Vocal Health Tips for Singers! By Voice Therapist Debbie Phyland
Q:Hi there! I'm a budding singer and love to do so. I'm 13 and my voice is breaking and changing. I've gained loads of low notes but I'm losing the higher ones, and my range is kind of small, but hopefully it'll grow again as I get okder.I know there's nothing I can do, but I'd like to keep singing in the meantime. Do yu have any advice for what I can do for how I can improve my voice in this period? Thanks so much!!!
Hello! This is a great time for you to really start getting to know your voice. Pay attention to what your whole body as well as individual areas such as your neck, throat, head, tummy, lungs feel when you’re singing. Take singing lessons and choose a teacher that you feel comfortable asking any question that you may have about singing and performing. Whatever singing you’re doing, do not over do it and when singing high and very low notes become somewhat painful, you have to stop and change your approach or get your teacher to show you how to do it. Happy singing!
p.s. Don’t forget to listen to all types of music, new and old songs alike
Escano Singing School - Singing Lessons in Melbourne
Click here (http://Sing.Flo.fm) if you would like me to teach you how to become a better singer, performer, artist. From beginner to advanced! Singing - Do it cos you love it and it sure does make us feel great!
Slowly getting unearthed…
Community radio has been so supportive of my songs. I can’t even begin to explain how absolutely stoked I am to be getting some much needed attention! I have PBS, Triple R, Edge FM (NSW), and dozens more stations Australia wide to thank. Not to mention AMRAP/AirIT.
Alos, I’m so very glad that Triple J has given me a bit of love! The Liberating Kind (LOTEK Remix) has been played a few times on both Triple J radio on “Roots N All” show by the lovely Sarah Howells, and also on Unearthed Digital Radio.
This means the entire world to me! Thank you so much radio!
FLORELIE ESCANO Singing School
Mission: To inspire and encourage my students to be the best singers they could possibly be through sharing my knowledge, passion and experience in using the voice as the most superior musical instrument one could ever master.
THE VOICE
Singing is the best form of musical expression for the obvious reason that no other instrument can literally speak directly to the audience. Add melody, harmony and rhythm to words and there we have the best instrument one could ever use to communicate emotions.
The voice is irreplaceable. It’s the only instrument that goes with us 24/7 and it’s the best musical instrument that easily establishes a connection between the musician and people’s hearts. During my darkest days, all I could turn to is singing and music and it magically helps get me through it. Singing has a powerful effect on our souls and that is why everyone must love singing and learn how to do it with ease!
VOCAL COACHING
I am a professional Contemporary Singer and Songwriter with over a decade of performance experience. I have been teaching for just over a year. In this time, I have found that I enjoy teaching so much more than I thought. I teach all contemporary genres (pop, rock, etc) but personally, I like to sing Soul, Funk, Blues & Jazz. I perform regularly and sing my own songs as well as the soulful songs of amazing artists such as Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Beyonce, Adele, Amy Winehouse, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, just to name a few. I spend a lot of time honing my vocal skills (under instruction of amazing classical as well as contemporary singing teachers) because I aspire to be the best artist and singer that I could ever be.
I love to share my knowledge with all types of students - from ones that would like to make a career out of singing, as well as those that just like the amazing feeling that singing gives them. It helps the release of happy hormones and reduces stress.
I have been singing professionally for several years now and I am still discovering a lot about music and also about myself. I have learnt that my love for music just keeps getting stronger as time goes by. There’s just so much to learn and I’m willing to spend my lifetime learning. In addition, I have found that you can never have too much positivity in this endeavour. Your love for your craft will truly surface when the going gets tough. And it does get tough!
LEARNING HOW TO SING CORRECTLY IS A COMMITMENT
I will teach you how to co-ordinate & control your breathing while you sing. I will help you round up all the things you can already do naturally and teach you how to use them when you’re singing. I feel that it is important for me to note that singing is a learned skill which can be highly technical. Some of you may find certain aspects of singing easy but find other things more challenging. If you are serious about reaping the rewards of singing (hopefully for personal satisfaction above all else; boost in self-confidence; and stress relief), then be prepared to give it a good go for at least a year. Even if you don’t want to be the next Whitney Houston, you will find that if you commit to your singing practice, your confidence will improve as you feel better about yourself.
THE LESSONS
I do one-on-one and group lessons (by demand), depending on your confidence, ability and goals. For beginners, a 10-lesson course is most ideal. Currently, I charge $30 for half an hour, $45 for 45-mins and $60 an hour. Lessons are weekly for the most part but 1 or 2 of the lessons may be moved as per our agreement.
I will teach you how to:
- Hit High Notes with Ease
- Breathe Correctly When Singing
- Use Deep Breathing To Help Relieve Stress
- The vocal registers: Chest, Middle, Head and Whistle Registers
- Warm-up
- How To Harmonise
- Dramatically improve your singing by correct pronunciation alone
- Use Vibrato Correctly
- Conquer Your Nerves During Performance
- Find Your Own Voice and Become An Artist
- Write Songs and/or Improve Songwriting Skills
- How To Record In A Recording Studio
- How To Sing In A Band
- many, many more!
Please feel free to check out my videos below. If you would like me to teach you what I have learned over the years, do not hesitate to contact me! Looking forward to your message/call.
Happy singing!
Florelie Escano
Mobile: 0450079665
Email: info [at] counterclockwise. com. au
Studio Location: Collingwood (3Kms from CBD Melbourne Australia)
Now here’s a song I wrote about pursuing my dreams….
