Develop a Strong High Singing Voice

Developing a strong high singing voice takes a lot of time and effort. Go through these steps regularly and you will begin to notice a change in your voice. This works if you actually try! The most important thing to remember is to breath when you can. It is very important so that you don't feel ill for not getting enough air into your lungs.

Steps

  1. Sit or stand up straight with your muscles relaxed. Keeping your back straight and your posture neutral will allow your diaphragm and lungs to expand properly as well as encourage air flow. Since your singing power originates in the diaphragm, making a point of relaxing the rest of the body will help you refocus your attention on the parts of the body that matter.
    • Make a special effort to relax your stomach. Resist the urge to hold or suck it in, as this will make your breathing unnatural.
    • Using your thumb, push the larynx from side to side gently, allowing your vocal chords to loosen, thereby putting less stress on them when you begin to sing.
  2. Breathe from your diaphragm. The diaphragm is a muscle beneath the lungs that contracts whenever you breathe in, allowing your lungs to expand into that space. Expelling air is therefore a question of allowing the diaphragm to relax in controlled, gradual manner. To test what it feels like to breathe through your diaphragm, bend over at the waist and sing. Notice the feeling in your stomach and the sound that you create.
    • Don't ever breathe in through your nose; it will make it harder to reach high notes.
  3. Warm up before starting to sing. Make nonsense sounds (ex. expelling air to forcibly flap your lips by and create a b-b-b-b-b or p-p-p-p-p sound, making a prolonged "shhhhh" sound, and so on), covering different consonants and vowels to engage different facial muscles. This produces a richer, less strained sound. (When you blow up a balloon, it is much easier to stretch the balloon before blowing it up; your vocal chords function in much the same way.)
  4. Start with songs that are in your vocal range. Covering territory you're already comfortable with will continue to warm up your voice before you try to train it to do anything new. Consider choosing a song that has a few notes slightly above your usual range and make these your goal.
  5. Practice scales, gradually increasing the pitch each time. Remember that your vocal chords are delicate membranes and must be eased into any new techniques.
  6. Train your body to hit the high notes. As you sing the note, press your lower belly in but keep your upper belly out; this is called a “lower belly boost.” Drop your lower jaw dramatically but keep your mouth opened narrowly. Bend your knees slightly to make yourself feel like you're moving downwards as your voice goes up. Try to minimize the height to which you lift your larynx up as you increase your pitch; though this is what people naturally do when raising their voices, this strains your throat and can cause your voice to crack. Monitor this by placing your fingers above your larynx while you sing and adjusting your technique to keep the larynx down.
    • Don’t look up while you sing high notes; keep your vision directly in front of you to avoid bending your throat and straining the sound.
    • Sticking your tongue forward may help give the high notes a richer sound.
  7. Always remember to not strain your voice. Don't try to force yourself into a much higher register too quickly; there are often serious consequences when you do. Remember to always drink water before a performance or practice, which will keep your voice steady. Keep one near you for emergencies as well.

Lifestyle Changes

  1. Improve your posture. To strengthen your singing voice, make good posture a habit, not a mode you switch into.
  2. Get in shape. Take up running or practise interval training to increase your lung strength and capacity.
  3. Develop facial flexibility. Make funny faces, stretch your mouth and tongue in all directions, yawn to open the back of the throat, and loosen your jaw until you're able to push or pull on it with your hand. These exercises will help you shape and perfect the sound as it comes out of your mouth.

Tips

  • Drink water with honey in it. This will help soothe your throat. Drink it before a performance. It might help.
  • Do not "over sing". There is a limit of how much you can sing. If your throat starts to feel raspy, stop singing and drink some room-temperature water; if you have any lemon or lemon juice, pour some in.
  • Take a rest every hour or so to give your throat some time to relax.
  • Keep on singing and don't get scared or nervous. Pretend you are all alone somewhere where you always wanted to be.
  • If some of the songs you want to be able to sing incorporate very high notes that you have trouble reaching, warm up by singing in a lower octave first.
  • Drink lots of water. (It's best to drink tepid water. This will lessen the 'shock' to your vocal chords.) Avoid alcohol, milk, hot chocolate and other thick drinks. Also, avoid chocolate before you are going to sing.
  • Try Swimming, Holding your breath underwater will help your lungs become stronger.
  • Don't drink cold water either; it will make your voice raspy. Drink lukewarm water, it can also ease a little bit of your throat.
  • Practice your range, and try to sing the highest and lowest comfortable notes everyday, and before you sing to release tension, and expand your range!
  • Sit up and try to raise your eyebrows while making an 0 with your mouth and face. Don't strain your voice, though.
  • Don't eat dairy before singing.
  • Avoid screaming as it hurts your throat.
  • Do not eat large 'heavy' meals before singing.
  • Practice in a room that echoes (for example, a room with no furniture). It will help when you are singing.
  • As you sing, try to release less air, not more; expelling more air will actually soften the sound of your singing rather than strengthen it.
  • Quiet places increase your voice to sing higher, and singing in front of people decreases your "stage fright".
  • Take music lessons
  • Drink warm water as it soothes the throat.
  • Relax your body and do some breathing exercises. Remember to keep your shoulders down as it will help when singing higher notes. It will help you sing beautiful because sometimes you lift your shoulders when you sing high. Also try to think low when you are singing high.
  • Never clear your throat too hard as this can damage the vocal chords.
  • If you feel like you can't reach the high notes while performance, then go slightly lower. Attempting a high note will cause your voice to sound raspy.
  • If you have a square fan or enclosed fan practice vocal warm ups in them while going higher and lower, this will help you loosen your voice to get a higher pitch.
  • Drink warm water with honey, it always works.
  • Try closing your eyes. If you're a beginner, this helps a lot, with or without with stage fright.
  • Warm up your voice before you attempt hitting high notes. Afterwards, go a note higher and try to go up as man octaves you can.

Warnings

  • Remember if you're young, your voice may change depending on your age.
  • If your voice is low, don't force it. You might reach a higher pitch eventually, but it’s best to start at your natural baseline.
  • Don't do anything that hurts.

Things You'll Need

  • A note (from a piano, CD or similar).
  • Water.
  • Mirror.
  • Recording device (optional).
  • Computer (optional).
  • Sometimes a microphone can help you feel more in control (optional).
  • A guitar (optional)

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