Vocal Health

Performance Anxiety

• Preparation is the greatest way to prevent this

• Power poses

• Black & White thinking, jumping to conclusions and focusing on the negative is not helpful

• Do something silly

• Be thankful

• Go over the 5 W’s, Who what where when why of the piece

• Focus on the task at hand

• Sing as much as possible in informal situations

• Have a mental rehearsal the night before

Vocal Health

Diet, exercise, Rest

• Hydrate

  • Dehydration leads to unhealthy vocal conditions

  • Increases, thickened mucous

  • Precipitates infections

  • Lubrication of the throat and vocal folds is imperative

  • At least 8 glasses per day

  • Humidify

• Practice good nutrition

  • Adequate protein

  • Which foods cause reflux

• Exercise

  • Stretch

  • Walk

  • Yoga

• Rest

  • Lack of sleep makes you sluggish & stressed

Daily Vocal Habits

• How do you use voice in everyday life?

  • Excessive vocal fry, harsh onsets, Hypofunction (not enough energy), Hyperfunction (forceful), monotone

  • Avoid unhealthy speaking habits

  • Wash your hands frequently

  • Warming up and cooling down you voice

  • Excessive throat clearing

• Vocal Misuse

  • Yelling & screaming

  • Singing too high for too long

  • Speaking too loudly /too much

  • Signing in the wrong range (especially true for treble voices)

  • Noisy environments: speaking over music at a loud bar

Practice suggestions for your students

• Know your task

• Warm up and cool down

• Be specific about exercises - listen to your body

• Start with your strengths

• Feed challenging areas with your stregnths

• Sing literature in your range

• Break up your practice session into 2-3 times a day

• Practice your artistry

• Play!

• Going slow is the name of the game

Common problems for teachers & students

• Class schedule

• Ambient noise

• Room layout

• Class size

• Dryness

• Practice sessions

• Try boomvox, chattervox or sonivox

• Entertainer’s secret

Harmful Substances

• Airborne - Pollution, fumes, dust, mold

• Smoking - cigs, vapes, marijuana

• Excessive alcohol use

  • Drying effect on muscos membranes

  • Dryness can become chronic

  • Long-term overuse can lead to permanent impairment

• Narcotics

Common Vocal Problems

• Hoarseness

  • Vocal fold edge swelling that causes them to touch unevenly

  • We can feel/hear

    • Increased vocal effort/fatigue

    • Breathy or rough voice

    • Sore throat

    • reduction of resonance and/or range

  • Some causes

    • Vocal overuse or misuse

    • Hyperfunction

    • Drinking too much alcohol

    • Menstrual period

    • Reflux

    • Allergies/dryness, cold or fly

  • Seek professional help if hoarse for more than 10 days

• Common cold

  • Get rest

  • Speak as little as possible

  • Frink plenty of water

  • Avoid vigorous clearing of the throat and coughing

  • Stay away from other singers if you can

  • Gently reintroduce your singing routine

• Laryngitis

  • Inflammation of the vocal folds and surrounding tissue

  • Viral or Bacterial

• Sinusitis

  • Creates post-nasal drip

  • Again check your mucous

• Acid Reflux

  • Typically happens during sleep

  • Harmful to the larynx

• Hearing loss

  • Singers rely on hearing for feedback/fine-tuning the voice

  • Reduce number of hours per week of exposure to loud noises

  • Wear ear protection

• Vocal Polyps

  • Caused by a vocal accident

    • Sudden trauma to folds

    • Yelling/Screaming

  • Vocal fold hemorrhage - enlarged vessel or an engorged blood vessel

  • Usually unilateral

  • Similar to blisters, usually larger than nodules

  • Feels/sounds lie

    • lump in the throat

    • Neck pain

    • Dysphonia, hoarseness breathiness

  • Treatments

    • Voice therapy

    • Sometimes surgery

• Vocal Nodules

  • Like a callus on the inner edges of the vocal folds

  • Bilateral

  • Result of speaking or singing habits that cause too much friction when the vocal folds vibrate

    • singing/speaking while hoarse

    • Hyperfunction

  • Can be corrected by voice and or speech therapy is caught early

  • Sometimes must be surgically removed

  • Sounds like

    • Breathy mid-register

    • Vocal fatigue

    • Hoarseness/roughness

    • Range reduction

    • Throat clearing

    • More effortful singing

• Granuloma

  • Bulky tissue at the posterior end of the vocal folds - shock absorber

  • Hyperfunction

• Reinke’s Edema

  • Main cause is smoking

  • Swelling of superior layer of the vocal folds