HEAR what you FEEL! At NYVC, we always encourage our students to record their Voice Lessons. Listening back to these recordings is an important part of understanding how what you FEEL connects to what your listeners HEAR. When you’re practicing at home, recording is an important discipline as well. Especially if you’re developing a new skill or rehearsing a song. Once you’ve finished a song or exercise, listen back objectively and evaluate what you heard. This will help you progress faster and will make you a better self-teacher. As a bonus, when you’re listening to other singers, you'll naturally begin to understand the mechanics behind how they make their sounds as well. HEAR what you FEEL!
"Networking" or "Schmoozing" are key parts of building connections and contacts within the entertainment industry. These things often have a negative connotation because they seem to imply that you have ulterior motives. That is, that you are falsely cozying up to someone for your own benefit. But, it actually should never be that way! Instead, successful Networking can best be thought of as a sincere desire to connect with and help others. If you consider your relationships from that perspective, it can be a VERY fulfilling and effective experience. As Zig Ziglar often said, "You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help enough other people get what they want".
Singing, acting, dancing, modeling, performing. In all of these crafts, how you see yourself and how you present yourself are vital. This is why PERFECTIONISM is the greatest ENEMY of performers. All of us have a desire deep down to look perfect, sound perfect, act perfect, and BE perfect. However, since this is unattainable, it frustrates and even DESTROYS our artistry and individuality. So, the next time you go onstage to perform - think about who YOU really are and how you are going to present yourself. Are you perfect? No. So, should you try to show perfection to your audience? No. What do you show them instead? Show them your self-expression, your work-in-progress craft, your beautiful weaknesses, and your SOUL... in that moment. Perfect.
What is your audition song FOR? Audition and performance success relies on you knowing the PURPOSE of every song in your repertoire. All of your material should be meaningful to you as an artist. However, it should also be meaningful for the circumstances for which it will be used. If a pop/rock tune suits you well, it probably won’t work for your upcoming Golden Age musical theater audition or for an evening of show-stopping standards. Or, if you only get to sing 16-bars for your audition, there's no point performing a song that really only works if you get through two verses. Consider the many circumstances at which you are asked to sing: auditions, concerts, showcases, open-mics, weddings, and more. The more you expand your repertoire with a purposeful approach, the more your songs will be perfectly suited to any singing situation!
Selecting the right Musical Theatre audition songs can be DAUNTING. Where do you start? Well, first try choosing a few actors or actresses whose careers you admire. What roles have they performed? What songs have they sung in concerts? What concept albums have they recorded? There are a wealth of excellent and unique songs to find by using an established Musical Theatre star’s career as a starting point. For another easy place to start, check out the Internet Broadway Database (ibdb.com). It offers a comprehensive look at actors' and actress’ Broadway credits. With this resource, you’ll never run out of artists and shows to glean new song ideas from! Why not learn from the BEST?
Tension in the singing voice is often due to the voice's relationship with the SOLAR PLEXUS. The Solar Plexus is the upper abdominal region just below the sternum. This area of the body has an indirect relationship with your vocal folds. If the Solar Plexus is tight, the voice will be tight! To work on freeing this area, place your hand gently into your Solar Plexus. When you inhale, the Solar Plexus should either push outward or remain soft. This is a great way to ensure that your Solar Plexus is open and that your voice is tension-free! Let your voice and your Solar Plexus SHINE!
Can you do Lip Trills? They’re one of the most popular vocal exercises and also one of the best ways to eliminate vocal tension. Lips Trills cause increased supraglottic pressure behind the lips, which helps to decrease subglottic pressure beneath the vocal folds. Singers often describe the sensation as LIGHT and EFFORTLESS. If you've never done a Lip Trill before, start by gently pouting your lips. Exhale with a steady breath stream until your lips vibrate. See if you can sustain a steady vibration for 5-10 seconds. If you have trouble, try holding the corners of your lips or try blowing more or less air. Once this is easy to manage, add voiced sounds and notes. You can Lip Trill on scales or on songs. Practicing this will take the “weight” out of your singing and give you greater flexibility, breath control, and even vocal range!
