Live Singing Microphone Techniques

Microphones are the "hole in the fence" you sing through to reach an audience. You need to know what to do with them. Here are some tips for developing great mic technique:

• Don't hold a mic like an ice cream cone.
• Don't hold the butt end of the mic up continuously.
  

• Do hold a mic at 45 degrees. This helps you pull instead of push your voice.

The slant you hold the mic at can make a big difference in how wide your ribs are (where your diaphragm is connected) and in where your chin is... affecting how tight your throat is. Holding it like an ice cream cone will also limit what it picks up in your voice, making it sound thin instead of rich. When you do hold a mic with butt end up for dramatic effect, make sure your elbows are out from your sides so your ribcage expands.

• Don't hold a mic in your hand limply. Many people do this! Believe it or not, it usually causes a loss of breath support and control, which will go on to affect the throat.

• Do grasp a mic steady in the groove between thumb and fingers, with energy -- and make it part of your feeling of power.
  

I recently found the source of a mic holding issue in one of my students. Her habits as a drummer were causing her problems. She was holding the mic in "match grip" position with her thumb long-ways towards her mouth. This was causing tension in her arm going up to her shoulder, and of course on to her throat. When I had her curl her thumb comfortably around the mic instead, her upper arm & shoulder relaxed and her vocal control increased easily.

• Do squeeze a mic for extra breath power and control. You can do this with both hands around the mic. But ...
  

• Don't let this squeeze transfer up your arm and...
  
• Don't let this squeeze cause you to squeeze your elbows into your sides

When you squeeze the mic, do it in such a way that it causes your ribcage and nostrals to expand. Sounds strange, but you must learn to power yourself open instead of closed.

• Don't pull the mic so far away from your mouth that it ceases to pick your voice up. If your vocal technique is correct, you should not have huge differences in volume.
  

• SLIGHTLY pull a mic away from your mouth - sort of to the side - on power notes. This can even help you properly "pull" instead of "push" your vocal sound.

And lastly, a couple of random mic ettiquite tips:

• Always try to schedule a mic check before beginning your performance!
  
• Never point a mic at a speaker.
• Avoid mashing and crimping the cord at the base to avoid shorting it.
• Make sure the thing is on :)
  

I'd love to hear from you about your experiences with microphones. Go online and hit the comment button!

Also, if you like this post, please hit a social network button and recommend it. Thanks!

Payoffs for bad vocal technique

We do things for reasons. Singing badly is no exception to this psychological fact.

A useful tool in changing a behavior habit is to discover the "payoff" bad behavior is getting you, and then finding a better way to get that payoff met.

Take cigarette smoking.
We don't do it to give ourselves lung cancer. We do it for positively perceived payoffs. One big one: it seems to take stress away. But here's the truth: Cigarettes are ultimately counter-productive for minimizing stress. In effect, it lies to us. The stress and worry caused by range and tone-limiting changes in your voice, the weak immune system that allows you to get sick for that career gig, and your growing lack of stamina for reaching your life goals the ultimate shortening of life itself- far outweigh the addictive fix of a cancer stick.

OK! We identified a major payoff for smoking... now let's find some stress relieving substitutes:

• some great nutrition (simple protein, vitamins, minerals and herbal supplimentation that de-acidify you also calm nerves), and consider getting tested to discover your individual needs,
  
• some breathing exercises (a proven calming tactic),
  
• possibly some interim drugs (no, not cocaine :<) such as nicotine "patch" to deal with cravings,
  
• some oxygenating physical exercise (also stress-diminishing),
  
• some wise human counseling (talking with a therapist and/or wise friend who can offer you encouragement, incentive and accountability).
  
• some knowledge- about what smoking does, how it is really possible to quit no matter how "hooked" you seem to be.

Before you know it... you're chewing on carrots, washing all your stinky clothes and wondering how on earth anyone could ever want to light those horrible sticks up anyway! (there's nothing like a reformed smoker:)

So what are some payoffs for bad vocal technique? Let's identify a few:

• To hit that high note
• To hit a low note
• To carry a long note
• To hit pitch more accurately (a big payoff for session singers)
  
• To communicate passion
• To sing over the live band volume
• To talk so you're heard in a noisy club
  
• To please the studio producer who keeps asking for "more, more, more"
  
• To please the judges who want so see something over the top

Get the picture? These are all worthy payoffs. But here's the truth: Bad vocal technique will make every one of these problems worse... and if they do momentarily seem get you to a goal, the limitations and damage they will cause your voice will far outweigh the momentary strain-fix. A vocal career can and frequently is cut short by the wrong solutions to these payoffs.

Some substitutes to meet these vocal payoffs:

• Find out how to balance breath support and breath control... maximizing the size of the "vocal channel" while eliminating over-blowing air against vocal cords.
• Learn to set-up and follow-through to make high notes as strain-free as middle notes.
  
• Use the right posture for hitting low notes.
• Learn how to use your hands to help you sustain a long note smoothly
• Learn how you can balance breath, open throat and communication to have surgically-precise pitch with perfect tone color to match the emotion.
  
• Discover how to mix a good middle voice instead of straining, pushing chest voice as high as it will go (i.e. the contest singer misguidedly pushing Martina McBride Mercy Me, Switchfoot or Christina Aguilera pushed from chest... argh!!!!)
• When in the vocal booth ranslate the word "more" into "richer".
  
• Find out how to incorporate your face, hands, legs- your whole being- into communicating passion that moves the heart, but does not strain the voice!
• Get your speaking voice assessed- every time you speak, you practice vocal technique!

My suggestion: if you need to make payoffs like this, get some vocal training. There are many ways to train, such as getting free lessons from reading blogs like this, investing in wise vocal training products, taking personal lessons from a coach you trust, or a combination of strategies. It can also be helpful to have real vocal producer with your production team in the studio. Kudos to all my precious students and clients reading this- for your dedication to true vocal excellence!

Bottom line:
To change bad vocal habits, you have to learn new ones that actually meet your payoffs even better. Or you WON'T change. Practice solutions for real and lasting vocal goal payoffs until they are habits - instead of letting counter-productive strategies drive vocal payoffs into foreclosure!


For info on Power, Path & Performance vocal training products, go here
For info on Power, Path & Performance personal lessons, go here.
For info on my production services, go here.

And if you find this post helpful, please consider sharing on the social networking buttons you see below the post (online) , tweeting this post and/or hitting the comment link and sharing your thoughts!

Singing causes tissue adaptation!

When we sing, our tissues and muscles change. This is all the more reason to practice with as much perfection of form as possible on your vocal exercises.

There is a vocal coach I have been talking to on the vocalist social network website "The Modern Voice.com" named HIH Darrison Noto Bentheim Murat. Writing on his recent blogpost, veteran opera singers have what is known as "frontal tracking" which he says is like a callous starting at the gum line at the top of the teeth going back along the "suture line" to the soft palate, which can be felt with the tongue.

Now I know most of you reading my blog will not be opera singers, but this concept has a lot to do with all kinds of contemporary singing, too. The act of consciously, properly and habitually placing your voice in the voice "Path" of the open throat that I talk about causes certain muscles to strengthen and coordinate, certain tissues to become more flexible and certain adaptations in various structures of the throat and mask. This makes it easier to get in the right place the next time you sing.

Breath function works this way, too. If you get in the habit of correct inhale, breath support and breath control, certain muscles strengthen and coordinate and others (shoulders, neck, jaw) relax and become flexible.

Psychological habits also cause physical adaptations. If you perform as communication, your face will get a work-out. Your body language will be sensitive to what it is actually communicating instead of just going through the motions of singing.

This incredible knowledge should give you fresh incentive for what should be one of your new year resolutions: To practice using your voice correctly. The better the form, the more this practice becomes your "modus operandi", and you wouldn't think of singing any other way, because your body has adapted to "make it so". (yeah, I'm a trekkie)

It should also let you know that you are capable of more voice than you think... if you work with great vocal technique. A beginning chef or guitar player has hands that are not nearly ready for the heat and moisture a master chef's hands deal with, or for the riffs and stamina of playing by a veteran guitar player.

