I am  prepping for an upcoming concert and I just got through my memorization process.    That is what it is for me, a process.  Something I have to actually set my mind to do and make time for .  Being a classical Opera singer myself, (as well as a voice teacher and Creator of Voice Lessons To Go),  I am often faced with memorizing large amounts of music in Foreign Languages.  Thank God this is something that has  never given me problems.  As long as I make the time to do it, I can always get it done.

Just like practicing your voice and learning the notes of a song, memorizing words need their time slot on your schedule when preparing to sing in front of people.

Regarding memorizing, the sooner you do it, the faster you can get into creating the music on your own rather then relying on sheet music to get you through.  Once you are memorized you can practice singing into a mirror or out into an “imaginary audience”.  This really helps you open up and feel your role in the song and gives you time to make it yours.

Whenever possible you want to sing memorized in front of people.  People connect to you through your eyes.  They should be up and out when you are singing, not buried in a music folder.

Having your music with you on stage holds you one step back from delivering a professional performance.

So how do you memorize music most effectively?  I think it really depends on what kind of learner you are; audio or visual.  Think of how you do or used to study for tests in school.  Did you just look at your notes, have to talk through them aloud, have to practice writing them back onto paper to absorb them?

For me it has always been a bit of a combination.  For example last night I went through my piece of music and wrote all the lyrics out onto lined paper.  I translated it as well (was not in English).  Then I looked at what I have written to find patterns in the words and get an overview of the full structure of the lyrics.

When singing through music it is not the same as looking at a sheet of all the lyrics written out.  For me I need to think about it as a monologue, finding the beats.  I then went through my music again in my head trying to come up with the lyrics again spot checking where I needed help.  Usually, you already are part memorized from learning your song when you start the memorization process so you need to identify where these parts are so you can focus on the parts that need work.

The other thing I think is great to do is to tackle a tough spot towards the end of the music so that once you have that you know you have something to look forward to when starting the top of the song again.

So I did that a few times, circling and underlining parts that needed help on my lyrics sheet.  Then I wrote it out again. Each time “feeling” the words come to life on the paper.  For me the process of writing it out and seeing it show up in front of me is very powerful.

I did this till I was able to get through the song in my head and on paper smoothly. (about 45 minutes)

The next step I do always is to put the music down, let it go, and sleep on it.  I really think the sleep helps to solidify the lyric to my brain.  This morning I went through all my lyrics in my head, and sang them out loud softly a few times.  Not only do I need to get them on paper and in my head, but I need to practice saying them with my mouth, so I don’t stumble.- You need to memorize the mouth movements especially if it is a fast wordy song.

Today I will sing through the piece and practice performing it without looking at the music, spot checking as I need it.  Then I will really practicing performing it not thinking about about the lyrics to get them onto auto pilot.  I do this because I know that when I am on that stage I will not necessarily remember to think about the lyrics with the audience, orchestra and lights surrounding me.

Over the next few days I will go through the lyrics in my mind, speak them through, do them while doing other things such as cooking, exercising, and driving.  I will also listen to a recording of the music repeatedly to train my aural skill of listening and learning.

Doing these things will make me memorized and prepared.  Not doing them will have me nervous and undependable as a performer on a big stage.  Always choose preparing instead of worrying!

Now go write out those words !

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.

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As I say for my business (Voice Lessons To GO) as well as for my singing, there is no use thinking about your competition. What is the point?  You really never know what it is that is going to make a judge, casting agent, or directer pick you out of an audition “line up” for the part. So don’t sweat it.

The gorgeous woman who just sang before you like a Siren may have reminded the judge of an ex-girlfriend he didn’t like.

– or-

You might be amazing but the moment they see you they know you won’t be a match for the short tenor they have to play your husband.

Because I am not only a singer/voice teacher but I am also a business woman, I may have a bit of a different perspective on all of this.  I can use my CDs as an example.  So many people have asked me – “Aren’t you worried about your competition?,  or  ”Aren’t there other voice lesson CDs out there?”  My answer has always been: “So what, there are millions of people out there, I’ll just keep doing my best at what I am doing.  There is room enough for everybody.  Everyone can have their niche.”

