How the Diaphragm Affects Your Singing

Surrounding your lungs is a muscular system called the diaphragm which is attached to the lower, sides, bottom and back of your ribs. When you breathe in, the diaphragm muscle lowers and displace your internal organs. When you breathe out the diaphragm helps to bring in the muscles around the lungs (abdominal muscles) to control how quickly the breath is exhaled just like an accordion squeezing out air in a consistent way. 

If you breathe out fast, the diaphragm does nothing and just sits pretty.  When you breathe out very slowly, the diaphragm resists the contraction of the abdominal muscles. A good singer will then use this diaphragm muscular system to control the singing breath as it is being exhaled.

Hold your index finger about an inch from your lips and breathe out slowly and try to notice the action of the diaphragm as you exhale. This should be the amount of breath used when you sing. A singer does not need to 'push' or 'force' air through the vocal cords to produce a good strong or loud sound, doing this will create a lot of air pressure against the vocal folds and may damage the vocal cords.

This set of singing lessons cover the art (and science) of how your diaphragm affects your voice. If your singing were done by computer, you could click the mouse and correct the sounds and volume. However, you do not have a digital voice, just a human singing voice so you have to learn to control it from within. This article will help you achieve that goal.

If you've been singing any length of time, you have probably heard the phrase "sing with your diaphragm" already. But what does this really mean? What is your diaphragm and how does it work? How does the diaphragm help with singing? Let's explore what the word "diaphragm" really means and how it is connected to good singing. Read the article How the Diaphragm Affects Your Singing here.

Thanks for visiting,

Tony Joett

Vocal Coach - Pop, Soul, R&B, Jazz, Dance, Gospel

See Your Vocal Cords in Action

I thought it would be a good idea to let you see your vocal cords in action. According to Wikipedia, the vocal folds, also known commonly as vocal cords, are composed of twin infoldings of mucous membrane stretched horizontally across the larynx. They vibrate, modulating the flow of air being expelled from the lungs during phonation.

It goes on to say, open during inhalation, closed when holding one's breath, and vibrating for speech or singing (oscillating 440 times per second when singing A above middle C), the folds are controlled via the vagus nerve. They are white because of scant blood circulation.

The larynx is a major (but not the only) source of sound in speech, generating sound through the rhythmic opening and closing of the vocal folds. To oscillate, the vocal folds are brought near enough together such that air pressure builds up beneath the larynx. The folds are pushed apart by this increased subglottal pressure, with the inferior part of each fold leading the superior part. Under the correct conditions, this oscillation pattern will sustain itself. In essence, sound is generated in the larynx by chopping up a steady flow of air into little puffs of sound waves, called triygergonus. To read the full article on Wikipedia click here!

Thanks for dropping by,

tony joett

Handy Throat Remedies for Singers

I've just come out of a nasty bout with the flu. It put me out of action for two days in a row. Can you imagine that? I had to cancel all my classes for TWO days! Unheard of. Never thought this could happen to me (not with all the stuff I know about keeping the flu at bay). But anyway, I did beat the flu in the end, without a single dose of medication. In this blog post I just want to list a couple of handy flu and throat remedies that I use myself.

Fresh ground ginger always does the trick. When you've got a soar throat, take fresh ginger the size of your thumbnail, peal it, and then crush it. Throw it into a cup, ad a teaspoon of honey, a teabag (and milk if you want), hot water and drink up! Here's another great remedy that works every time. 1000 mg of effervescent Vitamin C. Drop one of those into a glass of water and drink up. When you're undergoing a flu attack like I recently did, I'd pop three of those down my gullet during the course of the day. And hey, it works! Hope this helps, you guys.

Thanks for dropping by, as always!

Tony Joett

Working With Shirley Bassey Songs to Improve Your Voice

I remember when I was growing up -- I must have been eleven or twelve -- I used to listen, and singalong to a lot of Shirley Bassey songs. If I'm honest, she inspired me to sing. What I didn't know was that after all these years, I would be using her songs to help train my students. It works every time. I had a session yesterday where we worked with Shirley Bassey's song Something, and OMG it was amazing! The woman has a powerful voice... the perfect demo for voice training. Today, I gathered a few more songs from her back catalog and got the lyrics printed out and laminated (like I always do). I can see a lot of Shirley Bassey songs included in my training now -- from just a couple to over half a dozen. Wonderful! One of the songs I selected today is Shirley Bassey's This is My Life. Have a listen to it on YouTube. And while you're there, do check out some of the other songs she has on video.

Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey, DBE (born 8 January 1937 in Cardiff, Wales), is a Welsh singer who found fame in the late 1950s and has continued a successful career since then worldwide. She is best known for recording the theme songs to the James Bond films Goldfinger (1964), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), and Moonraker (1979), and is a UNESCO Artist for Peace. Her life and career, from Birth to 1959, 1960 to 1979, 1980 to 1999, 2000 to date, Personal life, Awards and achievements, Discography, Bibliography can be found on Wikipedia here.


Thanks for dropping by!

joett

How to Find a Rich Diet Of Great Vocals

How often does one hear a singer utter the words "I've been inspired by"? Well, it goes without saying, inspiration in music comes from music.
I've got a pretty long list myself. Aretha Franklin, Luther Vandross, George Benson, Peabo Bryson, The Temptations, Shalamar, Mica Paris, James Brown, Anita Baker, Michael Jackson, Omar, Frank Sinatra, Shirley Bassey, Tina Turner, Gladys Knight, Diana Ross... and the list goes on. But what all of these legendary  artists have in common is they're damn good at what they do. I have nothing against current productions, there's some really good music out there, but in all honesty, if you look to yesteryear for musical inspiration, you can't go wrong. And the place to find this type of music is JazzFM.com. They play great music. If you love great music, you'll love this station. I listen to Jazz FM radio over the Internet almost every day. Give it a bash! You won't regret it.

On Monday 5 April, Jazz FM released its latest compilation CD, Funky Sensation. Inspired by the now legendary weekly club event held at Ronnie's Bar at Ronnie Scott's jazz club in London's swingin' Soho, Funky Sensation  28 jazz, funk and soul classics, including The Blackbyrds, Luther Vandross, Gil Scott-Heron, Gwen McCrae, Sister Sledge and Earth, Wind & Fire. That's one more good reason to tune in to the station, their compilation albums are, quite literally, the icing on the cake!

joett

Vocal Coach| Pop, Soul, R&B, Jazz, Dance 

How to Produce a Better Sound When Singing

I don't know how many times I repeat this over and over again in my singing lessons, I'm beginning to sound like a broken record. You could easily get away with mumbling your way in speech...with your mouth half closed, but when it comes to singing you're not going to get very far. You have to drop the jaw, take your voice back to the voice box, and use the vocal chords. Open your mouth to sing. There are no shortcuts. If you want to sing, I'm afraid, you will have to open your mouth. In order for that sound to come out loud and clear (and for you to hit the high notes with ease), you'll want a nice open throat. Try singing the vowels "A E I O U" with a half open mouth; and then place two fingers between your teeth to create a gap, and then go back to sing the vowels whilst maintaining that amount of space between your teeth. Look in the mirror as you do this. Chances are - if you do this correctly, you will hear a completely different (and better) sound in the latter.

For a detailed explanation on vocal cords, go to this article on Wikipedia  


Thanks for dropping by!

joett

Vocal Coach | Pop, Soul, R&B, Jazz, Dance

Rozalla Miller: Brand New Version

I met Rozalla Miller at a popular nightclub at the Holiday Inn Hotel in Harare, Zimbabwe in the early 80s, where she had a regular gig at the time (and where I'd gone to audition for a slot at the same club), before she hit the big time in the UK with the club anthem Everybody's Free (To Feel Good) that debuted at number 6 on Top Of the Pops in 1991, and number 1 in the US dance charts ... and then she went on to tour with Michael Jackson. I've followed her career with interest (from the young talented girl in Zimbabwe to being crowned Queen Of Rave on the international arena); I met her again at a club in London just after she'd come off the stage. I've bought every album she's put out...dating back to the 90s. So when I found out she'd recently released a new album, I had to get it! 

Despite being best known for her 1991 hit 'Everybody's Free (To Feel Good)', Rozalla Miller's new album, Brand New Version, is much mellower than the dance-production she favored in the 90s. This album is a jazz/soul feel, and the song choices represent a departure from her previous work, with Brand New Version including covers of Paul Weller's 'Broken Stones' and Wolfman & Pete Doherty's 'For Lovers'. I do love the album, I've been playing it on repeat quite a lot in recent days. She's got a good, strong vocal. I'd advise you to grab a copy of her new album from HMV music store and have a listen.

Thanks for dropping by!

Joett