Corporate Perks Ey
corporate perks ey
Many new vocal students, in the beginning of their studies, know nothing of the head and chest voice. Just running through some demonstrations exercises is helpful. If you want to know how to become familiar with your head and chest voice, and be able to tell which is which, try my demonstration described below.
When guiding vocal students along, once we have covered breathing, we begin “vocalizing.” Some students who come to me are already singing, but many are pure novices. I always think it’s shame not to sing with your full range, whether amateur or professional. Without your full range, many beautiful songs will be beyond your reach.
Generally, I choose an exercise that is a very simple pattern that I repeat and raise by a semi-tone, one half step (one fret on a guitar) each time. I choose a simple exercise from the Bel Canto technique that is sung to the sound of ha-ah-ah, hey-ey-ey, ho-oh-oh. The actual notes are “mi, re, do” over and over again, (each one is a whole step apart).
I will have my student sing the exercise and warm up the voice first. Then I’ll pick a spot low in their range, that will be unquestionably — full chest voice. I instruct the student that this is the chest voice and to feel what it feels like to sing there. Feel the vibration and sensations in the chest area. And then I play the exercise at the higher end of their range, even if they are not using the head voice much, I haven’t run across people that don’t use it all. I explain that they are now using the head voice and to feel the difference. I instruct them to touch their nose, their temples and upper lip and feel the vibrations. It feels different and sounds different aside from the obvious difference in pitch.
Do this several times feeling the difference each time. With repetition, the difference becomes more and more obvious to you.
Next I start at the chest voice again, gradually I ascend by semi-tones, asking the student to let me know when they think they are using the head voice. Generally, they are unsure, but invariably pick it out and with time get more sure.
I will address the subject of the bridge between the two registers. This short span of notes between the registers is often very weak and notes will waver or crack. I have found that with most of my students it is quite natural for them to make a gradual transition from chest to head voice. In most situations that is what is desirable. In some styles of country singing and yodeling they do what I call a “flip,” which actually works a natural break from one register to the other. It is a technique that needs to be practiced, if you want to do that. In most other cases, what you want is a very smooth transition.
When a person has a crack in their register right at a certain note, it means that the voice has flipped from one register to another and if the singer could use the head voice before approaching that note, while still using the chest voice, a very smooth transition would be the result. The more you practice feeling and becoming familiar with the head voice, the more you can guide it into the head or chest at will.
To repeat — to get a smooth transition from head to chest voice, or vice versa, you need to have a little bit of both until you are fully into the new register. Moving between registers in this manner makes a strong bridge and you will not experience “breaks” or “flips” in your voice.
Anything takes practice. If you are new to singing, you will find that you register is limited. You will find your voice strong within the range that you have been using for speech. The rest has been virtually unused, or rarely used. The rest of your range is merely weak and unsure because it has not been used. With practice and use, it will become strong and reliable.
Using my demonstration exercise will assist you in becoming familiar with your chest and head voice. Work this exercise, practice and stretch your voice. Enjoy your full range!
