Question:
A student of my wants to develop his udana prana to help with his singing. What besides Shoulderstand and fish can he do?
Answer:
First of all let me clarify Udana Prana. It is a prana that moves upward from the chest thus on a physical level its function is to expel unwanted material by coughing or vomiting; emotionally it makes us feel uplifted and open in the chest thus lungs are more fully open; spiritually it becomes the kundalini to awaken our potential and move our attention beyond the physical, emotional, and mental levels to that of pure Spirit. Going upside down, expanding the chest, and backbends in general are a physical way to stimulate the prana and may help promote the function of organs in the upper torso.
For singing purposes the main practices I have found in couching is to do Bhastrika during asanas, and then run the scales while holding spinal twists and backbends. The major muscle to develop is the diaphragm for this Uddiyana bandha and Agnisar dhouti should be learned provided he has no heart or blood pressure difficulties. These need both be learned directly from yogi not from a book.
