Can a singer sound DARK and also NASAL at the same time? Why YES! And, in fact, this skill is transformative for the voice. Normally, when we sing with nasal resonance, the Larynx has a tendency to rise and the sound tends to brighten. However, it is possible to keep a low Larynx while maintaining nasal resonance. To find this coordination, place one hand gently on your Larynx to feel that it’s dropping as you make a deep, dark, and rich sound. Place the other hand gently on your nostrils to feel the vibrations. If you feel both at the same time, then you’ve successfully blended these resonances! Although this blend may sound a bit bizarre to you at first, you are now experiencing your voice's MAXIMUM resonance capabilities! Congratulations!
Should the larynx be high or low? Neither. And both. Contrary to old beliefs, different larynx positions are actually a healthy and viable way to produce different vocal styles and timbres. Lower larynx positions provide a darker tone while high larynx positions enable a brighter vocal quality. However, the larynx should NOT be a pitch changer. Often a raised larynx is used to assist with singing high notes when the voice has not been developed or trained. This should be minimized as it can lead to major limitations and tensions in the voice. When developing your vocal technique, ensure that higher notes are accessible without hiking up the larynx. Once this has been achieved, if you choose to raise the larynx for stylistic purposes (like in a pop/rock tune), then feel free to raise it up! Explore all the possibilities your larynx has to offer!
Are you LISTENING to yourself when you sing? If so, then STOP! “Wait. What?!” Yes. It’s true! You can’t LISTEN to yourself and sing well at the same time. This doesn’t mean to sing off-key, to throw pitch and musicality out the window, or to never record yourself and listen back. It means that listening to ourselves puts us in a physical and mental state that isn’t conducive to our best sounds. Physically - the body and breath lock up when we listen really hard. Mentally - we get into a judgmental, critical, and analytical mindset when we’re listening really hard to ourselves. Singers who listen too hard to themselves often sound contrived, planned, and stiff. Instead of listening - try trusting your ears. Your audience will do the listening! You can do the TRUSTING!
TRAVEL can wreak havoc on the voice. Sleep schedules change, we end up sitting for long periods of time, and the temperature and humidity can vary wildly. Make sure to treat your voice well as you navigate these variables! Warm up gently in the morning if you switch time zones to avoid pushing your voice later in the day. Stay hydrated in new climates and especially on planes, which are notorious for drying us out. Find opportunities to stand up and walk every hour or two, and if that isn't possible, engage your muscles and stretch a bit while you sit. Keep your body active, your diet clean, and your vocal folds limber. If you do, your voice will travel in style!
All singers know that Breathing technique during singing is of the utmost importance. But what about Breathing technique while NOT singing? A common habit many of us have is to hold our breath unintentionally. This happens when the vocal folds shut and prevent air from moving in and out of the trachea and lungs. Many people don’t even notice that they are doing this! It’s wise to stay away from this habit due to its potential for unwanted vocal tension and also a stressful mental state. The best way to stay relaxed, both physically and mentally, is to allow our air to flow freely. Pay attention to yourself throughout the day when you are not making sounds and make sure that you are breathing freely and easily! In a way, it’s like practicing your singing ALL DAY!
Do you need a REASON to sing? No. But, if you think about it, you certainly have one. Or many! The Reasons people sing and express themselves through song are limitless. Each Reason is as unique as each person. Identifying the Reasons behind your singing is a powerful step toward becoming a True Artist. It helps you find song repertoire that speaks to you. It helps you perform from a place of authenticity since nobody in history will ever communicate through song exactly like you do. It helps you to feel grounded in yourself when the world tries to make you something other than beautiful YOU. So, every now and again, make sure you remember the REASON why you are doing this. It will guide your way. Like it always has.