Practicing INCORRECTLY, on the other hand, is like banging on a piano. The vibrations actually affect the wood of the instrument... playing well makes a piano "sound" better as the wood hardens around those great vibrations. Playing poorly messes up the wood.

So... work mindfully and carefully as you do your vocal exercises and/or your pitch practice, and if you are interested, join the modern voice.com network and add me as friend!

Singing with your eyes closed

I got an email from someone recently who said they thought they sang better with their eyes open instead of closed and wondered why.

Well, actually you CAN sing just fine with your eyes closed.
Or not.

What matters is what else you're doing with your eyes closed.

It WON'T work if:

• You are going too far in to your head, like a songwriter writing or rehearsing a song. You must at all times be communicating TO someone with passion befitting the lyric.

• You are numbing out, just going through the motions and avoiding eye contact with others

It WILL work if:

• You move behind those closed eyes. Your eyebrows must lift naturally like if you were actively engaging someone with your eyes open. Your mask (nose, sinuses, eye sockets) must be engaged. A great example was the awesome singer Etta who just recently passed away. I watched a taped performance of her on National Public Television tonight.

• You are really talking to someone with your emotions. It's hard to freeze behind the eyes when you are truly communicating.
  

• You are actually closing your eyes because it feels like the most honest emotionally appropriate thing for you to do at the time. (best reason)
  

So, how do you know if you're doing the right thing when you sing with your eyes closed?

If your throat gets tight, you're not.
If your ribcage is still instead of open, you're not.
If your vocal ability is more limited than when your eyes are open, you're not.
If you are not feeling something yourself, you're not.
If you open your eyes and the audience is still with you, you probably are, unless they know you and just wondered if you're closing your eyes because you're about to pass out :<

What's your experience?

4 Steps of Vocal Training

I believe that there are four steps to vocal training. These are the steps I take:

1. ACCESS THE VOICE

• It's important to discover your vocal strengths and weaknesses because only by becoming aware can you change or keep doing things on purpose that work.
  

• As part of an assessment, you should also explore your vocal goals and what it may take to accomplish them.

2. REPAIR and HEAL VOCAL DAMAGE

If you have damaged your voice, you need to know it for two reasons:

• You may need to go to a doctor or clinic specializing in the voice to see if the damage is so pronounced that medical intervention might be necessary or voice rest prescribed before trying to build a damaged voice back to health in vocal training. Some of these problems can be vocal nodes, polyps, paralysis or partial paralysis of the vocal folds (cords).

• You also need to gain assurance if there is no physical damage, or if corrective vocal training will allow your voice to heal from any damage they find.

Damaging habits can and must be overcome by re-training in correct vocal technique. Here's a wake up- screaming for 20 minutes can cause blood blisters on the edges of vocal cords...the beginning of dreaded vocal "nodes"

3. IMPROVE and MAXIMIZE VOCAL ABILITY

There are all kinds of muscles which can be strengthened and others which can be relaxed, and body movements that can become much more coordinated for optimal operations of the voice.

• Breath problems can be overcome; the truth is, it doesn't take nearly as much breath as you may think to sing or speak, if the breath technique is correct.

• A weak, tight, thin, hooty or voice can, with right vocal training, become richly resonant. Often the person feels they have gained a voice they never knew they had!

• The psychological and spiritual components that go into effective performance that moves the heart can be drawn out and focused.

Vocal training should enable steady progress in vocal improvement, until the person's vocal goals of the are attainable.

4. PROTECT AND MAINTAIN THE WHOLENESS OF THE VOICE

Vocal warm-ups and warm-downs as well as longer vocal exercise routines should be learned and practiced in an ongoing program. They will support and protect the voice physically by maintaining correct co-ordination between the voice and the body.

When these 4 steps are completed, the vocalist should be the best he or she can or wants to be. One more thought:

If a vocalist is working professionally, it is my opinion that they should touch base from time to time with a vocal coach they trust to keep the voice from forming sneaky bad habits which limit vocal ability and can lead to damage. The lessons at that point don't have to be regular, just a check-up with any necessary corrections. Think about it; why did Tiger Woods have to get back to lessons? He stopped doing what worked. But you know what... he's back, and he's bad in a very good way!!

For information about my "Power, Path & Performance vocal training courses on cd, go here.

For information about my "Power, Path & Performance" personal lessons, go here.

Things I've learned from other vocal coaches

I went to a workshop last week in Nashville taught by veteran vocal coach Jeannie Deva who came in from LA. I was so happy I went, because she is delightful and I learned some things.

I never want to stop learning. When I expose myself to others in my field, I come away with three things:

1. New insights and information or corrections to add to my techniques
   
2. Confirmation of the techniques I use and...
   
3. Fresh insight into why I may think a technique is wrong.

I'd like to acknowledge some of the biggest and most effective things I've learned from other vocal coaches:

From Jeannie Deva:

• I learned that if you purpose a finger's touch to mean a certain thing, you can affect yourself greatly. Such as... putting two fingers lightly on your Adam's apple and telling it to relax. I even use this in the studio. It helps me not raise my larynx when I'm tired. I've used it with many students with great success.
  
• To warm down as well as up!

From the Feldenkraus method as taught by Yochanan Rywerant:

• That touching my students very lightly can be very useful in helping them dispel tension.
• That if a muscle is stretched too far or too fast or even perceives that it is approaching it's limit, it can adversely contract, increasing tension instead of relaxing it.
  

From the Alexander method as taught by Ron Murdock:

• The amazing and illuminating anatomical connections between the body and the diaphragm and larynx which help me understand the mechanics of the entire voice like never before.

From Jeffrey Allen:

• He is the originator of the hook- or question mark- shaped voice path which I use to put my PPP method together.
• To think of breath control and breath support as opposites.

From Jamie Vendura:

• To suggest that a vocalist use the "Inhalation Sensation" to help develop breath control

From Chris Beatty:

• The value of wall work

From Florence Henderson

• To ask God to sing through me when I perform which cures any stage anxiety for me and for some of my students
  

From Seth Riggs

• To watch my students for undue raising or lowering of the larynx

From Dr. Susan Miller:

• The value of the "siren" as part of warm-up.

From the great Van Christy:

• That there are time-honored vocal techniques which will ALWAYS lead to better voices. I can't tell you how much I've learned from those old "Expressive Singing" books! This is classical training, and I have found most of it to be directly applicable to contemporary singing.
  

From my own professional coach and voice-healer, Gerald Arthur

• To watch for "guarded" singing in my students.
  
• The value of professional vocal coaching; the incredible healing and maximization of potential that can indeed occur.

To my students:

• Who never tire of bringing me unique and challenging puzzles! Each one is different, and I have grown as a teacher - and enlarged my bag of tricks! - from exploring what works or doesn't work with each one.
  

Thanks also to Dr. Dwaine Allision for his chiropractic insight into spinal conditions and positions that affect the voice.

I've learned things NOT to do or teach as well, though I'll not name my sources :) I am also keenly aware that even though a teacher teaches correctly, a student may take that direction wrong or to extreme. So I keep tweaking my teaching, and like all good voice teachers, try to find insight anywhere it may be found. My caveat is: It must work! So thanks again to all who have taught me to teach. What a great joy it is for me to be part of other vocalists' successful journeys.

Finding Your Voice - how it can help psychologically

The human voice communicates from the inside out. As a vocal coach, I have discovered that when I help someone "find their voice"- the full instrument - this is often accompanied by a fullness and wholeness in the human psyche.

Many times it is psychological blocks that keep the voice small, thin, strained and weak. When a person discovers and feels the vibrations of vocal resonance they never knew or had forgotten they could create, it can be quite freeing for the spirit. The speaking voice can illuminate issues just as much as the singing voice, and healing the speaking voice is frequently a prerequisite to healing the singing voice.

