How to Get Your Voice in Shape, Part 4: Establish Ease & Balance in Songs
Today I’m sharing part four of the 4-part series to get your voice back in shape! We’ve gone through how to strengthen your high chest voice, how to strengthen your chest and head voice, and how to build consistency. All of these are important steps to strengthen your voice as a musician. We’re finally on part four now! This week is all about foundational strength in song. We want to be singers who aren’t having to push our voice to sing the songs we’re performing. Together, we’ll walk through how do establish ease in your voice as you get back into more singing!
In part 2, we talked about foundational strength between your head and chest voice – kind of avoiding that middle range. The following week, we talked about gaining ease in your high chest voice. That’s where I want to start today: the space in your voice that’s not totally easy but isn’t super taxing either. Think of a song that lives in that area for today’s work!
Now that we have a song and that range, we’re going to use the syllable “bo” for or exercise. I like this sound because we can easily hear and feel if we’re pushing our voice because the sound comes out more like a “bah” instead. We want that rounded sound when we’re working! All we’re going to now is using that syllable for the chorus of the song.
Things to Avoid in the Exercise
When we’re going through the chorus of the song, there’s a few things to avoid. First, we don’t want to yell any of the sounds. The sounds should feel even, round and smooth as you move through the notes. Next, make sure you aren’t changing the syllable’s sound. When your voice gets tight, the syllable will become more of a “bah” sound. Finally, we want to avoid major changes in volume. Keep things consistent through the entire chorus. Remember, pushing the volume up means our voice is having to work really hard – and it should be a key you need to work on that part of your voice.
One other thing to watch out for is how you feel after the exercise. If you feel really tired, there’s probably a few reasons. It’s possible that your “bo” sound probably wasn’t open enough and you weren’t letting your air through. You may also need to lower the range of the song. Remember, we shouldn’t be working in the part of our range that leads to fatigue.
What do you do next to build ease in songs?
Once you’ve completed the exercise, work on repeating the activity a few times both in the time you’re practicing and at a future session. You can even try it with another song or two. After you’re comfortable, it’s time to use another syllable. That syllable can be anything that’s a bit harder, I really like “go”. Now you’re really beginning to build your foundational strength.
After you’re confident with the syllables, begin adding the words back in and start putting the song together. You’re building foundational strength and ease in your songs! This can be applied during any part of your rehearsal or lesson process, by the way.
Congratulations! You’re on the way to a stronger, healthier voice. Make sure you review all four parts of this series and remember: getting back into shape just requires patience and understanding of the process. As a singer, you have to manage your expectations and set yourself up for success with the proper steps.
See this week’s video for a walkthrough of this week’s exercises!
Want more help?
Check out my FULL Foundations Training with six areas of foundational strength to work on! By working on your voice foundations, you’ll be able to build a stronger voice, reduce vocal fatigue, and so much more!