I don’t spend my time looking at or considering the competition.  I need to be strong enough to stand on my own as a business woman no matter how many others are around me.  I’m not sure which helped me more the entrepreneurial woman to my musician or the musician to my entrepreneurial self.  But the combo together has helped me to see the world a bit differently.  I also think I view opportunities a bit out of the box.

If I didn’t think like that, there probably would be no Voice Lessons To Go.  You might be thinking, I thought this blog was about the competition, why is she talking about herself? That is my whole point.  The competition doesn’t matter.  You are what matters. Put the energy into evolving yourself instead of thinking about the others.

Think on a grander scale as a singer beyond your single auditions.  You need to know who you are, be confident, work on being and bringing out your best, and then marketing yourself.

The competition will there no matter what- trust me.  People will like you over them and them over you no matter what. That is the business.  There are no guarantees.  But it sure will help you get that part a lot more often if you are fully realized as a singer.

Click here to view a past blog post that will give you 10 ideas to work on when becoming a complete singer: http://voicelessonstogo.com/blog/so-my-voice-isnt-fabulous-can-i-have-success-as-a-singer (don’t worry about the title, the information is what you need).

What you do need to concentrate on is how YOU can be the best singer you can be.  Work on all the areas that make you a great artist and performer. Develop the whole you and the whole package.  Then walk into your auditions with pride knowing that you are a complete performer.  If they sign you or cast you- awesome.  That is ideal but no matter the competition unless you are amazing yourself, none of it matters anyway.  Don’t sweat the competition, sweat what you can do do be your best instead.

Happy evolving!  Sing well!

Ariella Vaccarino

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 myVocal 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.***

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Well, I have a concert coming up in a few weeks and I have been on a performing hiatus for a few months now.  As a result my dependable anxiety dreams have begun again.  Yes, even I still have them.  This one is a common recurring theme that presents itself it in similar scenes.

They usually are made up of me finding out that I have a performance to do in a few moments.  Of course, I am never warmed up, and am not dressed properly.  Most of the time, I have NOT YET LEARNED the piece that I am about to be performing on stage, or I don’t know the lyrics, or had forgotten to memorize it.  Sometimes I don’t even know the melody ,  or the staging. Most of the time I don’t know any of it and I am about to be thrown into it. -And often I have gum in my mouth that I can’t seem to find anywhere to put.

These dreams are so stressful for me, and the stress of them seems to last into the following morning after the dreams.  It is the count down to the performance in front of people that I was not prepared for on any level that just repeatedly shows itself in my dreams before a performance.  Ahhhh, yuck.  These seem to happen more when I have taken a break from performing for a while- understandably.

Do you get these?  I have been having them since I was a child (I have been performing since then as well).

There is one thing that I do to combat this stress- since I can’t control the dreaming.  What I can control is what I do with my time before a performance when I am awake.  And that is PREPARE- even over prepare. Get your music learned as soon as possible, keep your voice in good shape through regular vocalizing year round (Voice Lessons TO GO is great for that), so that you are not in a race to get yourself in vocal shape while prepping for a concert.  MEMORIZE your material as soon as you can.  You will have to memorize it anyway, and that seems to hold a lot of anxiety for us until the deed of memorization is done.  So get it done.  Show up memorized, and well rehearsed to your first rehearsal so that you are ahead of the game.

Doing these things will help you to combat your performing anxiety.  The dreams are bad enough.  Make your reality as stress-free as possible by being overly prepared.  Feel like you can perform your piece in your sleep!

I’m going to take my own advice and go practice!  I’d love to hear some of your anxiety singing dreams!

(I know I am not alone on this one!)

Ariella Vaccarino

Thank you for subscribing to my blogs!  I am working hard to bring you great content and free singing advice.  Please take a moment to spread the words via the social book marking links below to help me build my readership.  Thank you!

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.

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Can you improve your singing voice? Absolutely.

