6 Tips For How You Can Sing and Singing Better Than Ever

Protected under copyright law 2011 Audrey Hunt. No part of this article may be copied or reproduced without permission by the author. Email mzglobal@sbcglobal.net

Way back in the late 70's, I was nominated "Teacher of the Year" in the Music category for Vocal Education. I do not tell you this to impress you, I tell you this to make a point. Living in Southern California, I was up against some very good teachers who were much more experienced than I and also had more impressive credentials. Needless to say, I was more than a little surprised to find I had been the recepient of such an award. At the awards ceremony, my students approached the podium one by one, sharing their experiences as a student in my vocal classes. It soon became clear that they all shared one particular reason for their progress and love for my instruction. "She believed in me so much, that I learned how to believe in myself too."

It was at that moment that I realized the importance of believing in yourself, which brings us to tip number one.

1. Believe in Yourself

As a singer I can tell you that if you do not believe in yourself, no one will. Your singing must ring true. You must be confident if you expect to sing with the best voice possible. A confident sound contains a rich, ringing and well projected tone. If you lack confidence and are worried about how you sound, begin a program of positive affirmations and visualization to connect with your inner power. Here are some suggestions for positive affirmations to help you. You may also create your own affirmations such as:

"I thank my creator for my beautiful and perfect singing voice."

"Each time I sing, I am filled with confidence".

"People love my singing. My voice is awesome!"

" I experience no fear what-so-ever when I sing."

"I allow my free, glorious and heavenly sounds to touch the hearts of others"

Create whatever it is that you need or want - then affirm your creation by repeating it over and over again. Visualize yourself singing in a place filled with people. Listen to the beauty and richness of your own singing tone - so confident, so grateful, so eager to share the precious messages contained in the song.

Visualize the moment down to the last detail. How many people are in the audience? Describe the size and look of the room, the stage, the band or accompaniest, the lighting, your assistant. What are you wearing? How do you feel?

It is the decisions you make, when you have no time to make them, that define who you truly are".

Believing in yourself is one of the first steps to success. If you don't have confidence in yourself, it will be difficult to succeed in anything. Even with these 6 tips for better singing, until you feel confident, these tips will not be 100% effective.

Absorb yourself completely in this video which I have selected for you. Believe in Yourself

2. Open the Mouth

Your singing tone will remain "hidden" with the mouth barely open. You must create enough space for the sound to "come out" . Don't be self-conscious about a generous mouth opening. How will your tone "ring" unless your mouth is open wide? Ever watche a singer close up and personal on television? At times you can see almost to the back of their throat. So give your singing a big boost by keeping the mouth open as you sing.

An exercise to help you to train your mouth and jaw to the right position for singing words using the 'AH' vowel is:

a. Using a mirror to check for openess, sing the following words on a medium, comfortable tone.

b. hot - brought - not - fall - hall - tall - talk - walk - father - stars - bars - far - broad

c. Be sure to sustain the vowel Ah for a few seconds before closing the word with the final consonant.

d. As you repeatedly practice each word, start off by going very slow. Gradually build your speed until you can sing through the list at a faster pace.

3. Breath Control

Belly breathing, or diaphragmatic breathing is essential to a better sounding singing voice. The tone that you sing actually "rides" on the air that is being exhaled as you sing. When you begin phonation, air causes vibrations to occur (which produces sound), and will continue until you run out of air. If you are currently breathing in air by the use of the upper portion of the lungs only, you will not only run out of air too early, but also have a weak and breathy sound.

Learning how to inhale by inflating around your waistline takes practice. You are unlearning the wrong way to breathe and learning the right way to breathe at the same time. A good way to begin learning how to use the belly breathe is to do the following exercise while lying on the floor.

1. Lie on the floor, on your back with knees in a raised position. (feet will be flat on the floor).

2. Place a light book (or you can go heavy with the yellow pages) on your stomach centered at the waistline.

3. Feeling completely relaxed, quickly lift the book using only your belly, which will then move upward.

4. Hold for 5-15 seconds.

5. Now, lower the book very slowly until the belly returns to its natural flat position. By lowering the book slowly, you are matching what happens as you sing.

6. Repeat this exercise several times, using a hissing sound as you release your air while lowering the book.

7. Variations on this exercise would be to replace the hissing sound with a singing tone on an easy pitch. You will soon see how you are learning to control the amount of air you emit during exhalation.

8. Breathe through your nose and mouth simultaneously.

9. When you have mastered the belly breath on the floor, try the same exercise in a standing position. Because you won't have a book resting on the abdominal wall, place your hand where the book was positioned in the floor exercise. Feel for the expansion around the waist and lower ribcage area.

10. During inhalation - always keep your shoulders still - absolutely still.

4. Activate your resonators

When you sing, you want to discover just how to activate all of your resonators. Your resonators are the mouth, nasal passages, chest and head areas. Moving the sound "forward", means that when you sing you make your tone resonate in these different spaces. At first, practice using the "ee" vowel when you sing because it helps you to feel the vibrations in your resonating areas much easier. You want to avoid "swallowing" the vowels as you sing. You may add other primary and secondary vowels as you progress.

When you hear words like register, chest voice etc,.  these are essentially just convenient labels used to describe the difference in placement throughout the singer's range.
Let's take a look at what placement is.

