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Good vocal health is important for any of us who rely on our voices in our day-to-day work (eg. teachers, singers and, especially, teachers who sing). Research overwhelmingly reports that teachers are far more susceptible to voice problems than those in other occupations. But how many of us actually know how to look after our voices?
To help, we’ve produced Inside the voice, a comprehensive guide to the voice and vocal health, to help teachers and their pupils stay in good vocal shape. Written by experts Stuart Barr (President of the British Voice Association, 2009-2010) and Jenevora Williams, this multimedia handbook contains information and guidance for voice users of all ages and levels of ability. Even experienced voice users may find themselves thinking ‘Why have I never been told this before?’.
The six stand-alone chapters contain tips and techniques for things like improving vocal technique and warming up properly before you sing. There’s a chapter on how the voice works, alongside an insight into how the voice changes over the lifespan, allowing teachers to choose appropriate exercises and repertoire for their singers’ particular stage of development.
The written materials are accompanied by illustrations and video clips, including a fascinating look at how vocal sounds are produced from inside the larynx (not for the squeamish among you!).
‘Breathing and good voicing’ exercise
This sample exercise is taken from Chapter 5, and helps release tension in the upper body:
- Make hissing sounds in fun, rhythmic patterns. Use ‘sss’, ‘fff’ or ‘shhh’.
- Repeat the rhythmic patterns with the voiced sounds ‘zzz’ and ‘vvv’. The key thing is to make sure that the sounds are well voiced and not breathy: ‘zzz’ and ‘vvv’, not ‘shzshzshz’ or ‘fvfvfv’.
- Check that the rhythmic impulse comes from the tummy (not from the chest or throat) by keeping your hands flat on your tummy and feeling the impulse.
It’s important not to raise the upper ribs and shoulders when you’re trying
to take a big breath. This makes it feel like you’re working hard, but doesn’t lead to good singing. Instead, make sure you keep your shoulders down and just feel the inward and outward action of the lower belly (below the ribs).
Ask the singers to push their thumbs into their waistband and feel the muscles within bulk out as they make a ‘shhh’ sound. Follow this with the voiced ‘vvv’, ‘zzz’ and the consonants ‘b’, ‘d’ and ‘g’. When these muscles are
working efficiently, there’s less likely to be tension in the upper body.
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