No matter how hard you train and prepare, the one factor that you cannot totally control in your singing is your health.  I’m writing this today sick in bed with bronchitis and laryngitis- lovely.  All my students had to be cancelled this week, there is no singing for me, not to mention my energy level… blahh.

My brain is still working though…since it is not quite a head cold, so  I am able to write about it .

This moment reminds me of the MANY times in my life when my health has failed me during a crucial singing moment and all the emotions and pressures that came with those times.  I know I have blogged about these types of things before, but it is a huge part of a singer’s world, psyche, and life.  -And it can be very frustrating if not crazy making.

Since I am not due to be recording or preforming this week, all it is costing me is quite a bit of  my income from my teaching. (Which can be problematic as well- but definitely much more tolerable than dealing with missing important performances or performing mediocre or even badly when the show must go on.)

It really is just something that happens.  For singers, more than any other artist, I believe it is the most difficult, since our performing is a direct result of what is happening in our throats and bodies.

All I can say to this is it is a part of our lives as singers.  We can do our best to stay healthy, save our voices, not yell, use humidifiers, stay hydrated, wash our hands, and stay out of crowds.  But the truth is, sometimes we will just get sick.  And maybe once a year we may just not be able to sing well for a week or two.

Rather than live crazed about this, my advice to all is just to learn to live with it.  Directors, composers, and producers also get sick.  Audiences get sick. They all need to accept that we are not super human.  Sometimes we have to cancel, step out, or just say no.  Do it respectfully, and hopefully not too often, and let it go.  Don’t spend your time feeling guilty or pressured by it.  It is part of what you signed up for – using your body for  a career.  And it is a risk that anyone who hires you has to take.  That is why they invented the understudy.

There will be moments that are crucial that your voice will just not be there for you in life.  And it will be very hard to accept.  But it is all a part of the journey.  Whether it is  a MET final, an American Idol performance, or your senior recital, there are always health risks that can be devastating in a moment of opportunity.

The odds are always in your favor though.  We tend to be healthy most of the time.  Enjoy those moments and sing gloriously through them.

Written by Ariella Vaccarino creator of  Voice Lessons To Go (singing lessons on CD) and author of  Vocalize!

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It is so easy for us when we are feeling yucky, to speak poorly.  Our throats hurt, we are congested, our chords might be a bit swollen,  so it really feels so natural for us to speak “heavy and sick sounding”.  I say nay!

When you are sick you need to make the opposite effort with your speaking voice than what feels natural.  Don’t let your voice give in to the sick,  ”lazy speak” that you would like to do.  Force yourself rather to speak “over” the cold, gently, and without any pushing, pressing, or sitting on the vocal chords.  Keep everything light in your sound.

The reason to do this is for a speedier recovery once you start feeling better.  The more you push down into that sick sound, the further you will swell those vocal chords creating an even longer amount of time until your voice is working sweetly for you again.

I am not saying that you can prevent yourself from sounding sick when you are sick, just don’t play into it and add onto it.  Keep your voice in a “healthy-speak” mode even if you have tissues stuffed in your nose.

And if it is hard for you to speak correctly, then really try to minimize your speaking until your voice improves.

The more you speak on swollen chords, the longer they will take to heal.

This blog is being written by me 3 days in to a cold.  I caught myself day one speaking with a really sick sound.  It gets more sympathy of course, and I felt terrible so I was inclined to speak awfully.  I realized I was doing it and was easily able to make a shift to speak in a higher, lighter spot.  I sounded healthier instantly and helped minimize the damage.

This particular cold has not gone into my voice, and I am pretty sure that by tomorrow I will be back up and running vocally.  If I had not shifted my speaking on that first day of being sick, my voice certainly would be feeling the effects for at least a few more days.

You  can not prevent hoarseness every time you are sick, but sometimes… you can .

This is something that we have to remind ourselves to do.  You never know when you are going to get that singing opportunity, so you must always be thinking about how you can cut down on your singing downtime, even if it only saves you a day.  That could be the day when you get called for a great recording, or audition!

Here’s to your health!

Ariella Vaccarino

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written by Ariella Vaccarino creator of  Voice Lessons To Go(singing lessons on CD) and author of  Vocalize!

Want a professional opinion of how you sound?  Sign up for my Vocal Assessment. Then send me a link or mp3 of you singing (audio/or audio visual) with your questions and I will get back to you with my feedback right away.

Check out my instructional videos on my YOUTUBE Channel:

http://www.youtube.com/voicelessonstogo

Listen to my Weekly Podcasts on Itunes:

My Itunes Podcast

Friend me on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/voicelessonstogo

Follow me on twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/voicelessons2go (I love a good retweet!)