Ah, Ey, Ee, Oh, Oo and variations there after.  These are the vowels that you have to sing through to get the words out of your mouth.  I don’t know if you have ever noticed during your vocal warm ups that some vowels come out more smoothly, brilliantly, or more beautiful than others.

It is very important that you give attention in your vocal warm ups to good vowel work.  That means that you need to practice singing different vowels on their own to help improve each one’s own release and sound.  It is very easy to ignore a more difficult vowel by only singing your through your favorite ones.  But, doing sowill only prolong your improvement of a lacking vowel.

I created Pure Vowels (the third volume of Voice Lessons To Go) for just that reason.  It is divided specifically into different vowel studies through vocalizes.  For example you will have 5 exercises on an “ahh”, then 5 on on an “oo” etc…   

I think this CD is a great tool for “beautifying” all the vowels that you sing.  It forces you to stop and work on each of them individually.  The better your vowels, the prettier the line of your voice, which will make you that much more incredible to listen to.  Also, the more ownership you have of every sound you release as a singer, the more control you will have at giving a solid performance every time.  This will help to make you a great singer that you can count on, as opposed to one who is a crap shoot.

Remember when you are trying to achieve the “perfect” vowel release the vowel should feel like a full circle of resonance in the sound.  It should have a point in front, a height at the top, space in its back, and a deep low connect of support.  Just a frontal sound or height is not enough, you want the full circle of sound.  This may be an imagery which is hard at first for you to grab onto, but think about it next time you go to sing.

Also, the best advice I can give on achieving a great vowel is matching it to your speaking vowel.  Say the vowel and then sing it.  When you say it notice where it sits in your mouth and head, and then reenact that when you sing.  All should be the same when you sing; the tongue position, where the vowel hits the palette in your mouth, and your lip position.

Think of singing as a natural extension of your speech.  This will help you every time.

Sing well!

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

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Hey everyone, I was inspired after seeing some singers this weekend in a musical to write the following.  Something vital to healthy beautiful long lasting singing is keeping the emotions out of your larynx.

In “real Life emotion”, often our emotions express themselves directly through our voices.  If we are mad we scream or bear down on our throats in anger in a sort of growl, when sad our larynx’s rise and choke up as we cry, when elated our voices raise.  That is fabulous for real life and even for straight acting.  The crazy thing is that when you sing you can’t do any of that.  Instead you need to show emotion through your face, eyes, and body.

This is actually much harder then it sounds especially if you are a realistic “actor”.  Somehow in singing you need to divorce your larynx and all the muscles around it from the emotions that you need to display.  Try to transfer all tensions into your limbs and face when expressing strong emotions to your audience. If not you will risk that your voice will tense up and you will loose your freedom when going for high or powerful notes causing you to crack and make less then beautiful sounds.

A great example is in Opera. The heroine is most likely preparing to die at the end, but yet, even overcome with the most extreme illness she lays there singing the most exquisite purest sounds “pre” her death.

Or the Tenor who finds out that the Baritone is trying to steal his Bride and kingdom, through the sword fights and all, they sound magestic and powerful.  Not grovelly and tight.

Something to keep in mind.  Great emotion in singing is not necessarily a natural process.  Put a safety box around that larynx and emote around it instead.

Sing well!

Ariella

It is important to remember that singing is is an athletic job in the body.  The voice is there at all times sitting in your larynx ready to come out, but the body needs to be warmed up so that it supports the laryngeal muscles to produce the sound correctly in the body.

If you were a runner you would start slow, stretch- the same goes for singing.  Otherwise, the risk is that we can hurt our voices.  We can put pressure into our vocal chords instead of support into our abdominal muscles and legs to produce a  projected sound which can result in vocal strain or worse (over time) vocal nodules.

Even the smallest amount of singing warm-ups can make the difference.  Humming or gentle singing for a few minutes will get the body working.  Full vocal warm-ups are fabulous for not only warming up the voice, but vocal training.  As you do your vocalizes you work on good support, extending your range, and proper vowel production.

I have four volumes of Vocal Warm Ups called Voice Lessons TO GO on CD that can be a great help ranging from beginner to advanced and are available on my website www.voicelessonstogo.com if you are looking for some options they are great.

So warm up every time you sing out.

Sing healthy people!

Ariella Vaccarino

www.voicelessonstogo.com

Nerves are real.  They are something that can completely destroy an audition or performance.  They display themselves in different ways in different people and they can be unpredictable.

The ONLY WAY to truly conquer or control nerves during a performance or audition is by getting practice performing and auditioning.  (I spoke about this in my 10 tips to a great audition blog entry a few months ago).

I can not emphasize enough how important it is to practice standing and being looked at, judged, and listened to by different people.  This is a craft in itself.  Also, you want to practice under NOT ideal circumstances.  I can’t tell you how many important auditions I have been to where the judges talked to each other- even laughed, filled out paper work, or ate loudly during my “moment”.  Somehow you have to learn to get through all of it like it does not effect you.

Other things that can happen, the pianist can turn two pages instead of one while accompanying you, someone can walk into the room looking for the bathroom in your peak point of your piece, phones can ring,  kids can throw tantrums, school buzzers can go off… Through all those things, you need to seem polished and professional without nerves.  (crazy I know)

How nerves display themselves in your performance can also be a rare treat.  I remember my first performance for my fellow singers in the Opera department of USC, just two songs.  I stood up there and the right side of my face twitched the whole time.  I could not control it and it was obvious.  That had never happened to me before.  I remember watching someone in those same Friday performances and she took her index finger and swiveled it like mad the whole time she stood up and sang to us.  I think that is all anyone saw- her finger.

You can loose breath control, your ability to sustain your sound, all means of body support, your words, the song, your entrances, your name….AHHHHHHHHHH!  I have seen it and probably experienced it all.

BUT, the MORE YOUR PERFORM the less these crazy nerves will display themselves and take over.  You may still feel like you are going to throw up before you perform for the rest of your life, but as long as it disappears when the lights are on you, that is the goal.

So go people and sing for people.  Sing for your grandparents, your friends, your piano teachers.  Sing for your mother’s book club, or your father’s rotary club.  Volunteer at hospitals, old age homes, any where you see a piano.  Go to karaoke bars, step up and volunteer at a jazz club.

Ideally, get yourself a singing gig that is regular and frequent.  Whether standing up weekly in a church or temple, or performing in an Italian restaurant.  (I recently blogged on ideas for singing jobs check it out).

The person who is practiced at performing WILL have the edge.  Be prepared and gain victory over your nerves!

(Where is my triumphant music??)

Ariella Vaccarino- creator of Voice Lessons To Go- singing lessons on CD, and author of Vocalize!

www.voicelessonstogo.com