Good technique is different that natural talent or incredible vocal licks.  Those things are the accessories of the voice, but solid vocal technique is the shape underneath it all.  And we all know you only do so much to cover up a bad shape!   Just like being in great physical shape makes you a hot lookin’ powerhouse, good vocal technique allows you to unlock your voice’s full potential in a healthy, balance way, and avoiding damage.

So, ever wonder just how good your vocal technique is?   Take this true or false quiz:

1. I can sing up and down my range softly without breaks or weak spots.
2. I can sing up and down my range at full intensity without flips or breaks.
3. I can transition between very soft to full intensity without weakness or flipping.
4. I don’t feel ‘pinched’ or ‘pulled’ at the top of my range
5. I have no pain during or after singing
6. I have no hoarseness after singing

If you answered yes to all five of these, congratulations!  You’re on the right track to having a healthy, balanced voice.  If not, no worries.  Just like we’re all at different places with our physical shape (my place is on the sofa), so it is with our voice.  The most important thing is knowing that you’re looking for help in all the right places.

As a vocal instructor I have subscribed to about every method of teaching out there in my adult life.   My mom was a degreed classical vocal instructor.  I learned to rock belt at 16 for my live and studio work.  And both of them brought their own set of problems.  With one I couldn’t sing with an edge.  With the other, I lost a good part of my range and I couldn’t transition between soft and intense without a lot of cover up styling.  So what I’m about to tell you is what I’ve discovered from my serious struggles with my voice and an intense search for an answer.

A couple of years ago I found a technique training method that literally changed everything I can do as a vocalist.  It removed my obstacles and more than doubled my range.  When I first heard about it, I was a serious skeptic.  Once I became a student and saw the concrete science behind it unlock my problems one by one, I signed on.  I had to.  Not only did it work for me, it worked consistently for every one of my students, without exception.  The methods official name is Speech Level Singing and it’s creator is Seth Riggs.  There are many other instructors who borrow from the method, some to degrees that kind of render it useless in my opinion,  but I like that the organization keeps the teaching pure by requiring it’s instructors to constantly be students as well as teachers.  (btw; you won’t find me listed on the site.  I’ve been on medical sabbatical for some time.)

The idea behind this method has actually been around since the 1800′s and though many classically trained singers scoff at the method, the truth is that a great many Metropoliton Opera stars, Broadway professionals and hundreds of very well known major label artists and groups study with SLS instructors because it enables them to do what they do better, longer and without damage.  I’ll take being scoffed at any day considering what I’ve gained vocally.

I think what makes speech level singing so different from everything else that’s out there is that it considers how your voice anatomically works.  It was developed with acclaimed voice specialists to understand what causes vocal problems and how to avoid and reverse them.  And out of the process of understanding the voice itself came a technique method that retrains your brain to let your voice do literally what it was born to do, and it truly is amazing to see the results. (not ready for private lessons?  Here’s a study at home program originally developed for the American Idol vocalists.  Guys go here. Girls, this one’s for you.)

So, yes, I’m a fan.  And do I think you should work with someone who is studied in the technique?  Yes I do.  That said, many of you have voice teachers you like.  My intention isn’t to drive you away from them, just to help you become more informed.

So, to sum it up:  Technique is everything – without it, your bling can’t do a thing!   How’s yours doing?

Love to hear your questions or comments about vocal technique.  Click ‘leave a comment’ at the top of this post and leave text, audio or webcam video.