Singing is a wonderful form of relaxation; an excellent stress reliever. Singing brings joy to people, even if they sing to themselves, and is also a source of joy to listeners when one’s voice is beautiful. You don’t have to be a good singer to like singing, but anyone can be trained to sing better. A naturally beautiful voice with wonderful tone, vibrato, pitch, and clarity can still be improved by enrolling in classes with a personal coach or taking part in a course like the Superior Singing Method. Let’s look at five simple ways to improve your voice right now.
1. Improve Your Posture
If you slouch or sit hunched over when you sing, this is not doing your voice any good. Slouching will not damage vocal chords, but the sound can’t get out and, besides, it’s bad for your back. Air needs a clear pathway from the diaphragm to your vocal chords in order to reach an audience. Practice sitting with a straight back, chin at a ninety-degree angle with your body, feet flat on the floor, and hands clasped. Standing to sing is even better as you are not folded in half and can really reach deeply for more air.
2. Take Care of Your Throat
You can’t avoid colds all the time and the flu tends to get us all one way or another. Respiratory problems and a scratchy throat get in the way of good sound. Every little interruption in your vocal chords can throw sound somewhere you didn’t expect and causes the voice to crack. Take Vitamin C. Eat a healthy diet. Use cleansing salt water periodically to keep sinuses clear and prevent sinus drip. If you have allergies, take something for them. The constant need to clear your throat is getting in the way of lovely timbre.
3. Eat Right
Processed foods stick to your teeth and they also stick to your throat. They leave a coating, a residue, that you are constantly having to clear. Avoid junk food and baked goods when you sing. Baked treats are terrible for you anyway and should be reserved as treats for once in a while. Milk products and some juice also leaves a strange coating. The best drink for singers is water, although professionals often claim that quirky things like broth, hot peppermint tea, or black coffee are soothing.
4. Don’t Eat Too Much Before Singing
Another problem singers encounter is that they feel full and bloated before singing. After a large or especially fatty meal, all they want to do is lie down and burp. They could burp the national anthem, but singing it is a lot harder. Pressure from the stomach on one’s diaphragm interrupts the flow of air and one’s confidence to let a note really ring true. You won’t be sure exactly what sort of sound will come out.
5. Better Breathing
It sounds like a silly piece of advice. Of course, you are breathing. Otherwise, you would faint. What singers really need to do is breathe more deeply. Practice taking a breath and pushing it out. Keep pushing until there is no air left, then take a deep breath. Breathe normally a few times, then take another deep breath. Push that out, aiming to go further this time, pushing for longer. Repeat this several times with your hand on your stomach. Can you feel yourself filling up with air from the lower regions of your body? You are breathing more deeply all the time. Use breath to control the notes. Do not force sound from the throat. That will cause you to crack. Practice transitioning between your natural cut-off point, where you switch to falsetto, and try to maintain power with your breath. Throat singers push their chins forward and actually block air by straining their necks.
Better Singing, Better Living
Did you notice that a lot of these suggestions are good for general health? Fatty food, junk food, and overeating are not good for you. Drink lots of water; your body needs it. Good posture contributes to better spinal health and helps you to breathe. Better breathing technique allows oxygen to get into the blood and circulate more effectively throughout one’s body. Concentration will improve, you won’t feel as tired, and your skin will glow. Singing better could reverse the signs of aging and contribute to better performance in other areas of life.
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