Everyone can learn to sing better.  Talent and improvement are two different things.  As far as talent goes, you only have what you have been given.  Some are given diamond and others- not so precious metals… but everyone can improve singing.  Anyone can grow to be a better singer.

There are so many areas in singing that can make a difference.  All those areas can be worked on and improved.  Here is a list of the many areas to work on when looking to improve your voice:

1. Develop your ear.- This can be done in a variety of ways: Listening to a lot of good singing and trying to learn form it is great for you,  doing ear training exercises – check out Voice Lessons To go v.2 Do Re Mi Ear and Pitch training for this, and learning about music-how to sing and hear solfedge (Do Re Mi), hearing intervals (the space between notes), learning how to sing and hear scales and different types of chords.  All these things can help to open your ears to music. Better hearing and understanding of sound will lead to better singing.

2. The tone, vocal timbre of your voice.- It is important to find the natural sound of your voice.  Many people try and imitate sounds they hear on the radio.  If you are trying to imitate Brittany Spears remember she is singing through a processor which is electronically effecting the sound of her voice.  You need to find your sound.  Strip down your voice to your natural sound and then build it where it needs help from there by adding qualities such as: warmth, brightness, hollow, depth, and ping.

3. Your musicality when approaching a song.  There is more to singing a song then just repeating notes with words.  Music needs to flow, have lines and variation.  Releasing your notes properly at the end of long phrases, and swelling your sound up and down while holding a long note are examples of the many areas of musicality that can be developed.  Play with tempo- (speed of a piece), dynamics (loud to soft), phrasing (legato- smooth, staccato- choppy) etc…

4. Emotive expression (your acting through a song).  Not only do you need to sing well, you need to move people through your performance.  This is where you acting ability comes in.  Practice your lyrics as monologues.  Find the beats to the words and phrasing.  Find the variation to repeating choruses.  For example one time you may be timid, the next resolved.  Use your whole body to express yourself.  Be totally engaged and committed to the performance of your song.  Your eyes should be bright and alive with expression.

5. Charisma- Some people are born with it.  But other can develop it.   You want to be the person on that stage that people just HAVE to look at.  Open yourself up fully when on stage.  You want to seem approachable.  Be an interesting person and reveal it. Use humour freely with an audience.  Don’t be afraid to really be you in front of people.  Take an improv acting class to help you be totally raw on stage.  This is very attractive to people who will “wish” that they could be free like you in front of people. Don’t be afraid to take risks and never hold back.  This will make you exciting to watch.

6. Your vocal range- Get practicing with great vocal warm ups regularly. Voice Lessons TO GO will help you to do the trick if you can not get to a good private teacher.  Never strain!  Take your time to properly develop that range by not pushing and practicing regularly.  The stronger you get get your body to support your voice, the easier it will be to reach down or up in your range.

7. Your vocal stamina- This happens by doing a few things regularly: Breathing exercises, Vocal exercises, singing through repertoire, and physical body exercises.  Doing all these things regularly will make a you as fit as you can be as a singer.  The more you practice the better you will be and the more you will be able to count on your voice for a good performance.

8.  Your appearance on stage- Sorry to say it, but it is very important.  Not saying you have to have the perfect body and perfect face.  But you do have to know what your look is.  Having a bit of your own developed style will help you to stand out and be remembered.  Try and be in good physical shape- it will only help you in your singing anyway.  Think about it.  You want to be attractive to look at on the stage.  Be confident in your posture and be well put together well.

9. Your song choice and repertoire- Don’t sing audition and performance pieces outside of your comfort zone.  Sing what you do well.  If you have a great 5 note range for now- then find a song that does not challenge that.  If you can’t belt- don’t sing something from Wicked, if your voice is high and sweet but not strong- pick a pretty folk tune, if you are funny don’t sing a ballad.  Find the right type of music to show you  off rather then show off your faults.

10. Your work ethic and dependability as an artist.- Always be someone that people can count on as a singer.  Show up memorized, well rehearsed, and well behaved.  this can go far in the business.

Get working singers, there is lots to do!

