Anyone has the appearance of being awkward due to his own bad performance of singing in the public. Watching someone float from note to note, with thick, rich tone. Watching them flutter high in their range with absolute ease…..It’s enough to completely destroy any singer’s confidence! Don’t you find it disheartening that singing appears to be so easy for some people, yet when you sing, it turns into a complicated mess!
Don’t be so disappointed! You could make your voice rich and varible as well by a series of exercises.
It seems that you have to tighten you vocalcord whenever you make a voice. Firstly let me say, if you’re feeling a lot of tension when you sing, you are doing something wrong. Keep your arms slightly away from your body. Clasp your hands out in front of you or bring your arms to your sides and a bit forward, raising them about 6 inches in a flexible, relaxed fashion. This will allow your ribcage to fully expand and your lungs to fill to capacity. More air allows you to project your voice more strongly and clearly.
There are some muscles underneath your chin. Muscles that will kill the singing process if they are engaged! These are called the diagrastic muscles. These muscles are bad news for singing, and with incorrect technique, will almost always become tight. When this happens, they will restrict your singing range, effect the quality of your tone, and most likely, become quite sore! Try not to let your shoulders hunch up and keep your neck from tensing. Don’t force your chest up and out when you breath in. This will actually constrict your air flow. Stay in motion, however slightly. This will relax your body and your tone will sound more natural. Try gently swaying from side to side with the rhythm. You’ll look better, too!
Speech Level Singing.This strategy of relaxing the diagrastic muscles is just one part of the speech level singing process. This is a method of singing that allows you to sing with absolute ease…..ie: the ease of speaking. By learning the speech level singing process, you will develop a voice that has amazing tone, singing range, and control.
When you inhale, push your stomach out. This will allow you to more completely fill your lungs. As you exhale, bring your stomach slowly in, using the muscles of your diaphram (which is just under your ribcage) to control your notes. After practice, this really helps with volume control!
Conversely, if you start to sing sharp (a tiny bit too high), bring your arms down a little lower and open your mouth slightly wider by dropping your lower jaw. Don’t dip your chin towards your neck, however, as this will cause your air flow to become constricted, which will show up in your voice.
Many people sing too softly, out of shyness or embarassment. This keeps them from being able to support a good tone. Others sing as loudly as possible, which can result in sharp or flat notes, as well as body tension. Singing at your natural volumn should feel good, not forced or constricted.
Training this way, you will develop the muscles that are important to the singing process. As these muscles begin to strengthen, your voice will improve at an amazing rate!