In order to understand what takes place when singing high notes you first need to understand what pitch is. Pitch should not be thought of as a note. Pitch is a musical thought. A mental image. First, the singer gets a strong image of the note they wish to sing. You then sing the desired pitch mentally being guided by how the voice feels. You avoid the urge to listen to the music or to yourself. Musical cues within a song are meant to guide you but singing is a feeling and needs to be felt or heard mentally before attempting to sing the note. Singers believe a pitch is something to be reached or hit. While reach and hit is terminology used to direct a singer to sing a specific note, it is not what we actually do to produce the higher tone. The higher you sing within your range, the more difficult you perceive it to be. Nothing could be farther from the truth. When we think of high notes as up we instinctively try to reach up to them. We tell ourselves that they are above the notes in our lower register. This will cause us to push or strain up to the note developing poor vocal habits that will cause the voice to cut off the air supply and tone, making it impossible to sing the note. High is the term used to explain notes that go higher up on the musical staff. When singing them, however, they in fact do not move up but rather are positioned and sung in the same resonating area as all the other notes within your range. The vocal cords, or larynx as it is also referred to, stays relaxed and seated when the proper muscles and vocal co-ordination are used. The vocal cords stretch and thin as you sing higher notes but they in no way need any special co-ordination or breath support to accommodate this. In fact, if we do attempt to sing high notes differently then lower ones the voice will crack causing you to flip into a light falsetto voice rather then a strong and connected head voice. You need to give up the urge to control the sound. When we realize that the larynx is to stay in the same seated position throughout your entire range, top to bottom, we can eliminate the fear associated with singing in certain areas of our range. If you have been reaching up to notes or pushing excessive air through the vocal cords, you likely have over-developed muscles in the throat that are not meant for singing. The muscles on the side of your neck, as an example, are used for chewing and swallowing. As they are dominant muscles, the lack of proper tone co-ordination and control over airflow will result in these muscles taking over keeping you from singing in the upper area of your head register, or range. Any time muscles that are not meant for singing get involved in the process, the larynx will rise immediately cutting off the air supply, tone, and will keep you from reaching the correct pitch. If you are having difficulty reaching high notes it is because you have developed poor vocal habits that will eventually cause vocal cord damage. You need to stop doing what you are doing immediately and get help from a qualified vocal coach. When trying to correct this problem you may feel tension in the neck, around the jaw and mouth area. You cannot feel tension in these areas unless you are focused on the tension. Developing the correct muscles needed for singing, combined with proper tone and breath co-ordination, your focus will shift and the tension will disappear. So stop worrying about what notes you are singing. Over time, all the hard work you have put into properly developing your voice will pay off and you will hit any note you wish effortlessly. Continue to nurture your gift and you will be amazed how much more talent you have developed. Experiment, get creative with the music and have fun doing it. |
