A brief introduction to how you can unlock a broad dynamic speaking range.
Welcome to the 4th week of total body voice. In this lesson, I’m going to help you develop a dynamic voice.
The fact is, no one wants to listen to a monotone voice. When you’re speaking, if you’re on one note the entire time, you better be rhyming and have a beat.
Otherwise, a good speaking voice utilizes a broad dynamic range, both, in terms of volume and pitch. If you want to keep a listener engaged and at the edge of their seat, you have to learn at times to whisper and at times to shout.
If you are like the average person, when you want to speak with passion, you move towards a higher pitch but find yourself struggling and straining your voice.
In this lesson, I will show you have to unlock a big voice. Here’s how it works.
Have you ever taken a balloon and pinched the mouth with your fingers to create a squealing high pitched sound?
The more you pull on the membrane, the higher the pitch, but you can only stretch it so far. At a certain point, the only to way go higher, is by pinching off a smaller subset of the membrane.
Something similar happens with your voice when you learn to sing or speak in what is called the “head voice”.
Notice how the texture of the sound stayed the same from the bottom to the top. If you notice a break in the texture, you’re probably going to falsetto, which is a thin airy sound that isn’t meant for speaking in passion. It is quiet and fragile.
To access your head-voice, we will be using a two-octave slide on the “ee” vowel. When practicing this slide, be sure to properly support it with a good breath, and use the “ee” vowel to engage your head resonator.
A quick note of caution. Thinning out your vocal folds requires them to be properly warmed up and in healthy condition. If you’re sick or experiencing any discomfort, do not continue with this exercise.