The Vocal Health Coach

The eternal question!

‘WhY ArE My HiGh NotEs So HarD?’

Well, it could be any of these reasons 👇

1. Upper abdominal gripping aka ‘singing from the diaphragm’
2. Incomplete closure at the vocal cords meaning there is not enough resistance to air
3. Sending too much air to the larynx which means the vocal cords cannot resist and there is a breathy tone meaning greater difficulty reaching the upper range
4. A lack of understanding of what the voice actually DOES to hit high notes (tilt and stretch)

And many more…

But I promise you there is an easier way.

I focus on getting back to basics so singers who are struggling with tension or fatigue in their voice can reach high notes again with ease.

We reduce the effort you are using because it doesn’t have to be so hard. We stop squeezing and we actually feel what our body does to support our sound and then we learn how to access our head voice with ease.

It is about doing LESS.

My 6 Month Vocal Confidence Programme is for singers looking to regain their high notes, reduce fatigue and tension and enjoy their singing again.

Comment SIX below for details 👇

This conversation was so terrifying for me. I had to admit that something was wrong and I didn’t get a huge amount of sympathy and was just told to ‘support more’.

I thought this person was right and yes I’m sure I needed to ‘support’ more but I also didn’t even know what support was or how it worked ?

Now I know we just need to harness a process that is second nature to us (we breathe all the time).

Learning how your support works for you in the most efficient way is ideal ☝️

My 6 Month Vocal Confident Programme opens for enrollment on 1st July. We will cover everything from support to how your voice works! This is for singers experiencing tension or fatigue and who want clarity on their technique and voice 🙌

Comment WAIT to join the waitlist 👇

‘Maybe this is just my voice’

NOPE. It is the present function of your voice but it doesn’t have to be the case forever.

In my own recovery from Muscle Tension Dysphonia I discovered that most of my issues stemmed from inadequate understanding of basic vocal mechanics.

I did not understand how we changed pitch or what registers actually were or how we actually sing high notes.

I thought ‘support’ meant squeezing my abdominals and hoping for the best.

I recovered from nodules and MTD and now I coach other singers who are struggling and this is what I know for sure:

When we go back to basics for a little while and work on functionality and understanding - everything changes 🙌

Your range increases
Your enjoyment of your singing increases
You feel confident in your voice again

My 6 Month Vocal Confidence programme starts in September and does just this ☺️

I’m a vocal habilitation professional and vocal health practitioner (and an opera singer) and I’m on a mission to make singing easier for everyone 🫶

Comment VOICE if you want to get on the waitlist

Follow for more

This is a handy one 😎

Save it for your next practice session or send it to someone it might help 🫶

Follow for more

I truly believe so much of singing training is overcomplicated when it comes to technique..and it ultimately comes down to coordination of the WHOLE mechanism…

People are expected to think about 1 million things at the same time from their soft palette to their pelvic floor to the ‘space’ and the ‘placement’…no wonder so many singers come to me feeling confused 🤯🤯🤯

This confusion can mean singers start to over support and push air as a means of controlling things which then leads to fatigue and possible vocal issues down the line 😢

Yes we need to think about the finer details at times and technically that can feel quite exhausting but it can be as simple as asking these questions: where is the sound coming from? and what is my body doing in response to this sound?

My 6 Month Vocal Confidence Programme opens soon

It is for high level singers who are:
1. Confused about their technique
2. Want freedom instead of tension
&
3. Want to simplify and enjoy their singing again

Comment 🙌 if you want the details

Follow for more

I have been speaking a lot about ‘support’ this week and what this looks like when we are breathing for singing. But this is also SO important. Nothing happens in isolation and we have to be aware of the relationship between our breath and what is happening in our larynx or the ‘source’ of our sound.

If you need help with this comment VOICE below

Follow for more

Think ORME
O = OPEN RIBCAGE
R = RESISTANCE OF COLLAPSE
M = MOVEMENT OF ABDOMINALS
E = ENGAGEMENT OF ABDOMINALS

Comment BREATH if you want to work with me on this

There are so many things I wish I could tell my younger self…

One of the main things is singing is supposed to feel easy and enjoyable. Now, I would caveat that by saying it can still feel like hard work at times but MOST of the time your voice should feel good and free of unnecessary tension or fatigue!

This also applies to warm-ups. I look back when I had MTD and remember how it would take me so so long to get my voice working to even a manageable level. This wasn’t anything I was doing wrong - it was just the mechanism being out of balance and needing a lot of work to get going.

I had to go back and train the function of my voice to make sure it was working efficiently and in a coordinated way. This is what helped me recover from MTD and it now means it doesn’t take up to an hour to get the cord ‘coming together’.

This is what I help other singers do now. We get back to basics and really make sure everything is working as it should so singing can be enjoyable and singing can make sense again.

If you’re ready to get back to your voice and how you want to sing without worry or fear comment READY

Follow for vocal health and technique