SOUL! The Liberating Kind by @Florelie Escano - Out Now on 45! by LOTEK
Hello my friends… Here’s my humble version of Mariah Carey’s “Vision Of Love”! This was at my debut single launch in Melbourne. This video captured some of the most positive vibes from the night. It was undoubtedly an AMAAAZING night! To all the folks who supported me on this night, this one is whole-heartedly for you.
I hope you like this video :) Keep singing!
Hi there my singing buddies! First of all, THANKS to everyone following me… I truly hope that you don’t ever stop singing as this is a passion that will stay with you forever - and it will just keep resurfacing regardless of how many times you try to ignore it!
Here’s a video that I made today of me singing Jessie J’s Price Tag. It’s pretty chilled as I didn’t want to fuss about too much with my cam etc.
I’m going to post more singing tips in the next couple of days. And always remember: Sing loud and proud :)
Source: youtube.com
My original song called “Soulsearch”. The lyrics of this song is from the bottom of my heart. x
Vocal Wisdom
After having tried at least 8 singing teachers in my lifetime, I admit that I have grown to be a ‘singing teacher snob’. At least half of the teachers I went to didn’t really make any sense. Some tried to teach me how to breathe without giving me scales or healthy vocal tips. Why did I have to learn how to breathe again? I thought I’d learned that when I was born! These days, I still learn about the voice via checking out online lessons and things. I tell you to beware. Some teachers producing these tips aren’t very useful. For example, one of them advised that to sing high notes, dipping your body down quickly (like half-sitting down and getting up again) as you try to hit a high note, will help you know how to do it. Say whaaat? A lot of them will tell you to “sing from your diaphragm” which won’t make sense especially if you’re a beginner because our voice is generated inside our neck area! And then I hear this one constantly - “raise your soft palate” or “lower your larynx”, blah blah. These 2 parts of our voicebox move so subtly that how in the world would an untrained singer know how to even move them without getting confused? And the last “what the” tip I’ve seen is to “sing loudly if you want to do those R&B vocal runs/gymnastics”. As if volume amplification will help you mask shonky vocal imperfections. If anything they’ll make them worse.
I don’t know about you but none of it make sense to me. So when I find cool singing tips site, it cheers me up. The link I’m providing has some really cool tips on how to sing. It is a more classical way of knowing how to sing but to me, it’s the best way. If you’re classically trained yet know how to integrate it to contemporary singing, then you’re in the best spot! Some of the way they explain things are for the advanced student so don’t get too bogged down if you don’t understand them.
One of the things I read in this site is an explanation about sounding “nasal”. It basically says what I say: If you DON’T want to sound “nasal” then you must sing *through* & around your nose (from inside to outside). Think about it. If you have a cold/blocked nose and can’t sing *through* your nose, you sound “nasal”. When you don’t have a cold, sound resonates through all of the cavities inside your head and outwards (mouth, ears and don’t forget the nose). Leave all cavities open, especially the throat, and you will avoid sounding “nasal”.
So I was at Counter Clockwise Studio the other day and decided to do another cover song video. I’m going to be doing other more interesting things in the future when I get enough time.
“Love On Top” is a pretty tricky song to sing especially when you’re not 100% familiar with the song yet. It has about 4 or 5 key changes so the song just gets higher and higher in range.
I hope you like it. I’m going to be doing more videos in the future - like I’m thinking of doing a few Whitney and Mariah songs, as well as gritty Neo Soul R&B stuff. Stay tuned - subscribe & get involved!
Happy singing!
Flo x
Hi guys! I made this video for you all, especially for my students to show that I do practice what I preach :) - you don’t need to excessively push out breath pressure and move your head up to reach for those higher notes. Unfortunately, the opposite will occur if you tilt your head up. You will find yourself straining your throat muscles and yet still end up with an unpleasant sound.
Rolling In The Deep Cover by Florelie Escano (by fl0relie).
Source: youtube.com
If you can speak, then you can saaang!
My singing philosophy? NATURAL SINGING. Work with what you were born with. We have been perfectly designed to create different sounds to express our different emotions. When we sing, we quite simply just bring these different sounds together.
Even after having said this, a problem arises when we try to IMITATE other singers. We try to activate unwanted throat muscles and stretch the chest voice all the way up (very bad!).
To oversimplify the act of singing - it is meant to feel natural and easy for the most part (unless you’re attempting a full on aria of course). If it hurts, you have to stop.
I LOOOVE TO SING!
Friends and acquaintances know this all too well :) Another thing that I’ve just discovered about myself recently is the fact that I actually love sharing the knowledge I have gained through the years. I was really hesitant about teaching singing until Matt from Lygon Music School asked me to teach there. Now I’m almost as obsessed with it as I am with actual singing!
In this post, I want to make an important point. If you want to know how to sing well, you HAVE to know your voice - i.e. what it feels like, sounds like, as well as how is your voice making your audience feel when you’re singing (this is driven by your “Artiste” in residence).
Having said the above, you might ask: “How do I get to know my voice?” Well, it’s all about discovering it and by that, I mean practicing correctly with a vocal coach - taking careful note of the FEELING it gives you around your voicebox area as well as your stomach area and all the way down to your torso. I pretty much got used to correct and beautiful singing (“Bel Canto”) by doing endless scales - and I LOVED scales! I saw them as ways of challenging my voice and felt rewarded when I did them well. Over the years, the scales turned to singing and expressing myself as creatively as I allow myself to be.
Also, don’t forget your inner child. As a child, I grew up mimicing things like dogs whining, cats meowing, fire engine sounds, Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd, opera singers. So go ahead and try all of these things again… we did things as kids because there were no pressure to impress anybody, we just did it because it was fun and funny.
