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RUclips doesnt let me edit sometimes. Weird. Anyway I learned some great stuff here and I will probably talk to my teacher anout some of this next lesson too. Its not something Ive explored much yet, but I think she had prescribed me Messa De Voce practice to help with this, but now with all Ive learned from you just now Ive got a lot of insight into how to control the softer dynamic range of my voice

I'm so glad to hear this was helpful! Many of my teachers kept me in the dark for a long time about the physiological "why" behind the exercises they gave me (I think to avoid overwhelming or confusing students). But for me, the why has always been so important in understanding how to approach the exercise, and I don't think the science and physiology of singing has to be as complicated or overwhelming as some might think. Yes, there are a lot of details and it takes time, but in my opinion, it usually helps students have more success when they really understand the mechanics of their voice. I hope those messa di voce exercises feel more effective for you now!

Glad you think so!

I'm so glad you're finding these videos helpful! My experience has been that people are hungry to understand how their voices work, but a lot of teachers think it's too complicated and will just confuse singers, so they don't talk about it. I didn't think it had to be that way, and so it really lights me up to hear that's been the case for you! English is such a freaking hard language to sing in, and there are lots of reasons why you might be experiencing difficulty with singing on words. It's hard to say without actually hearing/seeing you sing, but here are a few things you could try: 1. Gather as much data as you can. Sing on words, and instead of trying to fix the problem, try to observe what you are feeling in every part of your body. Are you locking your knees? Do you feel tension in your core? If so, what kind and where? Is it a rigid tension or a pliable tension? (Pliable would be good, rigid not so much). How about your chest, shoulders, and back? What do you feel in your neck and throat? How about your jaw and tongue? Even look at your cheeks, eyes, and forehead. Try to get really specific about WHERE you are experiencing negative tension. 2. Once you have figured out where the tension is in your body, you can seek out vocal exercises to help. If it's jaw tension, obviously look for jaw loosening exercises, but you might also try some pelvic floor work since those two parts of the body are connected. (I have a video on the pelvic floor that might be helpful). If it's core tension, try doing some simple yoga postures that involve twists. And in general just be creative and trust your intuition. Once you've identified the source of the tension, it's a matter of finding ways to move that body part so it can release. 3. This is tricky for people sometimes, but try singing the words, but remove all of the consonants. So you're singing on vowels only. If you sign up for my membership, you can submit two videos of yourself singing and get feedback from me for free. There's no commitment, so you're welcome to just send the videos and cancel if now is not a good time for something like that. But it would be easier for me to offer suggestions if I can see and hear you, so that's an option as well. Here's a link to sign up: app.arketa.co/ljdstudios/pricing/checkout/thqW1XaoDFoDP52e0eGq Hope this helps!

@@ljdstudios thank you so much for such a comprehensive reply. I'll certainly check out your membership.

Glad you like them!

Everyone moves at their own pace. That’s amazing that you have stuck with it for this long and are now seeing results! I think what is so fun but also frustrating about the voice is that we live with an ever-changing and developing instrument.

It’s really good that you are observing what you are feeling. You definitely don’t want to experience any soreness after singing, especially after only a couple of songs. Do you know what style you are singing in? Are you belting or singing in more in a head voice dominant register? I ask because different genres have different pitfalls when it comes to singing, so I might be able to advise you better if I know what style you are singing in.

I am so glad you are finding it helpful!

I’m so glad you’re finding them helpful! And I agree on the muscle memory thing… I think it’s worth it to play the long game on this one!

Thank you so much! Glad it was helpful!

Glad you found it helpful!

Such a great question!!! Nasality (air through the nose) can help “wake up” the forward resonance associated with twang, which is why putting an m on the front of your lip trill can help, but while the m will be nasal, your lip trill hopefully will not be. And there are no rights or wrongs as far as I’m concerned, but I would say generally we only use nasality on nasal consonants (m, n, ng) and otherwise do not use nasality. Does that answer your question?