Everyone needs to know their voices are valid. I have become quite sure that to live a truly satisfied life we need to believe our lives have meaning to others. If I somehow come to believe my voice is not 1. allowed 2. heard, 3. valued - I will not sound my voice, or will sound it weakly, thinly or harshly in rebellion of the suppression. After all, what's the point in making pleasing, melodic sounds if there is no reception for the message? My voice gets lost.

The truth is, everyone's voice IS valid! This truth can get muddied in childhood by parents who for one reason or other never really listen, siblings who get more of the attention or when the child even merely PERCEIVES that this is the case. It get lost in adulthood from subtle negative cues from society, abusive relationships, traumatic events and physical illness, mental illness, acquired phobias and emotional disorders or perceptions of unworthiness. But the truth about a voice's validity CAN indeed be learned or re-learned.

This voice I'm talking about starts in the heart. It carries messages that the person must come to believe need to be delivered. This can happen when even one person notices... and begins to be present and truly listen to the person. That means everyone can help!

• I challenge you to try a little experiment... find one person a day - family member, friend or stranger - carve out a time (even just a few moments) and give them your ear at full attention. Notice the subtle lift they, and you, experience. You may find yourself truly caring about what they say and learning something new. Every ear is also valid, and important. Without ears, voices are rather useless :)

Sometimes the voice needs professional attention. Talk therapy with a great therapist can obviously help, as can free programs like AA and Alanon. Vocal lessons with a vocal coach sensitive to what your vocal tone is communicating can help you discover a voice you never knew you had.

Learning to breathe properly to power your voice, to open your throat channel to clear any tension and to get you focused on communicating messages can help your voice trust itself. It is important to find a teacher that you feel comfortable with. A lost voice will not show itself under intimidating circumstances. It is also, you must realize, a TEAM effort. You must be willing to experiment and learn to play around with things you've never tried. This can lead to a freedom that can make you sing like a bird, and talk where people can't help but listen!

The Ribcage Stretch for the Voice

I just love Twitter- I recently happened to mention that I found a great stretch for the upper back for singers and I got several "tweets" back asking about it... so here goes!

Why we need this stretch:
In the middle of your upper spine is a point which is very important to the voice because of what it does for your breath and your open (or not) throat. It is a physical pivot point. It's about an inch or so below the bottom points of your shoulder blades.

My chiropractor, Dr. Dwaine Allison, says this is also a pressure point for the diaphragm, affecting (and freeing) the nerve pathway. This point must be flexible, and often it is quite tight, especially when you don't know what it does for you.

To see how it works, try putting your hand way up in your back and press your chest forward. I bet you took a breath without even meaning to! Your head also moved back, freeing up the back of your throat.

At a rehearsal for "Runaway Home", our choreographer "Sweet Sue" Kirkes taught a stretch that just happened to be wildly useful for loosening this area up. I've had great success with my students when I add this to our routine before vocalizing. Thanks, Sue!

Here's how you do...
The Rib Stretch:

• Stand with your hips stationary.. very important. Freeze your hips in one place.
• Move the bottom of your ribcage forward.
• Move your ribcage to the side (like a typewriter), not lifting your shoulder.
• Move your ribcage inwards (bowing your back).
• Move your ribcage to the other side (like a typewriter), again, keep shoulders level.
  
• Reverse directions.
• Still keeping your hips steady, circle your ribcage around smoothly touching the previous points of stretch.
  
• Circle your ribcage in the other direction.

Let me know what you experience! (Please click on the title of this blog post, go to my actual blog site and click the comment link at the bottom of this post.)

ps... follow me on Twitter here

Power, Path & Performance seminar goes to El Paso

I gave a Power, Path & Performance vocal seminar to a drama group at "Center Stage" theater in El Paso, Texas this last weekend. Judging by the sound of their voices at the end of the seminar, and the after-seminar comments, it was a smashing success!

Go here for pictures.

Some of the comments from attendees:

"She (Judy) was amazing. In a matter of 10 minutes she helped me more than any voice teacher ever has... and she totally understands how we feel!"
-Conner Myers, son of Center Stage owner and director Stacy Myers

"I always knew about breathing but you actually showed us how to do everything properly instead of just expecting us to know from seeing a picture. You are an amazing teacher."
-Courtney Curtis

"Your methods of singing put less stress on our throats. You put everything in a way I can understand. You make everything easier for me to do. I learned a million new things."
-Camille De Los Santos

"My current vocal coach has been causing several problems and she hasn't addressed several problems that were worrying me. The seminar really helped me with musical theater."
-Laura Parton

"I was really nervous but you helped me to feel confident with my voice. I'm a new singer but you treated me like a regular. I had a really good time and I sincerely appreciate it. Thanks!"
-Shelbie Ponder

"It was an amazing experience, I learned so much and was able to sing an end of a song I was never able to. I had so much fun and now that I learned so many new techniques and how to use my voice the right way, I'm not straining myself. Thank you so much!"
-Beverly Landcaster

"I learned a lot and you were faaaantastic! Thank you! - Rebecka Mott

"Thank you so much! You are amazing! - Patrick Zavala

Seminars are a different learning opportunity, unique in the fact that you get to watch others as they try on techniques. My seminars are whole-day affairs:

• Two hours teaching about how the voice works
  
• Two hours teaching vocal exercises that create correct muscle memory
• Two hours of attendees performing in front of the group, assessed and corrected by me and singing with the new changes

If you or your organization would be interested in discussing booking a seminar that can significantly increase the vocal ability of all present, please contact me for scheduling.

... and many thanks to Danny and Brenda Bishaw for booking this El Paso seminar.

Diaphragmatic breathing.. a dangerous thought

I got an email in this week asking about help with diaphragmatic breathing. The question itself is dangerous. Here's the question:

Hi Judy,
I am coming to visit the states for a week (I live in London)... I have an eleven hour flight and I thought it would be perfect to practice on strengthening my diaphragm as I won't be doing much else. My question: When i practice diaphragmatic breathing (and even singing along to songs without producing sound but focusing on when to breathe and the amount of breathe coming out) I can maintain strong, consistent breath. However, the second I begin singing and producing a tone, my breath goes all over the place. My voice is breathy and I can't even hold a consistent exhalation to support the tone. Why is this and how do I overcome it to keep that strong balanced breath when producing tones?
Cheers,
Nav

OK, why is this a dangerous question? Because I have found that "thinking about diaphragmatic breathing" invariably causes tension right where you don't want it... at the bottom of your ribcage where your diaphragm is connected. Even if you try to keep it open there, you may be freezing your position, which is STILL TENSION!

Here's the truth.. the diaphragm works as an involuntary muscle, like your heart. If you were to squeeze or otherwise physically interfere with your heart as it beats (unless you are a great heart surgeon :), your heart would have a problem, so yes, you can affect it by voluntary muscular actions. However, what you usually do is to interfere with its natural and automatic actions.

The only way to help your diaphragm is to stay out of its way. KEEP YOUR RIBS WIDE. This is universally taught by all correct vocal training. But even this begs yet another question... how do you keep your ribs wide? There's a place just below your shoulder blades in your spine. From this point, you can shift your ribcage forward. This point must remain alive and flexible, not frozen stiff even in a correct position. If you move your head so it is balanced over your tailbone, you will find this point moving in and your ribcage opening up.

You must not take this posture too far in a "swayback" spinal position. The point is in the middle of the UPPER, not the lower back. You must also not freeze it in place.

Then apply power (squeeze) from the pelvic floor. Singing this way will strengthen the diaphragm naturally, as well as other muscles in the abs, chest and back that do the work to hold the diaphragm open.

Learn about how the diaphragm works, what affects it and what you need to do for it, but then stop worrying about your diaphragm. In my "Power, Path & Performance" 6-CD training course, I teach everything you need to know about your diaphragm, and include illustrations. This training, comprehensively balanced with all the rest of the techniques taught in this package, will put to rest "stinking thinking about breathing" that gets so many singers and speakers in worse trouble than before they started thinking about it.