TICK TOCK. Your number’s been called. TICK TOCK. It’s your turn in the audition room. TICK TOCK. Nerves are jumping, your mind is racing, and it’s tougher than ever to catch your breath. TICK TOCK!!! Before you launch into your song... slow time down. Pause….not with held breath or tense muscles, but with your imagination instead. Imagine time slowing nearly to a halt. Listen to your heartbeat and acknowledge it. Take a moment to breathe, to take in the room, and to really SEE your scene partner - imaginary or otherwise. What will seem like an eternity to you will really only be about 3-5 seconds of real time. Yet, you'll have allowed the INFINITE to join you in the room. And, this cool, collected, calm focus will last your ENTIRE audition. … tick … tock…
Becoming a True Artist often feels more like FORGETTING the things that we’ve learned than it feels like remembering them. Often, we are more alive and expressive when we don’t over-think our singing and we simply “forget ourselves”. Of course, it takes a lot of practice, training, and hard work to get to this place. But, once you've arrived, difficult phrases and songs will roll right out of you without giving them a single thought. Your SOUL takes over and you become the messenger - a vessel and an open channel for your truest artistry. Don’t forget to work hard and be disciplined and thoughtful about your technique. But once the hard work is done and you are ready to perform - don’t forget to FORGET!
Take your SINGING VITAMINS! Do you sometimes feel how, no matter how often you stretch, you’re still tense? The solution could be as simple as vitamins! A deficiency in Vitamin D and Magnesium has been shown to contribute to myoskeletal tension in the body. This includes the Larynx! It can be difficult to obtain sufficient amounts of these nutrients from dietary sources alone. And sadly, unless you live along the equator, your chances of absorbing enough Vitamin D from the sun are slim. Magnesium and Vitamin D are processed more efficiently when taken together. So, consider taking a supplement of each or a multivitamin. Continue your usual strategies to reduce vocal tension, but a daily dose of these critical nutrients could be just what your body needs!
Do you struggle with a vocal WOBBLE? A “wobble” is generally a Vibrato that is either too slow or that deviates from the fundamental pitch too far. Singers of all ages can develop wobbles, but it affects the aging voice even more. Luckily, there is hope! A wobble often is the result of singing too loudly, with too much force, with too much “weight”, or with an overly depressed larynx. Some solutions include practicing straight tone, experimenting with volume control exercises, and becoming skilled with a lighter and brighter tone quality. Agility exercises can also help to shed excessive wobbly weight and speed up the movement of the vocal folds. So, if things are WOBBLING for you - take heart! Some simple steps should STEADY your sound soon!
Do you have a hard time achieving VIBRATO? If so, you’re not alone. While some singers discover their Vibrato naturally, many others need time and practice to develop it. The BEST way to learn Vibrato is to UNDERSTAND it. Vibrato is a small pitch oscillation that can be created with the right Vocal Agility, Breath Support, and Resonance. The next time you practice, you might want to try some agility patterns, pitch bends, and quick staccato exercises. All of these things promote the kind of agility that is necessary for developing Vibrato. It may not come immediately, but understanding that you CAN and SHOULD work on your Vibrato will help you to discover it before too long!
Keep your vowels HONEST! Vowels are formed and changed by the shape of your throat, mouth, tongue, and nasal cavity. Sometimes it's desirable to modify the shape of a vowel as an acoustic choice, or when we want to stay in an M2 or "Head Voice" coordination as we go up in pitch. Usually, though, we want our vowels to stay the SAME. Nevertheless, vowels often change when we don’t mean for them to! Try singing a descending scale on an “AH” vowel. When you get to the bottom, are you still singing AH? Or has it changed to UH? Next, try singing an ascending scale on an “UH” vowel. When you reach the top, is it still UH? Or has it changed to AH? These kinds of vowel shifts mean that you're cheating your resonance chambers instead of honoring the resonance of the vowel you're singing. So, listen closely and make sure your vowels stay the same as you move up and down the scale. Keep your vowels HONEST!
Musical Theatre has some of the most emotionally electric songs that are immensely rewarding to perform and hear! - Cue the tears and the teeth gnashing! - Those songs are wonderful for the stage with lights, costumes, orchestra, and context. However, they don’t make the greatest audition songs. As fun as they are, when taken out of context they can read as unintentionally comical or simply deflated. In an audition, you don’t have the time to establish the necessary imaginary world for the adjudicators to appreciate your tour de force. So save the intense, emotional songs for your bedroom, car, or – hopefully - the actual stage! Focus on finding sincere songs that elevate you as a performer, instead of songs that are nearly impossible to live up to under harsh audition room lights.
