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Vocal Technique

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ANG18

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I am currently working with a student who is hesitant to widen her range. She's a 19 years old, has no formal vocal training, and identifies as an alto. During vocal exercises, whenever we reach above an B4, she becomes nervous and refuses to sing higher. Are there any good exercises or beneficial methods in which to help her widen her range? 

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First and foremost, put it in context of a song she enjoys. It's more than singing a note, it's a goal she can really picture herself doing. Also, remind her that if she can sing in a light mass head voice in that range, she can learn how to add her TA muscles to it. Are you working with her on bridging the vocal registers?

For some of my more timid students, I make sure I'm doing everything with them that I tell them to do. It really helps. We make a lot of weird sounds when singing, and good placement and support are not intuitive at first, so seem not only foreign, but VERY vulnerable. If she's shutting down because of strain or yelling, then good for her. She should never feel the need to strain, yell, choke, or anything like that. Reassure her of that. If she's shutting down because she doesn't like the feeling, then work with her more on resonant placement and breath support. If it's because she's simply shy, then get her belting ASAP.  But don't neglect doing it with her, allowing yourself to make weird noises, give silly demonstrations on what not to do, and make the lesson as fun as possible. She'll open up and gain confidence. It may take time, but she will.

Most of what you can do has to do with just getting her comfortable with her voice and having fun. Keep reassuring her about how great her voice is, when she gets something right and keep working on getting her to lift her voice out of her throat to the soft palate and giving that resonant position solid breath support. The more she does it, the better she will sound, and the more confident she'll get. There are other things, like putting a finger on her bottom lip and singing up and over it, or crying/sobbing a bit into her words. But first, she needs to feel comfortable with what she has now, and that part is on you, not her.

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