Trust your automatic nervous system with it's silent conversations. Diaphragmatic breathing is created, strengthened and correctly joined with other muscle groups important for breath support and control when you concentrate on sensing your power in your pelvic floor.. not your chest!

3 Parts to singing breath

I got a new student in who complained of not having enough breath. Sounds like a simple fix... she just needs to breathe in deeper, right? Not.

It's more complicated than that. The truth is, you can be quite compromised in the lung area you have available, from respiratory diseases and scar tissue, and STILL be able to have plenty of breath to sing. How is that possible?

Because there are three parts to the kind of breath you need to power your voice.

1. The Inhale: Moving air inwards

An amount of air inhaled lower (at the bottom of the lungs) than that same amount inhaled higher in the chest will give much more effective breath to the voice. It should actually feel like you are inhaling air into your lower belly and back - all the way to the pelvic floor. Open and relax the lower abdominal wall, while at the same time feeling very tall. That should give you a great inhale.

The last two parts have to do with the exhale:

2. Breath Support: Moving air upwards

When it's time to move some air upwards (through your vocal cords), your diaphragm is told by your brain to relax. Because its rim is attached to the bottom of the ribcage and its dome is attached by a scaffolding-like network of ligaments to the sternum, etc, when the diaphragm relaxes it bows upwards, pressing air out of the lungs which sit on the diaphragm.

You need to support the diaphragm by tightening the lower abdominal and back wall so abdominal contents shift upwards and don't drag the diaphragm down by their weight. When you squeeze your butt, notice the accompanying squeeze in the lower abs.

3. Breath Control: Holding air back

Air moving upwards MUST be controlled (held back) when the vocal cords come together for speech or singing. When just the right air pressure is applied... not too little, not too much... you will not feel a tightening against that pressure in your throat, neck, jaw or shoulder muscles. It will seem as though your voice floats out of you. Breath support must occur and must be balanced by breath control. Breath control is enabled by keeping your lower ribcage wide... just like with the inhale. The difference between inhale and exhale, then, is in the expanding and contracting lower abdominal area. The ribs stay wide.

With these three parts working properly, you will sense your breath falling in... then being squeezed at the pelvic floor, not the ribcage. This low squeeze will cause you to have "laser beam" breath rather than "flashlight spread" breath.

The truth is, it doesn't take much breath to sing, if the breath is applied properly with these three parts working together in synergy. This is the "Power" part of "Power, Path & Performance". Put it together and you won't believe how long you can hold notes (just ask some people who sang in "Runaway Home" last week - the last note of the last song was a killer!)

What are your experiences with breath issues? Is there anything more specific you'd like to know or share?

For Strainfree Vocal Power... watch where you squeeze!

Ever heard the phrase, "sing your butt off"?

Well, that's what works, and that is the source of the "Power" I suggest for your voice in Power, Path & Performance vocal training.

Funny story.. I got turned down for a voice teaching position at a university once. They didn't like it when I mentioned the apparently taboo body part in the lesson I gave at my teacher audition. (They also didn't like it that I taught by my own method.)

OK, this may be squeamish to some, but imho, I don't think real singing is for the squeamish. The truth is, your voice needs your butt. Literally.

If you tighten your butt, notice a correlating tightening of your lower abs. This will cause a shifting of your abdominal contents upwards, which supports the diaphragm moving upwards. However, it's vitally important that you don't let the squeeze move upwards to the bottom of your ribcage. This area should remain wide and flexible to give your diaphragm the ability to control your airflow.

Fact:
Squeezing at the wrong place- your ribcage- directly applies squeeze at your larynx.

Try it... press your elbows into the sides of your ribcage and slump forward so you get a real good squeeze there. Feel it in your throat? Not good in any genre, for any reason except some weird sound effect you need to make... and that better pay reeeeaaallllyyy well.

Sometimes I call this the "power of the pelvic floor". You can think Elvis, if it pleases you. However you picture it, singing is like many other athletic endeavors in that its power base should be centered right in front of the tailbone, in the pelvic floor, the hips, hey... the butt.

Think about the butt's contribution to ...

• horseback riding
• golf
• baseball
• wrestling
• weight lifting
• soccer
• dance
• tennis
• volleyball
• swimming
• skating
  
• most any other sport you can name

Then realize that great singing is truly an athletic event. I like to term well-executed vocal exercises "vocal aerobics".

So there. Go sing your butt off- not your throat!

Raising and lowering the Larynx - should you?

How high or low the larynx should be in your neck when you sing is steeped in controversy and misunderstanding. Unfortunately, it's also important. Get it too wrong and you have big vocal problems.

I just watched a wonderful video by vocal coach Lisa Popeil. While I don't agree with all of her techniques, especially that of the head moving forward for power, I do agree with what she says about positions of the larynx. She names five positions, with the middle (not raised or lowered) position being #3.

If I understand it correctly , the Speech Level Singing method of Seth Riggs (SLS) teaches that you should always have your larynx at the same level that you speak (#3). His teachings have spared many a poor voice from strain. However, Lisa Popiel suggests that there are times you would be correct to SLIGHTLY raise or lower the larynx . She suggests that some rock singing and saucy musical theater uses the more raised position (#2), while classical, cabaret jazz and some R&B singing uses a slightly lowered position (#4). She admonishes that no one should ever use positions #1 (very raised) or #5 (very lowered).

Here's what I think and have experience: As long as you only raise or lower the larynx so that you don't feel your throat or experience strain or fatigue, this is fine. In fact, as a session singer (stunt singer, I call it), I have to do this to blend with all kinds of voices and styles in recording. It's a way to get more tone colors and emotions. Musical theater needs these choices, too.

However, and it's a great big however, you must not lower or raise your larynx to the point that you become aware of it. That will get you vocal problems. Most popular genre singing really should be in the middle position, with the larynx comfortably floating in the throat.

What can you do if you are raising or lowering your voice box (larynx) too much?

Learning to PULL instead of PUSH your voice, as taught in Power, Path & Performance method, is the best way I've found to protect your delicate and precious vocal instrument, and will help you immensely. This pulling instead of pushing sound, among other things, allows the larynx to determine it's best position with no outside interference. Also...

I'm going to tell you about a cool exercise I adapted for my students from yet another great voice teacher, Jeannie Deva (with whom I also differ in certain areas):

Lightly place the tips of two fingers on top of your adam's apple. For females, this bump is not so pronounced... feel for it in the middle of the front of your neck. This is where the vocal cords are attached at one end, inside the thyroid cartilage. Now, just let your fingers be "brain flashlights" and simply don't allow any strain there as you sing. It's an amazing trick when your larynx tries to lift for high notes. Keeping the larynx from lifting makes those high notes just float out!

For low notes, try this to keep your larynx from lowering too much: Stand tall and put your hand on your sternum and try to pull your voice from there. Don't bend over or down to get the notes. Be aware of the vibration and definitely keep your chest open.

These are great voice teachers I've named in this post. It can get confusing, I know, when experts differ. All I can be sure of is what I've experienced that WORKS, and this should be your criteria, too. From my experience, I say mostly just keep your larynx happily floating, actually rocking a bit, in the center of your neck. If you sing correctly, even with a SLIGHTLY lower or higher laryngeal position, you should not be aware of your throat at all.

Head voice... how it affects contemporary singing

Earlier in my career, before I knew what I know now, I used to do a little trick to find out if I was going to be in good voice for the day. As soon as I woke up, before I even opened my eyes, I would make a few little sounds climbing up into my head voice... light little short "oo" stabs. If I could take this sound up pretty high, I knew I would be in good shape. If I couldn't take this sound high, I knew I was going to have a more limited voice for the day. Argh!! That indicator could be depressing if I had a national jingle, a major venue performance, or just a background session with other great singers with whom I had to hold my own.