Ariella Vaccarino

Thank you for subscribing to my blogs!  I am working hard to bring you great content and free singing advice.  Please take a moment to spread the words via the social book marking links below to help me build my readership.  Thank you!

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 myVocal 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.

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I have spent many years teaching young girls singing lessons.  Taking them through the transitional journey of their own voice from girl to woman.  This is something I actually really enjoy because first hand I can protect and prepare their voice for healthy years of singing ahead.  There is a fine line  to preparing/protecting verses pushing the young voice.  It is important that are never pushing the voice especially the young voice to do anything.  Your singing should always be natural to your bodies ability and development.

The one real difficulty though is the patience required of the student (and their own parents) for the tween’s head voice to file in properly and develop fully.  As you can imagine.  A tween girls higher register is usually breathy.  So they often come to me telling me they are altos.  (That is another subject I shall write about at some point, but know that I have rarely met a “true” alto.)  Or they bring me a song with high notes for an audition and want the “problem solved” by the end of a lesson. – You can’t force a head voice to develop. Especially in one lesson.

Check Out an older blog of mine regarding what age is appropriate to start singing lessons if you are interested: http://voicelessonstogo.com/blog/category/young-singers

The young girl who has been belting her way through her single digit years, will eventually find herself needing to sing a higher then beltable high note.  This is where the head voice comes in.  The head voice usually develops along with puberty.  Girls hit that mark at different times.  There is nothing you can do to rush the process.  Rather, you must let your voice do its own natural thing.  Its hard to wait for things, I know.

It is especially frustrating when a young singers friend is hitting the high notes and getting the parts while the student is just getting a lot of breathiness.  Patience is key here.  The voice is going to do what it is going to do. There is a biological clock involved. Just like a boy can’t force a beard to grow, a girl can’t force her head voice to develop.

In voice lessons there are things that your teacher can do specifically in prepping the head voice.  Vocalizes that practice going from the lower register smoothly into the upper register.  Singing them smoothly and comfortably will help the transition between chest and head voice as your sound comes in.  It is great to have a head start on this so that you don’t find yourself with two completely different voices that can’t work together.  You can use my Voice Lessons To Go CDs to help you out with blending your registers: http://voicelessonstogo.com/products.html

So, if you are parent of a younger singer or a younger singer yourself.  Allow the process to happen naturally without any pressure.  Some girls are going to walk in at 11 sounding like young operatic sopranos and others may not have anything but breath till their 17th birthday on a high G.

It is really all OK.  We all grow up in time.  Enjoy your young voice.  Keep it healthy, and never force, push or strain it.

Sing well!

Ariella Vaccarino (a once young singer myself!)

Thank you for subscribing to my blogs!  I am working hard to bring you great content and free singing advice.  Please take a moment to spread the words via the social book marking links below to help me build my readership.  Thank you!

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.

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As a voice teacher for over 18 years and an Opera singer myself which is no easy cake walk to do well, I have always been in awe of the good Gospel singer.

I think most people would agree that there are not many more things more invigorating then hearing and watching a gospel choir sing out with an amazing soloist riding over them.  It is moving and inspirational to most, no matter your religion.

And why is Gospel Singing so moving and what can we learn form it?

Gospel singing is sung from the soul.  Take that in.  The deep soul, spirit.  I talk so much about honest singing and connecting to your audience.  Gospel is one of the best examples of that.

Take the essence of gospel intention and put it into your own music:

Believe it

Feel it

Experience it

Share it

Give in to it

Whether you are dying on stage in your last act of Traviata as an Opera singer,

Crooning to a loved one in a torch song,

Or screaming (hopefully fully supported of course) in rage for your heavy metal concert.

Take the essence of Good Gospel singing and use it in you to move your audience.

Get lost in your own music, get swept up, taken away, and over come.

Then you can always pull back as to what is appropriate keeping the core of soul and honesty in your sound but remaining appropriate to your style.

Sing well!

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.

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Remember when you first wake up in the morning your voice is NOT warmed-up.  Just like any other type of athlete, singing is a sport (it happens to be a musical one).  It takes the proper muscle support to make it happen correctly.  If you were a runner you would not roll out of bed and hit the track, you would stretch and slowly work your body into a real run.

