Thursday, November 27, 2008

Expand Your Vocal Range

By Elizabeth Schohl

Everybody has a certain range that they can comfortably sing. When you try to hit higher notes you'll notice that your voice loses that full sound as it switches into a falsetto range. A good rule is that you can only sing as high as you can hum, so this practice method does not allow you to open your mouth so that you cannot use your falsetto voice.

If you want to sound like a certain performer you might be out of luck, only they can sing like them. You can practice and match their range but your voice was designed for you. People know you by your voice, so be proud of sounding uniquely yourself.

If you want to increase your range you have to practice, no question about it. It sounds boring and tedious but remember that nobody ever stepped on stage the first time and became a star. They worked at it and practiced until they didn't want to even perform but when you hear them you think that you could do that too.

You can stretch your vocal range by practicing how to speak with an awareness that your are changing your voice with each word. Most people find that when they are upset or excited their voice gets very high and thin pitched, and when they experience a cold the voice has a much lower sound than normal. Well, you can practice the same technique with your voice by expanding the range of pitches.

Reading some children's stories is a great way to express your voice and expand it past what singing can do. You're teaching your voice to expand but not to break, when you lower your voice you're teaching it to relax. Your voice has a memory that tells your brain how far you can stretch your vocal cords before they separate and start to use your falsetto voice.

Teach your vocal cords to relax when you want to go higher so they will comfortably reach that range. Talking and expressing yourself is the best way to teach your vocal cords what you want them to do. After that you will be able to sing higher without straining your voice.

Don't attempt to make your voice singer higher or lower than it can really go, as it may precipitate harm to your voice. The use of bad habits such as repeated abuse of the vocal cords will prevent the vocal cords from healing. Singers cannot afford to weaken their voice as they need their voices for speaking as well as singing.

If you practice properly you'll find that your vocal cords will begin to react to your requests. You'll hear a difference when you try to hit the higher notes which aren't really that high. Your vocal cords have adjusted to being loosened to allow you comfortably reach those higher notes. - 16003

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