Take A Minute To Sing Episode 11: Vocal Transitioning

Take a Minute to Sing Episode 11: Vocal Transitioning

One of the most common questions I get from singers is “How do I prevent the ‘cracking’ of my voice when I change registers (i.e. go from low to high notes or vise-versa)?”

The trick to learning how to smooth out the mid-range is by starting to understand how the vocal mechanism works. The ‘chest’ or lower voice is made with a shorter position of the vocal cords (also known as vocal folds).
They are attached from the thyroid cartilage (Adam’s apple) in the front to the arytenoid cartilage in the rear of the larynx. This shorter cord position creates lower tones. There is a limit to the notes you can sing in this lower range without hurting your voice.
Voice teachers will remind you not to carry the chest voice up too high.

This is an important thing to learn if you want to protect your voice and be able to sing for years. As always, preparing the breath is job one, especially when transitioning.

Today’s exercise will cover coming from the top down to learn how to bridge the ranges. Try doing a “woo” (not excessive) like you are at a ball game.

• Prepare the air
• Purse your lips forward
• Slightly move the jaw as you start with a “woo” up in the head
• Keep the tone light but clear
• Redo the “woo” and bring the tone down slowly
• Feel the voice mechanism as you descend
• Work on lightening the tone as you sing until it is a smooth transition

Take care of your voice and it will take care of you!