Have you ever seen singers move their JAW when they sing Riffs? Interestingly, this can be both a bad thing OR a good thing. It just depends on the circumstances. For most singing, jaw movement that corresponds with pitch movement is a very bad habit. This can happen during vibrato, during Riffs, or just when moving from note to note. Very GOOD vocal technique happens when the vocal folds are solely responsible for pitch adjustments. So, the first step to Riffs and vocal agility is to move the notes WITHOUT moving the jaw. On the other hand, more advanced Riffers sometimes use their jaws for a stylistic rearticulation of Riff notes. This is a sort of vocal “sound effect” that adds an extra accent detail to complex Riffs. Rule of thumb: don’t use your jaw to Riff. (But, there may come a day when it’s okay!)
How many times have you started singing a song you love, only to discover you don't actually know the words? It's easy to listen to songs and enjoy the tune without really paying attention to the lyrics. Yet, lyrics are essential to a song's success. How do the song’s words communicate a story or a feeling? From a technical perspective, how do the consonants and vowels in each word establish style and texture? Do the breaths within the song change the meaning of the phrases and sentences? Lyrics give singers countless opportunities to communicate and express themselves. Your musicality, technique, and acting will all benefit from awareness of how the lyrics complement the music. So, next time you listen - or sing along - give the words the attention they deserve!
From rappers to auctioneers - We have all stood in AWE of those who possess the ability to speak quickly and clearly with prolific prowess. If we challenge ourselves via exercises (cue: TONGUE TWISTERS!), speaking in real life will seem easy in comparison! Start slowly, carefully, and deliberately to achieve the full integrity of each individual sound. Then gradually speed up until you can go five times as fast for each of these Twisters!
“Red leather, yellow leather."
“My cutlery cuts keenly and cleanly."
“Shy Shelly says she shall sew sheets."
"You know New York, You need New York, You know you need unique New York."
... Word...
When you listen to a singer, do you listen? Or, do you REALLY listen? Critical listening is an invaluable skill for a growing singer. You can learn so much about stylistic nuances, performance choices, and vocal technique by listening very intelligently to what a singer is doing each and every moment. Which notes are breathy and which are compressed? When do they Belt or use Head Voice, Mix, or Chest Voice? Does the singer ever use Vocal Fry or other textures? What is the dramatic intention or acting choice? What about vibrato or straight tone? Next time you listen to your favorite singer: start... stop... replay... then replay again and again. It’s one thing to be a fan. It’s another thing to be an artist. Artists REALLY listen.
Singing is Joyful. Yet, sadly it often has FEAR surrounding it. Do you sing more quietly because you’re scared of someone hearing and judging you? Do you avoid telling people you sing? Do you constantly say negative things to yourself about your own voice? If so, fear might be one of your biggest vocal challenges. But consider replacing fear with JOY! “I have a wonderful gift to share.” “I make good vocal choices and I'm kind to my singing voice.” “I draw inner strength, confidence, and bravery from my vocal life.” And most importantly: “I trust myself”. These thoughts can help you before auditions, performances, and other situations that scare you. Singing doesn’t have to be a fearful noise. Let it be a Joyful one!
Want to sing powerful high notes with more freedom? Then LEAN BACK! Okay, so maybe posture from “The Matrix” movie isn’t ideal for singing, but THINKING about leaning back can really help. Singing high with Chest Voice and Chest Dominant Mix can sometimes cause your beautiful, tall singing posture to wilt and weaken. The upper abdominals tighten, the shoulders slump down, the neck collapses, and the jaw thrusts forward. Instead of letting that forward pull get the best of you, use a gentle BACKWARDS LEAN to counter these tendencies. Glide your head back, bring the ears over your shoulders, and softly tug your shoulders back and down. LEAN BACK and you’ll notice that your voice instantly GOES FORTH!
Do you feel that your Head Voice is WEAK and lacks the strength and support of your Chest Voice and Mix? The Head Voice can, in fact, be powerful like your other vocal registers! There are three things to focus on in your technique when trying to strengthen your Head Voice - larynx position, jaw freedom, and breath support. A great exercise to help promote all three of these skills is singing “HWAW” on 1-5-1 in your Head Voice. Be mindful that your larynx doesn’t rise too high. Keep your jaw relaxed, narrow, and downward. Make sure that your breath is small yet flowing and energetic. Above all, though, don’t be TIMID! Never fear making a bold and big sound with your Head Voice!