Even then, somehow I knew how important my head voice was to the rest of my voice. Now I know why, and what to do about it. Let me explain:

The vocal cords are, as I've written about before, controlled by two sets of muscles... one set works the chest voice, one set works the head voice. When strength of these sets of muscles is unbalanced, the "hand-off" between chest and head voice is shaky and unpredictable. The chest voice tends to become "throat voice" (very, very bad) in the upper chest register instead of blended voice (very, very good), which you can't feel in your throat unless you put your hand on it and feel the wonderful , strain-free vibration.

Guess which muscle set is usually weakest with contemporary singers? Right... the chest register set. So... that tells us what to do about the problem: Strengthen the head register set!!

How?
By warming up and exercising the head voice. I have used vocal exercises, classical songs such as Italian Art Songs, and strange sounds such as the "siren" and head voice "woop" -ing (kind of like the Three Stooges). As you do this there are things you need to be careful of:

• NEVER, NEVER sing your head voice so high that you feel vocal strain. Find out how to take your voice up with no throat tightening (such as the pulling method I teach in "Power, Path & Performance" ).
  
• Take your voice up GRADUALLY and CAREFULLY... a scale at a time that you raise a half step at a time.
• Know that you can do ANY vocal exercise wrong... including mine. Like martial arts, golf, dance, etc... form is everything!
• Do not sing in a breathy head voice... this is like the sahara desert to your dehydrating vocal cords. Sing in clear, focused, bell-like tones.
  
• Do not go higher than your throat channel can stay open!

On the other hand... If you have been classically trained and want to sing contemporary material, you may experience the opposite problem... you may have trouble getting into chest voice in your middle range. You take your head voice down too low and it makes contemporary voice sound weak and inauthentic.

What to do? Strengthen the muscle set that works your chest voice! Again.. be careful how you do this.

• NEVER, NEVER sing your chest voice so high that you feel vocal strain. Again... learn how to pull your voice up, like I teach with Power, Path & Performance vocal training.
• Do not lean forward while trying to get your chest voice higher! This will close your chest and cause too much breath pressure to be applied to your poor vocal cords.
  
• Try for a buzzing feeling instead of a "hooty" sound.
  
• Try for a "talking" tone rather than a "sing-y" tone. If your speaking is thin or hooty, you must train your speaking voice, too.
• Learn to adjust your head, body and breath pressure so you can allow the "buzz" to travel up and down instead of trying to sing everything the same way... which WILL cause strain, and a terrible vocal break.
• Try to make the top of your chest voice sound almost just like the bottom of your head voice.

In short, the "brass ring" technique you should seek is to make your chest voice and head voice blend strainlessly together, allowing your automatic nervous system to instruct the larynx to tilt slightly back and forth as you go through your range. This effectively creates the "middle voice" which is constantly adjusting and changing to allow the powerful yet strain-free contemporary singing that can blow your mind, and your audience's heart... without blowing your voice!

Comments always welcome... remember, if you're reading this through your email, you'll have to actually click the headline and go online to find the comment link. Happy singing!

Tips to better breathing for the voice

Can't seem to get enough breath for singing or speaking?
Run out of breath too soon to complete your phrases?

Here are some tips:

Change your posture!

• Sing or speak at the wall with your head and heel against the wall. Because your ribcage is wider at the bottom, your diaphragm will be able to flatten lower and draw more air in - without you even having to think about it.
  
• After you vocalize (sing a song or do some tongue tanglers or speak a poem or story) at the wall, come away from the wall and try to retain that sense of tallness, with your head balanced on your tailbone.
  
• Important: DO NOT STIFFEN - even as you stand tall, make your spine feel somewhat like the liquid in a lava lamp.

Don't think of sucking air in- let it FALL in!

• Think of your lungs as being in your low abdominal area.
• Imagine a beach ball lying in your pelvic floor. Inflate it.
• Avoid "chest breathing". Better to fill the air container from the bottom up!
  

Give yourself permission to breathe!

• Don't sing or speak till you run out of breath. Always have a bit of reserve so you don't sound like someone punched you in the stomach by the end of your phrases.
  
• Take breaths more often... don't make your phrases so long between breaths!
  
• Slow down - this actually can give the listener time to "digest" what you're trying to tell them, and gives you an opportunity to breath.
• Take time to listen and watch for reaction. This also will give you opportunities to breathe, and make what you say more relevant to the conversation.
  
• Learn to edit yourself. Make what you say more concise... short and to the point. This will help you trust that you'll be able to say what you want to say without being interrupted or tuned out. "Stream of conscious" spewing of information is only for YOU to hear yourself get it all out. Save that for therapy sessions.
  

Practice breathing exercises!

• One good one is: hold a candle or two fingers about 4 to 6 inches from your mouth. Take a breath and see how long you can blow without running out of breath. While you may not make it 12 seconds ("one-thousand-twelve"), try to extend the time to 30 seconds or more.
• Another good one: stretch your arms out to your sides. Then stretch them over your head which also stretches the ribcage open and draws in a nice full breath.

Comments appreciated as you try these things... if you're reading this in email, click on the title to this post and go to the source of my blog at my website. Then look for "comment" link below the post.

Help for thin, weak, hooty, lifeless, nasal and edgy voices

OK... thanks again to all who suggested subjects for my posts... here's another one:

"What do you do about thin, weak, lifeless, muffled/hooty, nasal, monotone and and edgy voices?"

They all have one thing in common- the "resonance cave" of the voice is not completely open.

These vocal sounds are not nearly as "listenable" as rich, clear, bell-like, multi-textured musical sounds of voice when the throat is open. Sometimes a person is so used to speaking or singing with a compromised voice they don't even know it's possible to change it. But with vocal training to open the throat, you will be amazed at how great you can sound.

The "resonance cave" of the voice involves a forked channel. The channel goes from the larynx in the throat upwards where it forks into the mouth and the nasal and sinus passages. The nose is actually huge inside. The top of the nasal membrane goes all the way up to the eyes.

Resonance is created and modified by the state of the channel. This is the way it works:

• The vocal cords vibrate the larynx.
  
• Sound waves coming off the larynx go through the channel to bounce against other tissue surfaces and cavities in the throat, mouth, nose and some sources say even down the trachea.
  
• These alternative resonation zones add their own character to the sound waves.
  
• If the channel is open, more vibrations can reach more surfaces, and the resulting sound gathers and comes out the mouth much richer than when the channel is constricted anywhere.

Another very important point is that different pitches need to vibrate through different resonation zones. If your throat is tight anywhere, that will keep vibration from freely traveling and you will experience limited range - and vocal strain if you try to hit inaccessible notes.

Tips to open your throat and gain resonance you never thought possible:

1. First of all.. record yourself speaking or singing something so you have a baseline from which to assess your progress.
2. If you have what is commonly known as a "nasal" sound, the nose is actually constricted - like when you have a cold. Paradoxically, to get away from the nasal sound, you need to sing through an open nose - not just your mouth! Try singing or speaking with a flared nose to see the difference.
   
3. Another thing that can help open the nasal portion of the throat channel: Use your eyes!! Try counting to five LOUD with your eyes small and frozen. Then count again with your eyes wide moving like you're communicating to a baby.
   
4. To open the throat channel where it forks into the mouth... Articulate your words in the front of your mouth... NOT AT THE JAW! You may not realize you're speaking from the jaw so try this... put your knuckle in your mouth and try to speak. Then take your knuckle out but try to speak like it's still there.
5. Sometimes it helps to rock the jaw slightly sideways to keep from locking it on a note or passage.
   
6. Try speaking or singing while imagining a ping pong ball is on the back of your tongue and you don't want to crush it.
7. Another thing that affects the channel at the top of the throat and back of the mouth: Don't hold your head forward! Try doing wall work: Stand against a wall (head and heel against the wall, flexible spine, chin level and floating) and speak or sing. Notice and/or hear a difference?
8. When using a mike, pull your mouth back from the mic like you're playing tug of war. Don't go too far, just a little stretch. Your head should go back and to the side a bit, and keep your chin flexibly level.

If you have my PPP vocal training cds, study the section on the "6-way inside stretch" to learn more about expanding your channel. It's important to make the stretch equidistant so as to keep the larynx from lifting or dropping, and instead allow it to float in place so it can rock back and forth slightly as it adjust vocal cord length and width.

