The other day I received an email from a young man who told me that he was getting a sore throat by speaking loudly at the clubs and wondered if my training dealt with volume. I had to smile when he said that he had read several books on voice and none of them talked about how to increase or decrease the amount of sound you use. They also didn’t discuss projection which involves speaking in a bigger voice without shouting or yelling.
This is something I’ve known for years and I certainly wasn’t surprised by his remarks. Teaching others how to ‘improve’ the speaking voice and not covering volume is like going to a doctor who missed the course on anatomy.
The reason volume is so important is because there are many people who are soft-spoken. There are also a few who speak too loudly. Volume matters in communication today. If you expect to be heard, then you must speak at a normal volume level. On the other hand, if you speak too loudly, people will shy away from listening to you.
Projection is another component that is vital in good voice training. The ability to increase your volume without straining your throat and vocal folds (cords) means less likelihood of vocal abuse as well as less pain to your listeners’ ears.
When I teach voice, the 1st thing we work on is diaphragmatic breathing, the 2nd step is optimum pitch, and the 3rd is volume and projection. Whether you are working with me in person or by means of my video training, I explain that voice training is a progressive course. You must start at the beginning and go through each session before you can move on to the next.
It is important to understand that you cannot work on your volume until your voice is being powered by your chest cavity. And, you cannot power your voice from your chest cavity until you are breathing with the support of your diaphragm. That’s the only way to discover the voice you don’t know you have.
There are many who will show you how to improve the voice you already have – then there are a few of us who will show you how to find the voice you don’t know you have. If the program you are researching does not cover diaphragmatic breathing, optimum pitch, and volume, it isn’t voice training.
I’m curious as to how you’d help someone with a voice that is too deep (in a vocal fry range with very slack and compressed vocal cords). It’s very confusing as far as trying to find a center or optimal pitch in my voice because my vocal cords are too spread apart. Many men have this problem and can’t get power out of their voices because of it. I believe it’s a lot easier for many women to speak with more resonance because they can simply drop their pitch to a center range or a speech inflection range. I find I have very little observable facial movement when I speak (probably due to the fact that I have to close my vocal cords with a lot of muscular effort). I don’t think modifying a vowel will help with a range that is too low. A lot of men are guilty of a “laid back” style of speaking where they speak from their throat and chest. I’m wondering – what have you done for a client who has a voice range that is habitually to deep for their voice type? Many pathologists say the “m” sound is a good way to identify resonance and neutralize the position of the larynx, but there’s more to healthy vocal cord closure than that. A lot of it is a fine science, and I don’t think a simple desire to change the sound of one’s voice on their own will suffice.
Good to hear from you DLM. I think you need to learn to breathe and relax your throat and vocal folds. I find (as well as the men with whom I work) that if you can use your chest to move your sound, you will feel very little in your throat and voice box. You seem to be relying most heavily on your vocal folds and I wonder if you pushed your voice too low in the past. This was a big problem for DJs years ago because they wanted a deep, bass voice.
Regarding your optimum range? You must relax your mouth, thoat, jaw, and voice box first. Then, you probably need to raise your pitch but I hesitate making this type of assessment until I hear you. Why don’t you phone me? I’d love to talk to you. Call 1-888-627-2824. If you are outside of the States, email me with your phone number and I’ll call you. daniels@voicedynamic.com
By the way, it also might be an idea to see a voice therapist.