Ep.11: How to Improve Your Singing Voice

 

How to improve your singing voice. This is what we all want.

 

Inside this video I’ll show you how to improve your singing voice using your vocal cords. This is one of the things you can control as a singer…your vocal cords.

 

How to Improve Your Singing Voice: Your Vocal Cords Hold the Key

Did you know you can control your vocal cords? Let me show you what I mean.

1. I can open my vocal cords completely (demo)

2. I can close my vocal cords completely (demo)

 

In between these two extremes are different qualities of openness and “closedness”. Another way of describing this is to talk about the two cords coming together…which is what they must do to make sound waves.

 

When the two vocal cords come together, we say the vocal cords adduct.

 

Not “abduct”. That’s taking something away.

 

“Adduct” is to move toward the middle. In the case of the vocal cords, we’re talking about the two cords moving together and touching, or moving to the middle and touching together.

 

This’s what they do when we talk and sing. They move to the middle or mid-line and, moved by air from our lungs, vibrate together and create sound waves or vibration.

 

Controlling your Vocal Cords To Improve Singing Voice

Let’s talk about controlling your vocal cords to improve your singing.

 

Here’s an idea for you. Pinch your fingers together. First, pinch them together really hard. Now barely pinch them together almost not touching. Now pinch them somewhere in between hard and easy.

 

We can do the same thing with our vocal cords. But we don’t pinch them…we adduct them…bring them together to make sounds.

 

Vocal Cord Closure Five Ways

Here are five ways, or five qualities of vocal cord closure.

 

1. You can control your vocal cords by opening them completely so all the air escapes.

 

2. Now, control your vocal cords by just barely closing or adducting them so they can make sound, but loose so a lot of air escapes. In a comfortable speaking voice range and volume use the word “AH”. Now sing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” using the same feeling and volume. (Sings Demo)

 

Notice that you can be pretty loud, but still have a lot of air escaping through the vocal cords because they were not adducting very firmly. (Demo)

 

By the way, I call this condition where the vocal cords are coming together very lightly with a lot of air escaping, light chest or no chest voice voice. It’s one of the vocal types.

 

3. Now close or adduct the cords a little tighter. “AH”. Add short little stops and starts like this: AH AH AH. This is called staccato. The vocal cords are very adducted and then open and then are very adducted again on that staccato. Now sustain the AH sound holding them more adducted like you’ve just done. Now sing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” using the same feeling. (Sings Demo)

 

4. Now close or adduct the vocal cords even more firmly so hardly any air escapes at all.  “AH”.   This may feel like too much adduction. “AH”.

Now sing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” using the same feeling and volume. (Sings Demo)

 

5. Last of all, close or adduct your vocal cords completely, so no air escapes. Try and make a sound. No sound, right? No air escapes and no vibration occurs so there’s no sound.

 

How did you control your vocal cords? You controlled them like you do when you pinch your fingers together…only you were controlling your vocal cords and not your fingers. We don’t pinch, we adduct the cords.

 

The less you adducted your vocal cords the more air that escaped. (Saying it breathy)  The more you adducted the cords, the less air escaped. (Saying it less breathy) And finally, you adducted them so much, no air escaped at all…and no sound either. No sound, right?

 

How do You Improve Your Singing Voice?

 

You improve your singing voice by controlling how much or how little you close or adduct your vocal cords. Too little closure and you get too much air escaping. It sounds breathy, light and weak.

 

If there’s too much cord closure with very little air escaping, the voice gets too tight and jammed up.

 

You can improve your singing voice by finding the right balance of vocal cord adduction so you have ideal air flow for the best sound and function of your singing voice.

 

Improve Your Singing Voice by Learning Your Vocal Type

 

Your vocal type helps you understand what your vocal cords tend to do when you sing. Are they too loose? Are they too tight? Are they broken apart? (Demonstrates falsetto)

 

Do you know your vocal type? I’m not talking about whether you’re a soprano, alto, tenor or bass.

 

Once you know your vocal type, and understand what your vocal cords are doing, you can begin building just the right balance in your vocal cords and get the singing voice you want.

 

Visit PowerToSing.com. Take the PowerTest and the quiz. Immediately you’ll discover your vocal type.

 

 

Explore the Knowledge Center in Power to Sing’s website. Learn about your vocal type and the exercises that will help improve the way your vocal cords function.

 

I’m Chuck Gilmore with Power to Sing. You can sing higher with beauty, confidence, and power.

 

I’ll see you inside the next video.