And one last point... sometimes the throat tightens to try to defend the vocal cords from too much breath pressure. That's why I emphasize the three cornerstones of Power, Path & Performance vocal training - studying breath technique along with open throat and performance communication. Put them all together and you have.... GREAT VOICE!

Let me know how you do with these suggestions by clicking the comment link.

Getting the magic of live performance in the studio

There is a frustrating disconnect with many people who are great in live performance but can't seem to get that same great vocal in the recording studio. Here are some tips to help you bring your live sound into your recorded sound:

• Create the ambiance you need to "do the scene" as you deliver the song. Ambiance creating suggestions:
  

1. Make sure the music stand is back far enough under the mic so you can stand in such a way that you don't need to lean forward.
   
2. Don't read lyric sheets, or if you do, park the music stand way off to the side.
3. Ask the engineer if it's possible NOT to point you facing directly into the control room.
4. Ask for your vocal booth lighting, and if possible also the control room lighting, to be turned down so you can focus your mind on the story.
5. Some people are helped by "props" ... Light a candle, put a picture near, plug in a lava lamp... whatever it takes to get you into the scene!
   

• Play with your imaginary friend(s). Sing TO someone to whom the song is directed. Try to make that person feel something from your communication of the message... just like live.
  

• Don't sing to anyone in the control room. They are there to judge your performance and edit you. Listen to them, then go right back to sing-talking to the object of your message (lyric).

• Use body language! You won't believe how using eyes, hands, legs, expressive body language can cause the song to take on amazing life. Ditch your inhibition (and possibly your pride) and physically get into your delivery.
  

• Use "Studio Hands" - This is a technique I use- put your fingertips together and push them into each other to help you with breath control.
  

• Use a dummy mic! Try holding a dummy mic or similarly weighted object in your hand. Put the dummy mic up to your mouth and sing into it like you would live, but position yourself close enough to the live mic to make sure it picks up your voice.

How does this work for you?

Ways to mend a pesky vocal break - part 3

OK, this will be the last in this series of posts on vocal breaks. Truth be told, I could write a book on this subject, but you all gave me so many other great requests about which to write! So, I'm going to wrap this subject up by letting you in on one of the core secrets of my teaching.

Before I developed the concepts of the Power, Path & Performance, I had the worst and most un-mendable (or so I thought) vocal break I've ever heard in anyone. My brilliant Nashville vocal coach Gerald Arthur helped me get my voice back after it was damaged by an endotracheal tube (I spent some time hooked to a ventilator many years ago). I still had that pesky break, though with Gerald's help I learned to mask it well and continue on with my vocal career as a session singer, and then a recording artist. Thank you, Gerald, from my heart and soul!

Not too long after I began teaching voice I was given a book by a student who asked me to explain it to him. The author was vocal coach Jeffrey Allen of California. In his book Mr. Allen suggested holding a mental picture of a question-mark shaped path that the voice should take. That imagery opened up a whole world for me.

I began experimenting with what that path meant to me and how I could use it with my students. Long story short... this is what mends vocal breaks every day in my office:

Use your power- your compressed breath power located in your pelvic floor- to lift you into the balcony above and behind you. NOT STRAIGHT UP. You have to lift a little to the back, bending your upper spine to do so. DO NOT LIFT YOUR CHIN. This action should cause you to raise your eyebrows and look like you're about to say "I don't THINK so" very sarcastically.

Then... use the word (articulated with meaning) to PULL sound from the balcony to your audience. DO NOT MOVE YOUR HEAD FORWARD. Notice, you don't pull with your head, your neck or your jaw... you just pronounce the word and direct it to the listener.

In summary...Your voice should come from the pelvic floor, lift to the balcony above and behind you, then travel to the audience. This path is complicated, often frustrating when first trying to learn it, but it works. If you've been pushing your voice through your break, this will feel like learning to walk all over again. But every one of my students will tell you - it's well worth the effort. Why?

• It causes gives you access to great breath support and control.
• It enables vibration from your larynx to resonate in the open spaces of the nose, sinuses, pharynx, mouth, and possibly even trachea -resulting in rich tone colors and expanded range.
• It causes the vocal cords to freely change length and width, and allows the larynx to tilt freely according to the pitch.
• It makes your voice feel GREAT! You will have NO vocal strain.
• And...it erases the break. Every time, in everybody, if done correctly.

To this day, if I don't pull my voice in this path, I will find myself back with my old break. But I know how to erase the pesky thing! And I can do it any time I want! Yeah!!

Thanks to Jeffrey Allen for graciously allowing me to use his imagery in my method. You can find his book "Secrets Of Singing" at http://www.vocalsuccess.com . And of course, you can find my PPP cds at http://www.judyrodman.com/power-path-performance.htm .

Loosening a tight jaw: two specific tips

I wanted to add this information today for Nav's benefit - Two specific tips for loosening the jaw:

1. Let the jaw open like a monkey wrench, not like pliers. Put your knuckle between your molars on one side and try to sing like that until the jaw loosens.

2. Let the jaw move SLOWLY and SLIGHTLY to the side while singing "ee" and "oo" vowels to loosen the lockdown.

Ways to mend a pesky vocal break - part 2

This is a continuation of my post series on the subject of vocal breaks. I had a great question emailed (thanks, Nav!) to me today about the jaw's function in singing. Oddly enough, incorrect jaw actions are among the things that will cause and/or exacerbate a vocal break.

Vocal register breaks, as indicated in my previous post, are caused and made worse by whatever interferes with allowing changes in length, tension and mass of the vocal cords as the singer moves through different pitches. Top 5 causes I see...

1. Locking the jaw
2. Tightening the base of the tongue (which goes along with locking the jaw)
3. Freezing the spinal position
4. Tensing shoulders
5. Numb facial expression or eye movement
6. Choosing to sing or talk too high or too low, causing chronic tension and strain.

Why do we do these vocally dysfunctional things? Top 4 reasons I see:

1. To try to keep the voice FROM breaking (unaware that guarding and over-controlling to try and eliminate the problem inadvertently makes it worse)
2. To try and hit notes that are difficult (again, a bit of a catch-22)
3. Because of some erroneous vocal training that says to keep the jaw or any of the other body parts I just mentioned perfectly still, (Run, don't walk, from this kind of teaching)
4. Bad habit - talking too low (constantly "hitting gravel"), trying to sing in keys that are too high or low for the current capabilities of the voice, not realizing the locking up this is causing.

What can we do to change our habits?

1. First become aware of what you are actually doing. Watch yourself perform a song in front of a mirror. Do you see any of those actions I just listed?
2. Record yourself talking. Do you hear tension, monotone, gravel, lack of breath? Try talking with much more animation and "life" and record it again until your body, spine, face, tongue, jaw are loose and flexible.
3. Do corrective wall and mirror work. In front of a mirror, stand with your back against the wall... back of the head and heel against the wall. Now slowly try to loosen those areas I named on purpose - while you are watching. Notice the effects.
4. Out of the pressure of public performance, privately practice doing things a different way. At first it may get worse before it gets better - like it would be if we were learning to walk with a different stride. Relax, relax, relax and trust the process.
5. If you have my vocal training course, just listen over and over to the first two Cd's to let the insights sink in.

Comments are always welcome as you try my suggestions. Next post, I'll give amazingly effective tips to open the throat channel at the break point. Yes, this will be about the correct vocal "Path".

Ways to mend a pesky vocal break - part 1

Pesky, dreaded, dratted vocal breaks. At one point, I had one of the worst. Here is the problem as defined by Wikipedea,

...The frequency of vibration of the vocal folds is determined by their length,
tension, and mass. As pitch rises, the vocal folds are lengthened, tension increases, and their thickness decreases. In other words, all three of these factors are in a state of flux in the transition from the lowest to the highest tones.

