Maintaining a Healthy Voice
General Recommendations:
- Discontinue smoking/tobacco use. Avoid secondhand smoke.
- Caffeine and alcohol dehydrate the vocal folds, which can increase vocal fold damage. If you use these substances do so in moderation; increase your water intake to compensate.
- Keep your vocal folds moist. Drink six-to-eight 8-ounce glasses of water daily. (One or two glasses of juice may be counted in this.
- Monitor medication. Some medications, such as antihistamines, taken for common colds and allergies, work well on the ailment, but dry vocal tissue. Drink extra water to compensate for the medicine's drying effect.
Never sing after using anaesthetic throat losenges.
- Watch what you eat. Frequent heartburn and a sour taste in your mouth may mean stomach acids are spilling over into your larynx (voice box), which may irritate or damage vocal tissue. Avoid acidic and spicy foods, eating late at night, caffeine, and overeating at mealtime. (Ask your Speech Pathologist for a list of other reflux precautions).
Voice Recommendations:
- Avoid loud talking when a quieter voice can be heard easily.
- Avoid frequent throat clearing and coughing, as these may damage vocal fold tissues. Frequent throat clearing is often a sign of poor vocal habits and/or dehydration. Increase your water intake and sip on water or swallow when you feel the urge to clear your throat.
- Avoid yelling or screaming as this kind of forceful voice use can increase hoarseness and slow Use a legato
(linking words) speaking style and avoid hard attacks on vowels.
- Do not vocalise a sneeze
Note: This does not mean you should stifle a sneeze -- never do that! Go ahead and
sneeze, just don't phonate while doing so.
- Do not phonate while yawning
- Increase inflection, that is, letting your voice rise and fall.
- Don't try to speak without adequate air or whisper loudly, or for very long. Decrease your rapid speaking rate and breathe more frequently. Be sure to take deep, abdominal breaths.
- Avoid speaking or singing when your voice feel impaired or fatigued, as this increases the risk of injury. Reducing your talking or simply being quite will often help renew a tired voice.
- Use a "forward" "hummy" voice placement. Feel your voice flow freely towards the front of your face.
- Warm up your voice well prior to singing or speaking in large groups where there is no amplification.
- Project your voice properly. Projecting does not mean shouting. To make your voice heard in noisy situations, use deep (abdominal) breathing and do not tighten your throat and neck muscles. Try to use amplification when presenting to large groups.
- Lifting weights can lead to vocal strain if care is not taken to keep the throat open. Never lift weights that make you strain.
- Do not stay up late the night before a performance
- Treat your body like a valuable instrument.
- Try to avoid places with foul air or paint fumes. Everything you breathe passes through your instrument
Introduction, Technical Aspects,
Practical Ideas, Vocal Ranges,
The Healthy Voice, Bibliography, Front Page.