Singing tips no 1
Learn how to extend your vocal range.
This is an important factor in developing a great singing voice. It will give your voice another dimension, and add an element of excitement to your singing.
Extending vocal range is done by learning how to sing in different vocal resistors... different muscle co ordinations.
You must learn how to zip up your vocal chords as you sing higher. This leaves less of the vocal chords free to vibrate, and allows you to easily hit high notes.
Singing tips no. 2
The second important factor in increasing your vocal range, is to blend your vocal resonances. Your tone will resonate in your throat, your mouth, and your nasal cavities.
Each one of these cavities will favor different frequencies... produce a different sound. To develop beautiful tone, you must balance these vocal resonances. Once balanced, your tone will be superb.
As you move through the different areas of your voice (low, middle, and high), the resonance will undergo changes. For example, when you are singing low notes, most of the resonance will be felt in the throat and mouth.
As you pass up through your range, you will feel the resonance pass behind the soft palate (the soft tissue that acts as a divider of your mouth and nasal cavity), and into your nasal cavities.
When you are singing in your highest range, most of the resonance is felt in your head (nasal cavity).
Singing tips no. 3
The change of resonance described in tip no. 2, are defined by many vocal instructors as vocal registers.
To develop a great voice you must become intimate with each of the three main vocal registers. Here they are....
Chest voice - The voice we generally speak in. The vocal chords vibrate across their entire length, and the resonance is primarily in the throat and mouth. Chest voice produces a thick, rich, vocal sound.
Head voice - This is the highest part of our usable range. The vocal chords are in a shortened or "zipped up" coordination, and the resonance is primarily in the nasal or head cavity. Head voice produces a slightly hooty sound, like when you impersonate an owl "hooting"!
Mixed voice - This is a commercial sounding voice, that is higher in pitch than the chest voice. It is the voice you hear most top 40 artists using on the radio. It uses a "zipped up" chord coordination, although it gives you the same impression as singing in chest voice, with sweeter tone quality.
The resonance is split in this coordination, half in the mouth and half in the head cavity. For commercial success, learning to sing in the mixed voice is a must.
Singing tips no. 4
Work hard at developing your mixed voice! This is one of the hardest vocal coordination's to master, although is very achievable with the correct training. This part of your voice is what ties your entire voice together.
It is the bridge between your chest and your head voice. It is also the best part of your voice to use for a commercial, popular sound. It will give your voice flexibility and will actually improve the other areas of your voice!
Your chest and head voice will likely improve once you master your mixed voice. This is because the mixed voice requires the most sophisticated resonance and vocal chord coordination.
The chances are, if your mixed voice is beginning to sound really good, your vocal chords and breathing are beginning to function very efficiently, and your voice will only get better and better!
A great mixed voice is a sign of a good singer! So work on blending those registers....
Click here to review an excellent free video series that will help you develop a strong "mixed" voice. The exercises in this program can easily double your range!
Singing tips no. 5
Ok, here's an obvious one.... Warm up before doing any vigorous singing exercises! I know it's tempting to get straight into it....
Warming up your voice will increase the blood flow to your vocal chords. The muscles will then find it so much easier to operate effectively. You will be able to sing much better, with much less vocal tension.
It's so simple, yet so many singers forget to warm up.
Begin by humming nice and relaxed, in a easy range. Use simple scales, and don't try and sing too high, too early!
After humming for a few minutes, continue warming up by doing some lips rolls on a slightly harder scale. After ten minutes of this, your vocal chords should be nice and flexible, ready for some more challenging exercises!
Don't forget to warm up. Your voice will thank you for it.
Singing tips no. 6
Just as it is important to warm up before singing, you must warm down after singing. This will prevent your voice from getting tight, and it will make it easier next time you sing.
Do a gentle slide from your highest, easily reached note, down to your lowest note, and then into vocal fry (Vocal fry is the first noise you make when you wake up!
It sounds like Elma Fudd...."Hewo" in his crackly vocal fry!). If you still don't know what vocal fry is, stop the exercise when you get to your lowest note.
Do this exercise 10 to 15 times after every practice session. Keep it very relaxed... It will reinforce the progress you had made in that lesson. This is one of the most overlooked of the singing tips...
...Don't forget it!
Singing tips no. 7
Be sure not to forget singing tips no. 6!
The Single Most Important Singing Exercise Ever Invented