@ljdstudios Thanks for the answer!!! For the past couple of weeks, I've been watching your videos and gained a much better understanding of things that used to confuse me. By combining all the elements you taught (breath support, relaxation, lifting the soft palate, and twang), I was able to sing with ease for the first time! I could tackle almost any song I tried without getting tired. I got so carried away that I sang for hours for 4-5 days straight! Unfortunately, now I can't sing at all. I guess my voice isn't like any other instrument; I need to learn how to take care of it properly. When my voice finally 'opened up,' I just got too excited and sang all day !!! I guess now I will have to wait for a few days and then to put a 30-45 minutes limit...

You just made my day! When I started this channel, that’s exactly what I set out to do. I have watched a lot of different singing videos and even I get confused sometimes. I felt like there was a need to put information out there for curious singers that actually explained things clearly and concisely. so thank you for saying that! And I’m so glad you felt so much freedom in your voice. I have definitely done the same thing… It’s hard to stop yourself when things feel so good. But that’s the one thing about being a human instrument… We do tire out unlike other instruments. Give yourself plenty of rest and hydration, and in the meantime, let me know if you have any other questions! I do have a membership coming out soon and it might be a great fit for a super self motivated person like you!

​@ljdstudios I haven't watched all the videos yet. But what I feel I need now is how to practice, what to practice, how long to practice how to warm up, when to have a break, etc. If I can afford the subscription, I will definitely buy it!

If you haven’t already check out this video: Voice Teacher Secrets: How to Practice Singing like a Pro ruclips.net/video/NzZG2pzYolI/видео.html In general, I think the sweet spot for practicing is 45 minutes to an hour max. Everyone needs a different length of time for warming up, but usually 5 to 10 minutes will suffice. I like to differentiate between warming up and skill building. Warm-ups should be easy and really shouldn’t take that long, but then you can always do other exercises that might seem like warm-ups, but are more focused on building skills after those couple of easy first exercises. Those might take an additional 10 to 20 minutes after your first 5 to 10 minute warm-up depending on how focused you want to be. Or you could literally just do skill building exercises for your entire practice session. If there’s a song you’re working on, try to think about what’s difficult in that song and choose exercises that will help you tackle the difficult portions. And then you can spend the remainder of your time working on that song or even just certain sections of the song. Hope that helps!

Totally agree! I think until we have a language we can all agree upon (which may never happen) teachers need to acknowledge that the terminology they are choosing to use is not the ONLY way to speak about the voice.

Great question! It really just depends on what you're going for. A breathy sound usually adds a sense of vulnerability or "sultriness." A hard onset will usually give you a stronger more powerful sound. And a balanced onset is more neutral. I'd say generally you're going to use a balanced onset and would maybe choose a breathy or hard onset as an added affect from time to time.

Oh my gosh baby brain! Yes, I meant M2, not M1. Good catch!

@lauradavis3457 Hi, that's very sweet of you, but it totally makes sense either way, as I know people still disagree . I haven't watched the whole video, but I am looking forward to it.

@@awe-ctaves7304 totally! I really hope someday we all agree on the terminology!

@ljdstudios Good morning. Yeah, I can definitely agree with that. Sadly, I don't ever see that happening 😞. I used to believe in head voice, I used to kind of believe in falsetto once the term was changed for more modern times. Yet Sadly In my opinion just replacing The terms based on the individual and /or the circumstances may be quicker but still has it's limitations. Like I never knew that some use Chakras ....and now it makes me have more questions of how to "translate" that.

@@awe-ctaves7304 totally agree that it is so important to speak to the person standing in front of you and use terms that resonate with them! Interesting about the Chakras. I've used the chakra system a lot in teaching voice, but more so for tackling some of the mental obstacles singers encounter, not so much for talking about registration.

