Where is my Whistle register or voice?
Arianna Grande has introduced a whole new generation of singers to the idea of singing in whistler register or whistle voice. From a technical standpoint, whistle voice is an extension of your head voice that once you have mastered can allow you to sing in an extremely high registration. In order to truly understand how to produce whistle voice you need to master many of the vocal techniques we have talked about earlier, however if you want to just play around with it and try to find it, there are 2 really easy ways to force your voice into whistle. The first one would be to hold your upper and lower lips in your fingers like we did earlier to relieve lip tension and sing a scale going up into your upper range. You will feel your voice “crack” into another place. It should not hurt at all and you should find it really easy. You can also do the same mouth position by singing in a super closed (oo) vowel position with your lips. Be sure you are taking in enough air, supporting your voice and have your tongue as relaxed as possible. Once you get the sensation, you will be able to reproduce it. Would you like help with your vocal technique and your whistle voice? Why not try voice lesson in our studio?
Don’t settle for pressure in your singing, learn about Jaw tension.
At JVS we see jaw tension hindering singers natural beautiful sound and want to help you eliminate the incorrect usage of your jaw. First of all, your jaw needs to be dropped from the back more than the front. An easy way to achieve this is to take your index fingers, place them on your cheeks where your back molars are located and gently push in. This allows the back of the jaw to drop open. If done correctly you should feel a slight yawning sensation. This is the perfect position of your jaw and the key to maintaining the opening you need to eliminate tension. Vocal science has proven that when we drop the back of the jaw, our throats open. Try singing any one of your songs or arias with your fingers in this position. You will quickly discover how often you close or compromise that space when singing. We feel this is one of the biggest problems facing ALL singers today! If you want to learn how to master this extremely important skill and stop chewing your words, please visit the link in our BIO to start your lessons today!
“Develop the coveted seamless legato line using Lip Trills”
Lip trills really help to move and anchor your breath by using correct sub-glottic breath pressure. It’s a great way to create that seamless legato line which you need to develop for world-class singing. The objective is to make sure your lips keep trilling throughout the entire vocalize. If your lips stop, you can bet your breath stopped as well. Stopping breath is the same as dropping your support. So, stand with correct posture, rib cage high, good, deep, low, down and out breath and start phonation or singing by trilling your lips. In the lower range it might be a bit more difficult because you need to move more breath. Remember to keep the breath moving and those lips trilling!
A little more about the Tongue
In one of our recent blog posts we spoke about maintaining a tongue position that is as relaxed as possible. Remember pretending to falling asleep in the chair or putting your tongue into the (EE) position? By maintaining that (EE) position of the tongue with all of your vowels, you are creating the most space it is possible for you to have in the back of your throat. The more space you have in the back of your throat the better the sound will be that comes out of your mouth. Another great outcome of keeping that tongue relaxed and the throat open is that you will definitely produce a louder and bigger sound! It is also imperative to remember to take in as much air as possible and then manage it properly so that you can stay relaxed in your throat and tongue. The throat will not stay open nor will the tongue stay relaxed if you do not have the right breath support. Tension is the enemy of great and healthy singing! In learning to have correct breath support, a relaxed tongue, and open throat you are starting to give yourself a real shot at a singing career. If you wanted to become a dancer, would you expect to do that without taking lessons? You have to learn how to sing also! No singer is free of tension and vocal problems if they never learn a vocal technique. We want you to help you build a technique with your voice so that you can have a long and healthy singing career. Contact us today so that we can get you started on a successful singing career!
Posture. Use the correct one for Breathing!
Posture is extremely important when it comes to breathing. If you don’t use the correct posture, you have nowhere for that breath to go. We tell our students to put their heels hips, shoulder blades against a wall. Head should be there too with chin not too high or too low. Now, step away from the wall maintaining that position and you will have the correct posture for breathing and singing. Taking in a straw breath like we’ve discussed before, can help you achieve correct posture so add these new techniques to your practice time. Enjoy your newfound posture…it will make you sing better!
What should I wear for auditions?
This is a very commonly asked questions in our studio! The best answer we can offer is to always wear something that really flatters your body type. Buying audition clothing is like buying a bathing suit. You want your outfit to totally flatter you and reflect your sense of style and self. We recommend against wearing white and overly busy patterns because white can make a person look much heavier then they actually are and busy patterns make the adjudicator focus on your outfit rather then your singing. When you go shopping, take someone with you that you can really trust to be honest with you about how you look and stick to bright solid colors and jewel tones. Also, remember that if you have a specific look that is important to your brand then you have to stay within that style. As we always say, JVS offers a holistic approach to teaching our students. Email us today for lessons and be assured we not only will help you sound great, but look fantastic, too!