Do You Like the Sound of Your Voice?

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child-covering-ears1“I don’t like the sound of my voice, especially on a recording”

This is a very common complaint. I don’t think I’ve met anyone who, after listening to their recorded voice for the first time, said “Wow, what a great voice I have!” Listening even to one of your own voice messages can be a humbling experience, because you suddenly realize what your voice really sounds like.
Although this can be discouraging, there’s no need to despair. First of all, you have to realize that what you hear when you speak is not the same as what others hear, because you hear your voice not only from the outside, but from the inside as well. Of course, what you hear on the inside sounds fuller and richer due to the resonance within your sinus cavities.

Once you begin the process of learning how to use your voice correctly, you will find that gradually your sound becomes deeper and richer in overtones. It’s like adding an extra sounding board to a string instrument. All of a sudden, sounds that were thin and weak become alive with resonance and beauty. As your voice develops, and you learn to relax your throat more completely, you unfold the natural potential of your sound, allowing your voice to convey more clearly who you are and what you seek to communicate. When this happens, you will automatically start to like the sound of your voice, because you will find it more and more suited to give depth and resonance to what you have to say.

If you make your living as a speaker, teacher, salesman, preacher, counselor, or something similar, you belong to the category of professionals for whom the voice can make a huge difference in their work. Especially if you do much work using the telephone, your voice can become one of your best tools for conveying trust, honesty, and integrity.

“Your voice is your personal trademark. It serves as a calling card, presenting you and your ideas and your personality to a judgmental world.” (Dr. Morton Cooper, Ph. D, speech and voice doctor)

Here’s an exercise that will help improve the sound of your voice*
Stand or sit upright. Become aware of your shoulders and make sure they’re relaxed, away from your ears. Inhale gently and slowly through your nose, inflating your midsection and making sure your shoulders stay relaxed. Then exhale gently and slowly through your mouth, feeling the midsection slowly deflate. Repeat 3-5 times. Now inhale again as before; as you exhale, make a prolonged humming sound “hmmm” followed by “aaaaaaah”, as your midsection slowly deflates. It’s very important that you keep your lips relaxed while humming. You should feel a buzzing sensation there.  When you switch to “aaah” you should just lower your jaw. Don’t tense your throat or lips.

The purpose of this exercise is to bring more rsonance into your face (mask). This accomplishes two things: it makes your voice louder, richer, and smoother. It also takes tension away from the throat, making it possible to speak without getting tired.

*Special tip: Don’t pick a note that’s too low in pitch. Any note above C3 (for guys) and C4 (for women) would be ideal.

 

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Increasing Your Vocal Range

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Rameshanani_croppedby Ramesha Nani

People often ask me how they can increase the range of their voice. While range can be worked on and increased, it’s actually more a matter of discovering the range inherent in each individual voice. All that is necessary is to learn how to access that range.

Our voice has two main “sections” called registers: the low register, also called chest voice, which most of us use when we speak; and the high register, called head voice, which some of us (mostly men) are completely unfamiliar with.

In trying to develop their high range, singers usually have the experience of hitting a “ceiling” they can’t go beyond unless they push and force their voice up. This is accompanied by tension, discomfort and, if continued long enough, a sore throat and possible loss of the voice.

How to proceed?
Before I talk about what you can do to develop your higher range, I want to mention that these are merely suggestions to give you an idea of what is possible. However, if you want to learn the delicate art of switching from one register to the other seamlessly, it is recommended that you find a voice teacher and have one-on-one sessions. A good teacher is capable of hearing even the subtlest nuances of your voice and guiding you through a process that can otherwise be difficult and frustrating.

  • At the beginning, use an arpeggio exercise (1-3-5-8-5-3-1) rather than a scale.
  • Start on a low note (typically low A) and move your way up a half step at a time.
  • Sing fast and soft. This will prevent tension in the throat.
  • The first note is the most important: make it as full as you can, by enunciating the vowel very clearly.
  • As you go higher, try to consciously create a round sound by expanding your throat (like when you yawn) but in a relaxed way.
  • When you are approaching what seems to be the top of your range, sing very softly, open your mouth wider by lowering your jaw, and stay as relaxed as possible. Your voice may sound “airy” and weak, almost like falsetto. It will naturally become fuller with practice, as long as you don’t push to make it sound fuller.
  • Stop as soon as you feel pain or discomfort.

It may take some time before you’re able to switch between registers seamlessly. Be patient! The most important point is to practice without tension and to not overdo.

Watch this video showing you how to develop your upper range:

 

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