Did you know that you can sing many notes in your range in MULTIPLE registers? In other words, you have the ability to sing a "G" (for example) in Chest Voice, Head Voice, Chest Dominant mix, Head Dominant Mix, Falsetto and everything in between! Oftentimes we get stuck thinking we have only two vocal options - a strong Chest Voice... or... Falsetto. Yet, your voice has so many more possibilities than this! Try an experiment! Sing any ol' note somewhere in the core of your range. Sing that note in your strongest Chest Voice. Then, sing the same note in your flimsiest Falsetto. Then, experiment with as many Mix gradations as you can in between. The changes will occur in terms of volume, compression, resonance, and intensity. If you can do all this on just ONE note, then imagine your voice's INFINITE possibilities!
It’s time for a little Vocal LIMBO! “How low can you go” in your Head Voice and Falsetto? In popular music, it’s very common to hear singers singing HIGH in Chest Voice. Many singers mimic this aesthetic because it often sounds thrilling and exciting. Yet, it’s actually just as important to practice taking your Head Voice and Falsetto as LOW as you can take them as well. This may not be aesthetically pleasing to you. In fact, it usually sounds quite weak. However, doing this balances the voice in terms of vocal technique and also vocal health. Plus, it will assist you with developing the Mix and will give you more possibilities for stylistic nuances, dynamics, and dramatic choices. So practice the Vocal LIMBO, and find out: “How low can you go” in Head Voice and Falsetto!
Everyone knows that certain songs are unfailing crowd-pleasers. You sing one line and the whole room joins you. It’s helpful to have songs like this in your repertoire to pull out on a whim. However, don’t limit yourself to crowd favorites! It’s ideal to be able to perform not only sure-fire hits, but lesser known melodies as well. When you sing a piece that's unfamiliar to the listener, they won’t be distracted by wanting to join in and can focus their attention on the singing itself! Your audiences will become even more interested in your performances simply due to the VARIETY of your repertoire alone. You may also introduce them to a new artist or style of music in the process. This is a crowd-pleaser in itself!
Mastering your Vocal Resonance can feel like riding a seesaw. It’s all about BALANCE! Balanced Resonance is the key to a healthy, long lasting, and skillful voice. As we sing higher, we should gradually shift from oral resonance to nasopharyngeal and Nasal Resonance. Or, in short, from the MOUTH to the HEAD. This ensures that we're allowing the vocal folds to lengthen as pitches rise. Think of what you might call “shout singing.” This resonance imbalance favors oral resonance too much and sounds heavy, thick, and immovable. A resonance imbalance in favor of too much Nasal Resonance might sound loose, sometimes breathy, and even "nasal". As you traverse your range, try to notice whether the seesaw has tilted too much toward a mouth-driven sound or if it’s become too contained in the head. Keep your vocal seesaw in BALANCE!
One of the most important vocal skill-sets is Vowel CLARITY. It’s sometimes okay to change Vowels in singing. This is called “Vowel Modification”. However, our first goal must be to sing our vowels as accurately as possible before modifying them. For example, is your EE vowel as BRIGHT as it should be? Or is it slipping into something like an IH sound? Or, what about the OH vowel? Are you using your lips to form the vowel or is the tongue retracting backwards instead? The concept of Vowel Clarity has been around since the foundations of Vocal Technique and applies to all musical styles. If your vowels can all be sung accurately, then your voice is going to find a great balance of resonance, breath, registration, control, and CLARITY!
When it comes to vocal style, CONSONANTS can make an even stronger statement than vowels. Do you start your words strong with a firm punch? Or with an airy and breathy tone? When you finish your words, do you perhaps hum on an M or N for a few seconds like Sarah Vaughan? Or, do you spit your consonants out with conviction like Michael Jackson? Consonants can also affect the vowels you sing. A strong consonant like G or B can make it easier to belt. An N or SH might make it easier to find a lighter place in your voice. Making deliberate choices with your Consonants will enhance your personal vocal style a hundredfold!
The jaw is one of the most common areas of tension when we sing. To help loosen the jaw, let your HANDS participate in the jaw’s movement. Let your mouth drop open, then close it again. Repeat this with your hands on your jawbone. Let them pull down gently as your jaw drops, following the jaw’s motion. Repeat this a few times. Then, let your hands gently drive the downward motion. If that feels good, try moving your jaw slightly from side to side. Again, start by letting your jaw lead and your hands follow. Then, let your hands lead and your jaw follow. The difference in tone quality when singing with a relaxed jaw is quite remarkable! But, sometimes it needs a helping hand!