If a singer holds any of these factors constant and interferes with their progressive state of change, his laryngeal function tends to become static and
eventually breaks occur, with obvious changes of tone quality. These
break are often identified as register boundaries or as transition areas between
registers. The distinct change or break between registers is called a passaggio or a ponticello.

Vocal pedagogists teach that with study a singer can move effortlessly from one register to the other with ease and consistent tone. [Judy says, absolutely!] Registers can even overlap while singing. Teachers who like to use this theory of "blending registers" usually help students through the "passage" from one register to another by hiding their "lift" (where the voice changes). However, many pedagogists disagree with this distinction of boundaries blaming such breaks on vocal problems which have been created by a static laryngeal adjustment that does not permit the necessary changes to take place...

Symantics aside, however you define vocal registers, boundaries and breaks, the important thing is how to blend your voice to get rid of the cracks. Added bonus... eliminating vocal breaks also adds to the tone quality of the voice through out the whole range, helps to relax the voice into a fuller range and adds to vocal control. Whew! It's pretty clear we want this.

I have been able both to get rid of my own vocal break and to help every student I've worked with eliminate theirs with the teachings of Power, Path & Performance personal lessons and cd course. That's how I know it works. This next series of blog posts, will be my first response to my dear reader's list of subjects. I will be addressing every "All Things Vocal" subject you name, so ... keep sending me your subject requests for this blog and be sure to subscribe for updates!

... mending vocal breaks to be continued...

Pop Quiz... Got vocal issues?

Time...
It's time for me to do an inventory on my focus in this blog. It takes time to write each post and time for you to read it. To keep it worth our time, I'd like to increase its usefulness to you. And I'd like to ask you to take a few moments of your time to help me get you the information you need and want.

If you could ask your most urgent, puzzling, frustrating or curious question about anything relating to the voice (fitting for a subject to explore on "All Things Vocal") what would it be? Got multiple vocal issues or questions? List as many as you can.

To begin your thinking process, look at these random vocal issues and let me know which one(s) you'd like to see me add to "our" grand list (if you want, tell me what you're NOT interested in as well):

1. You have uncontrolled, excessive or missing vibrato issues.
2. You consistently sing either sharp or flat.
3. You want to know how to make money with your voice.
4. You need info about your speaking voice.
5. Your voice is tired and strained.
6. Your voice is thin, weak, lifeless, nasal or edgy.
7. You want to increase your range.
8. You have some strange, mysterious problem that occurs when you speak or sing.
9. You don't know what style you should sing.
10. You have a frustrating vocal break.
11. You feel numb or fake in performance.
12. You can't get the magic in your studio vocals that you get in live performance.
13. You want to know how to correctly sing and play an instrument simultaneously.
14. You want to know how to choose great vocal training.
15. You want to protect yourself from getting ripped off in the music business.
16. You want to learn and keep up with how the music business news.
17. You'd like to learn how use breath more efficiently when speaking or singing.
18. You want to learn to read music or the Nashville number system.
19. You want to know how to fire up your creativity.
20. You want to know what "Power, Path & Performance" vocal training can do for you.
21. You are interested in ideas to keep the voice healthy.
22. You want to know how to co-write.

OK... your turn... just click the comment link at the bottom of this post and list numbers of issues of interest to you. Then add your own. And thank you for joining the conversation!

Chronic breathiness or hoarseness? Suspect vocal damage!

I was eating lunch when my one of my new students' mother called. "Hello", I said. "Well, you were right", she said. Sadly, I had guessed I would be right. It wasn't the first time I'd correctly suspected vocal damage.

She had taken her little actress daughter to the doctor after my suggestion at her last voice lesson to get her vocal cords inspected. Her doctor found lesions on both vocal cords. He told them she should not talk for a week and that it will be a long, long time before she should attempt to sing. She had been scheduled to audition for two productions... one a movie... and it's all on hold for now.

I knew something was wrong because I had way too much trouble getting this little girl to be able to sing in her head voice. When I did gently coax a head tone out of her, nothing I suggested could help her sing very far up the scale, and those notes were very breathy. She tried her best to follow my directions, but she could not focus her spread tone into a healthy, clear, bell-like sound. The breathiness in both her chest and head voices and her limited range cautioned me to stop the vocal training until she could get checked out. And thank God her mother took the initiative and the discovery of vocal injury was made.

Anything which keeps your vocal cords from closing properly, such as a bump of tissue caused by injury, swelling, any kind of lesion or other obstruction, will cause problems such as breathiness, hoarseness, fatigue, vocal cracks and other limitations in your speaking and singing voice such as an inability to sing in head voice. Fortunately, these symptoms are a cry for help... which needs to be heeded.

It is imperative to get a correct diagnosis as to the type of vocal lesion present, because some injuries respond quite well to rest and corrective vocal training, and some require surgery. And sometimes the lesion is malignant. Don't fool around with chronic breathiness or hoarseness. Get to the bottom of the problem. For a "symptom tree", see: http://voiceproblem.org/disorders/vflesions/index.asp . If you suspect a problem, make an appointment with a doctor who can inspect your cords and who knows about singers' voices (get references).

You can actually click a link and hear examples of some types of vocal damage at: http://www.gbmc.org/voice/disorders.cfm .

Here's a wake up... you can cause your vocal cords to hemorrhage (bleed) from just ONE episode of traumatic vocal abuse. A jingle singer I worked with in Memphis named Janie Fricke was diagnosed with this many years ago. Good news... with rest, she did fully recover - and she became a highly lauded country singer with a major hit career. I myself had vocal damage from the insertion of an endotracheal tube (I was on a ventilator for a while many years ago). With the help of my vocal teacher Gerald Arthur, I fully recovered and then went on to my own career at MTM records.

This mother had been told for years that her daughter's breathy sound was natural for her... that there was "nothing wrong - that's just the way her voice sounds". Therefore, her daughter has been re-injuring her vocal cords constantly. Hopefully, this talented and precious little girl's voice will mend with time. When her injury sufficiently heals, she will need vocal training to fully recover.

Read into this post your own cautionary tale. Sometimes you may wish to make a breathy sound for a momentary "effect", but don't fool around with chronic breathiness that you can't focus into clear tone. If you think you have a problem, get checked out with a good voice teacher and/or a doctor who specializes in voices.

Balancing strength in vocal muscle sets

If you, like so many popular genre singers, have trouble straining in your upper chest voice, you may find the following insight helpful.

I know a young artist friend who studied with a $400 dollar an hour voice teacher out in LA (I don't remember his name. She had problems with pitch, control and range. She has developed a very natural, controlled voice and to get a major pop recording contract. I asked what her vocal teacher did to help her.

He told her that there are two different sets of muscles controlling head voice or "falsetto" voice (falsetto differs from head voice in that just the edges, instead of more area, of the vocal cords vibrate), and the chest, or lower vocal register. She was told the head voice is controlled by crycothyroid muscles and the chest by the arytenoid muscles. I think in the following website illustration, she must mean the head voice is controlled by the cricoarytenoid muscles and the chest voice by the interarytenoid muscles. The vocal cords themselves are really the two thyroarytenoid muscles. http://www.evmsent.org/larynx.asp

He told her that her problems lay in the uneven strength she had present between these two controlling sets of muscles. His training centered on strengthening the weak set (that controlled her head voice) to match the strength in the strong set (her chest voice).

Muscle naming aside... This makes all the sense in the world to me. I have been working with people instinctively this way, (using exercises to strengthen head voice especially with people who strain in chest voice) without knowing the specific anatomical reasons, and now have even more reason to use this insight with my students. And big plus... this balance will also help you with your PITCH accuracy!

Here's my suggestion to you:

• If you tend to strain at the upper end of your chest voice:

.... practice singing in your head voice. Do exercises that take you up far higher that you'd sing songs, but be sure you're not leaning or pushing to do so. (You can even push in head voice!) Just go as high as you are able to without strain. Keep doing this on a regular basis and you will strengthen the muscles that control your upper register. I believe you'll find that your head voice will begin to influence your chest voice and you will be able to reach notes that were previously difficult to sing without pushing.

