signaling the singer to sustain the line across the slur. A regular slur just indicates legato but doesn’t carry any breath instruction. A breath mark, shown as a comma-like symbol, is where you should take a breath—opposite of what the dotted slur indicates. A cadenza is an extended, showy passage and isn’t about whether you breathe between notes. So the dotted slur is best described as No Breath.

Breath control in vocal notation is what this is about. A dotted slur means the notes should be sung as one continuous, connected phrase without taking air in between. That specific instruction is commonly labeled No Breath, signaling the singer to sustain the line across the slur. A regular slur just indicates legato but doesn’t carry any breath instruction. A breath mark, shown as a comma-like symbol, is where you should take a breath—opposite of what the dotted slur indicates. A cadenza is an extended, showy passage and isn’t about whether you breathe between notes. So the dotted slur is best described as No Breath.