Sunday, October 26, 2008

Singing and the Head Voice

By Georgia Reader

Most singers are able to sing in the chest voice, but need to work on the head voice. For women, it is a very high pitched sound and for a man it is also a very high pitched sound that is called falsetto. A practicing singer needs to work on the bridge between the chest voice and the head voice so that it is a smooth, a seamless flow of sound.

Customarily, the high notes are reached with the head voice and the lower notes with the chest voice, which is normally our speaking voice. Keep in mind that you can learn now to do the head voice by singing scales during your practice. Some singers feel it like a vibration in their sinus cavity or in their head as they singer the high notes.

If a singer attempts to sing with the head voice, there is a changeover point named the Passagio. This happens the pitches from the chest voice and head voice which are the central notes to the higher notes when you expand your range. The head register with the high notes can start after the middle register, after the Passagio.

Breath is not resisted because there are fewer folds to deal with. The head voice surfaces when the glottis is partially open. After awhile, most singers will get accustomed to the transition of using the chest and the head voice with ease so that it sounds very natural.

If a singer uses the chest voice, the lower notes are sung and the head voice will be the higher notes that are sung. If you place your hand on your chest when you sing with the chest, the vibration will be felt in the throat and the chest. But the right way for singers to sing the chest voice is to purely experience the vibration in the chest area.

With perseverance and patience the head voice can grow. Most singers will attempt to sing an octave higher than a pitch in the chest voice to reach the head voice. With the correct breathing method the head voice can develop successfully.

When you sing with the head voice properly, there will be little or no vibration in the vocal cords. Sometimes it is very difficult to detect vibration if you sing with the head voice. A quick idea would be to put your hand on your head, because at times there may be a vibration there.

Once you begin voice lessons, your singing sytle may be called a voice category that may not really describe your voice. Some singers think they must be alto because they cannot sing high notes, but in actuality they may not have learned the proper technique to access the head voice. After the problem is identified, they can begin the training to learn how to sing in the head voice, which make make them a soprano instead. - 15359

About the Author: