Yelling, Belting and that Horrible Break

In this noisy world, we almost have
to shout to be heard. In a normal
classroom at school, children shout
instead of talk - and when they all yell at
the same time, the noise pollution is overwhelming!
Just walk by a school yard at recess
and listen to the high-pitched screams
of these happy children; it's ear shattering.
Many parents complain that their children yell
at the dinner table - bad habits die hard.


Many of my singing students shout their songs
hoping to have the same width and volume on
the high notes as they do on the low ones.
Then they complain that the famous break
comes and ruins everything; and to make matters
worse, they can't understand why their throats
hurt afterwards.

There are some important issues here.
High tones ARE thinner than deep tones.
To reach these high notes:
*without strain
*without sounding too "airy"
*and without losing focus
you must to learn to listen to your voice.


Listening to ones voice while singing is
very important in understanding what is going
on during phonation. (sound-making)

If you imagine yourself singing from a deep note
and gliding up to a high note on the vowel A,
the image/shape you should have in mind is pyramid shaped.
The deep notes are wider, and as you glide up the scale ,
the tone thins out towards the top of the pyramid.
If you try to sing as if you were going straight up an
elevator shaft, with the same width of tone all the way up
the voice is going to protect itself by resisting the pressure
and the vocal cords will be pushed from each
other creating that horrible break.
(This is fine - if you are yodelling.)


Another way of imagining this is comparing the sound
to a car engine.
As you apply your foot to the gas pedal, you can hear the
engine getting louder and the engine sounds strained, until it
changes gear. (this is more noticable with a stick shift car!)
Now, imagine that as you move your voice up the scale
you shift gears a little at a time, ALL the way up - say 16 times.
This will take the pressure off the vocal cords and help them
thin out as you sing higher and higher up the scale.
If done correctly, you should be singing up and down the notes
- almost 4 octaves, because you release the tension along
the way!
I call this singing with "One Voice".
Your voice should be connected from the deepest note you
sing to the highest.


I can hear many of you out there thinking:
I hate my thin voice at the top - I'd rather belt
and scream!
Well................ My next page will be about singing in resonance
and keeping your sound focused - which will help you
keep an even sound, no matter what key you
are singing in.
AND - how to substitute a good strong tone for
heavy volume that wears out your voice!
So.....stayed tuned!

best wishes
Lisa 2002

Vocalease p. 1 Vocalease p.2 Vocalease p.4