Placement is the term used to describe the technique of being guided by the vibrations and resonances of the body when singing. These sensations can usually be felt in the chest, face, nose, mouth and the head.

What is a Register ? 
Peoples opinions and descriptive terms differ on this subject, but generally speaking the word 'register' is used to describe a section of the voice. These 'sections' are loosely catagorised by how the vocal cords vibrate, glottal and pharyngeal shape, where the voice resonates in the body and the resulting quality or timbre of the voice.

What is Chest Voice or Chest Register? 
It is a deep or rich full sound that is most commonly used during speech. Air flows over the vocal folds which are are fully apart and the vibration or resonance can often be felt in the upper chest. This is the area of the voice where you should be singing the lower notes of your range. Male voices can be easily felt in the chest cavity, but most female voices have a more suttle vibration and must work on this area.

What is Middle Voice or Middle Register?
The term Middle Voice is not as commonly used as some of the other descriptions like chest and head voice. This section of the voice may also be referred to as mix or blend and it describes an area where a vocal bridge or passaggio may occur. Once the singer has mastered the art of moving smoothly through this transition area it is considered to be mixed or blended. If the singer experiences a vocal "break", the "siren" exercise can help smooth out the break.

What is Head Voice or Upper Register?
Remember those lengthening cords as you ascend the range? Well you'll need these to access 'Head Voice' which is where you should be singing those high notes. The resonance is usually felt in the cheekbone, teeth/lips area which is sometimes referred to as the mask or masque.

What is Whistle Voice or SuperHead?
This is the top end of the vocal range which sounds similar to a whistle or squeal. Few singers use the whistle register although it has gained popularity among some female commercial artists.

What is Falsetto or False Voice?
Falsetto is the lightest register and requires loose vocal cords and incomplete closure which produces a breathy voice that can sound quite feminine although it is generally used by men rather than women.
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How do you know if your singing in Head or Chest Voice?
Place your fingers on your breast bone and then sing a few notes from the bottom end of your range, you should be able to feel the vibration in your chest through your fingers, if you don't feel anything try belting 'Hello' - if your singing in chest voice you should feel something there. If you are singing in your head voice, you should feel the vibrations somewhere in the region of your teeth/lips, cheekbones, nasal cavity, or forehead.

5. Sing Songs That are Within Your "Comfort zone" (range).

This tip is so very important. It can make all the difference when auditioning or performing.

Some singers find it easier to sing very high tones, while others are comfortable in the middle range and still others love singing dark, lower sounds. If you are a high soprano, your best sound will be in the highest part of your vocal range. An alto would prefer very low to middle tones. The respective male voices must also stay within their comfort zone to avoid the risk of vocal damage.

Once you have discovered where your range is - stay within your range. When you sing higher than is natural for you, you may end up with vocal damage as you strain to hit the notes. So how do you know if a note is to high? Anytime you feel tightness or gripping in the throat, you can be sure that the note is out of your range (to high). Another sign that a particular note is to high to sing, is hoarseness. If, after singing those high notes you experience hoarseness, you must stop vocalizing.

When you find a song that you want to sing and it is in the wrong key for you (too high or too low), see if you can have someone transpose it down so that it is completely comfortable.

6. Sing expressively

So here we are, at tip number 6. Technique will set you free. That means, after you have mastered the first 5 tips for the "6 tips to better singing", you have earned the right to express yourself emotionally as you sing. And here's how.

When you sing, breathe life into every musical phrase. Sing with feeling. Be in the moment so that you can create your own truth. Don't miss out by allowing internal dialogue to clutter and distract your mind. Singing is a form of communication. Communicate your desires, passions, needs, wants, fears, joys, prayers, love, loneliness, pain, anger, peace - all the emotions and feelings which are appropriate for the song with your listener. Do not be over-dramatic, just be truthful. Call upon your past experiences and use them to reawaken what has been tucked away. Singing connects us to a deeper place within ourselves because sound is feeling.

Singing brings back into light all our memories, dreams, tensions, conflicts, confidences, and insecurities. When you sing or speak, you vibrate. Air breathed in is let go and passed through your vocal folds, and like two plucked strings, they release a set of vibrations which in turn set off other sets of vibrations. These vibrations are not only heard, they are felt. These feelings can conjure mental pictures, reveal past events and sometimes teach us things about ourselves we were previously unwilling to accept.

Be vunerable...show your feelings - share your feelings. Feelings are not judged...they just are.

Singing is not only a release of energy, but a transformation of energy as well. The body, the emotions, and thoughts are all one. Singing is holistic in nature. It supports our wholeness as human beings.

This is the 6th and final tip. It is, perhaps the most important of all 6 tips for better singing. It is no wonder to me, why most of my students have undergone some kind of personal transformation during our course of study. The work we do together engages our internal energy systems and utilizes all the senses. Every sound that is sung awakens a feeling and each feeling triggers a memory or a thought. Each thought then, triggers an action.

While we are singing, we open up fully to experiences that we were previously unaware of and feelings that have been hidden.

Singing is one of the more effective ways to heal and can effect personal change in our lives.

Karen Carpenter gave us one of the most beautiful voices of all time...

Sing a song.

Make it simple,

to last your whole life long...

Don't worry that it's not good enough,

for anyone else to hear.

Just sing.

Sing a Song.