That goes for singing as well.  So give your chords a break.  In the morning start slow your voice is vulnerable.

Seven tips for your early morning singing warm up:

1. Don’t do that morning grovel speak.- When you first wake up your voice is probably low and a bit grindy.  Fight the tendency to have a long discussion like that.  Instead speak gently over your gruff sound with a lighter tone until the rest of your sound files in.

2. -Do some gentle yawn sighs (like descending and ascending siren sounds).  Use different consonant vowel combinations such as Ma, We, Woo. Brr, and Hmms.  Don’t go too high or too low, start with minimal volume and minimal range as you wake your body up.

3. Gentle humming- Do 5 note descending exercises  to start , (like on Voice Lessons To GO v.1) then go up five notes down five notes.  Then sing an octave stretch Do Mi So Do So Mi Do.  Keep it gentle, no big sounds, nothing pushed.

4. Sing in the shower!- The shower is of course a great place to start your “pre-warm-up”.  The accoustics in there are fabulous which helps you to relax and sound better which then makes you sing better.  Also the steam opens up your resonators and gets everything working spaciously.

6. Do some sort of physical exercise. – Waking up your body is key.  A good stretch and work out before a sing is a fabulous way to alert all your muscles in participating in their support of the voice.  Plus it gets your breath support active which is imperative.

7. Do a real vocal warm up- my series of Voice Lessons To GO is great for this.- Once pre- warmed, you can do your warm up.  It is so great to get this done in the morning because you end up setting your voice in a fabulous place for speaking the rest of the day.  Also, you will be ready at any moment the chance to sing may present itself without having to run into a corner for a half an hour to get your sound going.

I realize that you will not be able to fit this all in every morning, but it is a good goal to set for yourself.  Pull from the list and do what you can.  Maybe doing the yawn sighs when getting ready and then humming in your car on the way to work.  Any amount vocal warm up will help you to set your voice on the right path for speaking and keep it there.  Remember healthy speaking leads to healthy singing.

Sing well!

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 myVocal 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.

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Before you try and get the world to find out about your singing talents, get your own community on board rooting for you.  The tighter, more specific the group you are involved in the greater chance that they will back and promote you with true passion.

People really want to help one of “their own” make it.  It gives them pride and something to get into.  Just think of your favorite sports team.  You are into them because they are from your city, so you feel connected to them.  Same thing here on a smaller level.

This doesn’t just go for churches but they are a great example because they are larger scale groups of community that we can involve ourselves in.  Do your singing part as a member of whatever organization you are involved in so people know who you are.  Volunteer to sing at every fundraiser, event, or service that they will have you.

As a result, your fellow congregants will view you as a professional singer (whether or not you are being paid).  It is one thing to tell everyone that you sing, it is another thing for people to see you sing regularly. This will up your professionalism in their eyes.

As a result your fellow congregants will help to “spread the word” about who you are to people they know.  “Well we just have a lovely girl who sings the hymnals for us every Sunday,  she’ should be the next Little Mermaid voice, you should use her for your nieces wedding etc…”

Then hopefully one day, one of those people will recommend you to a record guy, a club owner, or a recording studio, or maybe someone connected to them will.

Another benefit of being a known singer at whatever community you are involved in is that it creates a “built in” audience.  Have a show and they will come.  They will be there to support you and for the social aspect since they all know each other.  As a result of your volunteering, your leader will probably be happy to announce your concerts, gigs, or shows at services or meetings.  You also, may get access to the facilities for rehearsing or giving concerts.

Start with the people around you for your support team.  The larger of a pack you build as fans the easier it will be to add on to them to grow your following.  Plus it is nice to have a venue to practice singing in that is a supportive environment.  God knows, we don’t always find them.

Sing well!

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.

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It is something all of us singers consider when putting together the performance of a song.  Should we be adding in some high notes to show “what we can do” and impress the audience?  I say if you have them all the time, then go for it.  But if you are not consistent with your high notes, why should you put the stress on yourself and the audience of getting them done right?  They will put your whole performance in jeopardy and it is not worth it.