• If you have been classically trained and find it hard to keep from bringing your head voice too low when doing contemporary (non-classical) songs,

.... practice singing in your chest voice. Sing songs and do exercises that take you up into middle voice, but keep it "talking" voice. Important... while using this voice, DON'T PUSH. This should help, over time, strengthen the lower voice muscle set. If you're not sure what voice you're in, find a good voice teacher who can help you.

If you are a student of my "Power, Path & Performance" method, and have the cds, check out the exercises I call "Blending Steps". If you know what voice you are singing in, and can change the voice, you should find great benefit from doing this. Also remember the difference between what I call "pushing" and "pulling" words. One of the best things you can do for your voice is to learn to pull it out of your resonation spaces instead of push it in any way, with any muscles you want to name!

How to get work as a background singer

I got another question I thought you readers might be interested in from my website today.

The question:
"How does one go about getting started if they are interested in singing bgv's (background vocals)? Thanks!"

My answer: To sing background vocals you need-

1. vocal training to be able to perform the feats of what I call a "stunt singer". It takes more stamina and control to be a great background singer than to be a lead singer, because you will have to trace and blend with another voice perfectly, taking on the lead voice's tone, personality, rhythm, phrasing and accent, or adding whatever different texture of voice the producer wants to offset the lead singer's voice.
2. to be able to change your voice at the producer's request.
3. to be able to hear and create harmony parts.
4. experience singing background parts with live performers and/or backing vocals in a recording studio. No matter what kind of training you have, there's no substitute for actual experience. It's a catch-22; you need experience to get experience, so take whatever opportunity you can possibly find or afford to get in front of a stage or recording studio mic.
5. a demonstration (demo) recording of your voice. This can be a simple guitar or piano/vocal, a karaoke track with your voice recorded over it, or can be full instrumental tracks created just for you. Just make sure that your vocal performance is the most important thing you record. Don't spend money on tracks without budgeting enough time for great vocals. duh.
6. referrals from people you've sung with and sung for.
7. networking, networking, networking. This takes time and persistance; people skills are very necessary. Go to writers nights and to concerts, hang out with musicians and songwriters you know. If you know any session singers, you might ask them to sing with you and assess how well they think you do.
8. to realize that you may need to keep your day job. Background work is very competitive and usually has a great deal to do with being at the right place at the right time. Sometimes when someone else can't make a session, an untried singer will get a chance. However, it is important to be generous of spirit, to support and recommend other singers trying to get work as well. Undercutting your fellow session singer will come back to bite you. It usually takes years to break in to regular session work. Make sure you build the right reputation.

Background singers tend to be hired for the following qualities:

1. They sound great with the lead singer.
2. They learn their parts fast.
3. They can do "head charts" (just come up with the parts in their heads), read the Nashville number system (if in Nashville), and they can read written music (traditional notes). You can get hired without being able to do all three, but you are considered a much more versitile singer if you can work whatever way the producer, artist or group leader wants.
4. They have positive, professional attitudes and work well with others.
5. They can be depended upon to show up on time, every time.
6. They are nice people. The music business is a small world, and it gets to be community where where you like to work with friends and good hearted people.

Some of my best friends in the world are background singers. Good luck... and let me know about any work you get so I can share it in my newsletter!

The beauty of backing off vocal pressure

I just wrote with a wonderful new pop artist, Skye Dyer, today. She was suffering from an allergy attack, with the resulting swelling of the vocal cords. As I watched her sing our song for a worktape cd we made, I noticed something she did to accomplish a good vocal in spite of her compromised vocal condition.

She backed off the pressure. As she "went for" the highest part of the song, I inwardly cringed as I played the keyboard, expecting her to do what I see far too many singers doing... applying force to reach that note. And she didn't. And it came out with an unexpected clarity and openness.

Backing off air pressure is a master vocal technique. Fear can make it almost impossible without the confidence that it will indeed work. My suggestion for you:

Get out your hardest song. At the place you have the most trouble, try applying so little air pressure that it seems you're breathing the note in instead of out. Spin it, weightlessly, using pelvic floor support and having your head in line with your tailbone.

Let me know how it works for you. And look for Skye Dyer songs and concerts on the horizon. She's great.

Pitch problems in the recording studio

I recently received an emailed question about pitch problems while recording vocals that I'd like to share here.

The question:

Dear Judy,
I've just started recording some songs and have run into a problem. When I sing my vocals, I am off pitch. I play in a band and have for a few years and we seem to be very popular locally. I sing lead for roughly 1/3 of our songs and have never had anyone tell me my singing was bad or that I couldn't sing. I have read about headphone mixes, etc. and am wondering about this and the recording process. We are recording with headphones , mic, drum machine, into a Korg d3200. Your help would be greatly appreciated.

My answer:

When an artist is really good in live performance, there is quite often a curious thing that happens when that artist goes into the studio. The person ceases to move, ceases to "communicate" with the body, the hands and the face. The weight of the mic is missing, so the singer subcounciously leans forward with the head, causing the chest to cave in a bit. This causes breathing problems, affecting both breath support and breath control. This may very well be the source of your pitch problems.

To fix this, try moving your feet farther in towards the mic, causing you to subconsciously have your head farther back (or you'll hit the mic with your mouth) and your chest will open, stretching the ribcage and diaphragm out, enabling you to get both better inhale and better control of that breath when you sing.

Also, try using your hands, like in live performance. Don't grab the "cans" with your hands, because this tends to put subtle weight on your ribcage, closing it. Another thing I frequently have people do is put fingertips together in front (I call this "studio hands"). When you "go" for a note, you'll press your fingertips into each other, causing your chest to open and your head to go back. Be sure you're not lifting your chin, keep it level and floating and just let your neck be flexible and your spine will take your head back.

Another thing you need to watch is that you need to be very present with the pitch in some kind of acoustic instrument in the track. Don't "listen" for pitch from the bass, because overtones can throw you off. Try taking some of the instruments (especially swimmy instruments or busy instruments) out of your headphone mix.

Also, watch how much reverb you are using in the mix. Too much or not enough, and you won't do as well. Just enough to make you feel "live", but not enough to get lost.

Lastly, I recommend having one headphone half-off one ear. That grounds you in the vocal booth... And gives you more of an accurate sense of the pitch you're using. Not everyone does better this way, but most do (I certainly do).

If anyone has any feedback after using suggestions I've made, I'd love to hear from you (click comment link below this post). Thanks!

Teachers: Does Your Speaking Voice Communicate?

This post is to all teachers everywhere.

I talked to a young friend, Laura Cambell, at church today who had home for the weekend from college. I asked her how her studies were going and she made a common complaint that got me thinking. She said that many of this semester's teachers she had did not talk clearly during lectures. One of them actually spoke to the blackboard during the whole class, never once looking at the students. My friend therefore was having trouble learning in these classes.

If you are a teacher, may I first thank you for your service. It is a tough, trying business, and you are to be commended for your willingness to share your expertise. But may I respectfully also suggest that you think about how your communicate your lessons.
Do you-

• Look at your students when you speak?
• Enunciate clearly so that even a student with hearing problems can understand you, or even read your lips?
• Use varied pitches in your voice- instead of a monotone delivery?
  Look for response (or the lack thereof) in your students' faces, indicating that you have engaged their interest?
• Take time between phrases to 1) get a good breath and 2) let your last phrase sink in?
• Adjust your words if you are not getting through, possibly re-stating your information another way?
• Articulate with energy and animation, but not with intimidation or harsh tone?

If you really want to go up a level in your spoken communication skills, you may wish to join a Toastmaster Club. Or, possibly get a group of teachers together and observe each others' classes, giving and getting feedback on your delivery.
Here is a web page from the University of Oklahoma, which offers a "Teach Test" and gives some suggestions for doing well on the test. http://gradweb.ou.edu/eap/teach.htm . Check it out for great tips.
And thanks again for caring for your charges. They desperately need your information; give them your best shot at being able to receive what you have to give!