I'm so glad you found this helpful! And yes! Here are a couple of videos that might help: ruclips.net/video/jiFgZrnqrp8/видео.html ruclips.net/video/73HIOgAHjy8/видео.html And if those don't help, let me know and I will make another video more specifically geared toward training your support muscles.

Thank you very much!🌺

That's a great question. As far as whether or not you are engaging your pelvic floor correctly for singing, it sounds like the answer is yes. That said, feeling like you might prolapse is definitely not ideal. I saw a pelvic floor specialist while I was pregnant and part of the work was to practice deeply relaxing/lengthening the pelvic floor while exhaling strongly in order to prepare for childbirth. This is the same thing we do in singing--particularly when we go for a high note. But my understanding is, if the pelvic floor is weakened, then we do this action, we might experience various issues. Long story short, I do think you are performing the action correctly for singing, but might be experiencing some side effects from previous pregnancies. I'm not a doctor, so this is not medical advice, but it could be worth seeing a specialist. It helped me a lot!

@ljdstudios THANK YOU!! I appreciate you replying! And I will definitely look into it! Idk if you have had your baby yet or not but praying everything has/will go smoothly!

Thank you! Our little boy was born at the end of February, so now it’s just a matter of navigating being a working mom! 🙂

@@ljdstudios oh I'm happy to hear! It's hard to find that balance at first! You got this!

So glad that was helpful! I'm always looking for ideas for future videos so let me know if there is anything you would like to see.

Glad you found it helpful!

You are so welcome

I’m so glad you’re finding them helpful! I really believe singing technique doesn’t have to be as complicated as it seems and it makes my day to hear that you feel you’re learning a lot!

100 percent. I think a big reason is because we don’t have a codified language to talk about this stuff. Additionally, unless you have a camera to look at what the vocal cords are doing, when we define these registers, it’s usually based on what someone hears or feels, and that’s very subjective. My best advice is to trust your instincts. You know what you are experiencing as a singer!

was thinking the same thing. Every teacher explains it differently. It's nobody's fault, but wish there was a consensus among the vocal community.

So glad you found it helpful!

You are right on, and that is such a great question. In the exercise you’re referring to, have you tried plugging your nose once you open from the n into the vowel? My suggestion would be to slow it down and sustain the sound. Partway through sustaining the vowel, plug your nose. If there’s no change in sound, then you are actually not singing nasal. But I know that it does sound really really nasal and very bright. But that’s actually just excessive twang. Does that make sense?

Yes! I’m on maternity leave now, but I will add it to my list for when I’m back!

Just made a new video on tongue tension coming out this Friday! Wanted to give you a heads up. 🙂

@@ljdstudios Thank you for the heads up! Looking forward to it!

Great question! You’re right, generally when we contract the pelvic floor (and keep in mind to contract the pelvic floor means you’re lifting it), the abs like to go with it (as does the diaphragm). But if you’re trying to slow down the ascent of the diaphragm, you’ll actually want to lengthen the pelvic floor (this will feel like pressing down on it gently, like you would in order to start the flow of urine). In this case, you might actually feel the abs tense in an outward direction. Does that answer you’re question?

I’m so glad that cleared some questions up for you!!

Yes!! Better breath control can be a game changer in all areas! So glad you found that helpful!

Oh my gosh, do I feel you on that! That was my struggle for a long time too. I’m on maternity leave at the moment, but I will absolutely add that to my list for when I’m back.

@@ljdstudios I figure ☺️ Congratulations. Hope you are doing great.Enjoy your time with your baby. They grow up way too fast. I'm looking forward to watching more videos from you. Take care!

Thank you!!

Thank you!

Working on this video for you now and hoping to have it posted on Friday! Thanks for the idea!

So glad you found some new information here!

That’s my goal! I’m so glad you found this helpful!

So glad you found this helpful! I really think knowing the “way” behind the exercises we do is incredibly useful. Knowledge is power!

So glad you found it helpful!