Shania Twain said it recently on American Idol- “go with the note that is comfortable”.

I say,  if you can only get something right 50% of the time, don’t risk it in your performance.  The last thing you want to be worrying about in a stressful performance situation is whether or not you can reach your high note.  And as an audience member it is one of the worst, most uncomfortable things you can put us through. No one wants to hear strain. —-     So if you can’t do it don’t risk it.

Where you should be going for the high notes is in rehearsal and in your vocal warm ups.  That I completely encourage.  They are something that you need to practice in a healthy safe environment for your vocal chords.  Once you really get them “in your body”, then you can start bringing them to the actual stage.  And remember, often times when we sing out our nerves can get in the way of how well we perform.  So your body really needs to have memorized the exact execution and success of those high notes before you take them out for a walk or you may find that your body will clam up due to nerves and cause you a “bad reach”.

Singing should never feel like a reach rather a rooted or anchored stretch.

When approaching a high note in your vocal practice, imagine that you have set an anchor down through the middle of your body straight into the earth that is heavy.  This anchor is your muscle support, don’t let it go. Now open your mouth to sing and stretch your mind to make space around the height of your high note. You should be grounded in your sound but stretched through the back of your head, top of your head, through your upper palate, and straight through your eyes to let the space free to release your sound.

Also, practicing hitting your desired notes from different directions so that you are used to getting them out no matter what is a great strategy.  Sing the note just below and then that note.  Sing the note just above and then that note.  Practice coming from the octave below, fifth below etc…  In your vocalizing focus on getting up to that note well and then pass it getting up well to higher notes so that you know the note you want will be a sure thing every time, even in a performance.

Please check out a recent post I wrote on achieving success with your high notes.

We all love the wow factor of an incredible high note.  But that is only for an Incredible one.  No one wants to hear you screeching.  Many times the safer choice of not adding in the high note is better.  You want people to remember having an enjoyable experience watching you.  Don’t fixate on the importance of particular notes. Overall you must have a good show with out any negative drama.  Keep practicing!

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.

Friend me on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/voicelessonstogo

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“But I HAVE TO GET that massage for my concert…”

No seriously, if you can get a massage before you sing, you should.  As a result you will both feel and SOUND better.  Getting a back and neck massage is an incredible way to open up your sound and free your voice.  Even a quick five minute neck and shoulder massage will help you tremendously in your ability to sing freely with full resonance.

Remember as a singer you rely on your body to create sound.  Unlike an instrumentalist who has the stability of the same instrument to play, you and your body are never the same.  Every day you wake up you can feel different, tired, energized, stressed, tense, sick…

This effects your muscle tension.  Your proper muscle support and release are key in good free singing. Tense shoulders hold in sound that could otherwise be resonating freely.  Also, a massage relaxes you deep into your body so that your breathing and sound remain grounded rather than lifted.

I first realized this years ago when I took a voice lesson from a teacher at Julliard.  He actually had a pianist playing the vocalizes while he himself was “attacking” my muscles.  Was very odd for me at first, but he got incredible singing results out of me by pushing deep into muscles around my neck, shoulders and sternum while I sang.   He was able to release the “bottled up” sound with in me and my voice as a result grew in sheer volume without any pushing.  It was a real singing break through for me.

I then spent many years doing body work such as massage, Alexander Technique, acupuncture and Ki Work.  All of these were excellent and had similar effects in releasing a freer sound when I sang.

Unfortunately, they are all big financial expenses and are not available to us before every sing we have.  You can though learn from this and have someone you know give you a quick back/shoulder/neck rub to get the blood flowing and sound releasing before your auditions and or performance.  Offer a singer friend a swap or you can even do it to yourself before you warm up your voice or go on to sing.

If you hit the big time of course, get yourself your own personal masseuse on your books to be there before each performance.  Until then find other ways to get your massage on!

Sing well relaxed and free people!

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.

Friend me on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/voicelessonstogo

Follow me on twitter:http://www.twitter.com/singingvltg