vocal athletics

[VideoHere]

folks, i started reading "solutions for singers" and in one of the pages there was a sentence that read something like "i really don't think that most aspiriing singers realize the amount of athleticism and muscular development needed for professonal level vocals."

my question is this: when we add a helf step to our range, (for example, when we can sing higher in full voice with consistency and control than previously), what exactly have we improved upon or strenghened in terms of human physiology?

[Snax]

Personally I think that it's more a learned coordination and muscle memory issue more so than an actual muscular development. I have added quite a lot of useable range and control since joining these forums but the actual strength of my singing muscles isn't anywhere near as strong as they were when I was singing all the time in bands years ago.

It's learning to hold back the air flow and increase the support that made the difference for me personally but the more I use those muscles in the right way, the stronger they will get over time. That will add stamina for sure but it's the techniques themselves that are getting me the results I was seeking.

[VideoHere]

Personally I think that it's more a learned coordination and muscle memory issue more so than an actual muscular development. I have added quite a lot of useable range and control since joining these forums but the actual strength of my singing muscles isn't anywhere near as strong as they were when I was singing all the time in bands years ago.

It's learning to hold back the air flow and increase the support that made the difference for me personally but the more I use those muscles in the right way, the stronger they will get over time. That will add stamina for sure but it's the techniques themselves that are getting me the results I was seeking.

thanks snax....i guess what i'm asking is which specific muscles (above the shoulders) and is there perhaps another non-vocalizing method to strenghen those particular muscles? Maybe not...

[Steven Fraser]

thanks snax....i guess what i'm asking is which specific muscles (above the shoulders) and is there perhaps another non-vocalizing method to strenghen those particular muscles? Maybe not...

Bob: What issue are you trying to address? Do you think one or another of the muscles involved in your singing is not strong enough to coordinate with the others.

If you want a list of the muscles... that's easily done. Anatomy is the very easiest part of this. However, its how those muscles are used together in singing that is important, that is, the physiology.

Is there something you'd like to be able to do vocally that you are not able to now? How about we talk about that.

[gno]

I think it could be a couple of things. I think muscle development is part of it. But maybe more important is finding the optimum resonance that can make it less stressful and more efficient for the muscles.

[VideoHere]

Bob: What issue are you trying to address? Do you think one or another of the muscles involved in your singing is not strong enough to coordinate with the others.

If you want a list of the muscles... that's easily done. Anatomy is the very easiest part of this. However, its how those muscles are used together in singing that is important, that is, the physiology.

Is there something you'd like to be able to do vocally that you are not able to now? How about we talk about that.

steve, thanks very very much for your interest, but it's so hard to explain.

i guess at 56, i'm looking for a muscle development activity besides vocal exercises to hasten my progress a bit. i'm patient and working hard, but the fear of getting older in terms of decreased vocal ability is kind of scary.

it's also funny how certain singers find difficulty in certain songs versus others. what i find hard to understand is why there are certain songs that are tough to sing even when you drop the key.

once again i hope not to bore any of the forum members (my friends) or sound like a broken record, i refer to lou gramm's vocals.. the "hot blooded", the "i've been waiting" "juke box hero" are such a bitch to hit and i can sing queen songs like "somebody to love" with half the effort. gramm just has me so challenged. i guess i wish there was a way to gauge what i'm lacking to sing those songs/notes because i get so damn close! and in retrospect, it seems like all of his songs are tough except for one or two.

so i lower the key and they're still a bitch, lol!!

and even paul rodgers who i think is similar to gramm, in many ways is easier to sing. led zeppelin. i've spoken to some of the guys who cover gramm on youtube and they all agree with me. for some reason he's difficult.

assuming you're familiar with his singing, perhaps you could observe him and tell me what you think he has going for him.?

i think it's sheer muscular strength of some kind or another but i really don't know.

again, i don't want monopolize your tiime or this forum's. but, i'd love to figure it out. for me, giving up on these songs in not an optiion. i really have never been in a situation where key lowering wasn't the answer.

[joshual]

I think the main problem comes from our ears bob.

When we work on a song we have the singer's tone in our ears, and unfortunatly our ears tells us to match that tone and not only notes and vowels

I can sing songs of kotzen, sam cooke that are somewhat really difficult songs but omg it seems like i could never sing a U2 song...

I thing i do that help me a lot, when i struggle with a song i just go to youtube and see if someone is covering the song too and sometimes you can hear a different way to approach it. It refresh the ear.

I think most of the time we try to imitate a singer more than just sing the song. It's a long way to discover our own voice tone....

[Robert Lunte]

Depends Bob,... if your talking about your belts, this often happens when you have made a commitment to singing with a proper formant, typically, an open formant like that which we worked on during the very brief period of time you committed to voice lessons with me. Respiration could also be part of it, singers are inclined to under support in the beginning, getting more respiration involved will increase your range a half step... lots of things can cause this to happen.

A half step is such a small step that any number of things could cause it.

Bob, you have a LOT of interest and passion for singing and voice technique, many of your answers would come to you if you would practice and train more. Are you practicing and working out your voice?

Coach

[Steven Fraser]

[steve, thanks very very much for your interest, but it's so hard to explain.

i guess at 56, i'm looking for a muscle development activity besides vocal exercises to hasten my progress a bit. i'm patient and working hard, but the fear of getting older in terms of decreased vocal ability is kind of scary.

it's also funny how certain singers find difficulty in certain songs versus others. what i find hard to understand is why there are certain songs that are tough to sing even when you drop the key.

once again i hope not to bore any of the forum members (my friends) or sound like a broken record, i refer to lou gramm's vocals.. the "hot blooded", the "i've been waiting" "juke box hero" are such a bitch to hit and i can sing queen songs like "somebody to love" with half the effort. gramm just has me so challenged. i guess i wish there was a way to gauge what i'm lacking to sing those songs/notes because i get so damn close! and in retrospect, it seems like all of his songs are tough except for one or two.

so i lower the key and they're still a bitch, lol!!

and even paul rodgers who i think is similar to gramm, in many ways is easier to sing. led zeppelin. i've spoken to some of the guys who cover gramm on youtube and they all agree with me. for some reason he's difficult.

assuming you're familiar with his singing, perhaps you could observe him and tell me what you think he has going for him.?

i think it's sheer muscular strength of some kind or another but i really don't know.

again, i don't want monopolize your tiime or this forum's. but, i'd love to figure it out. for me, giving up on these songs in not an optiion. i really have never been in a situation where key lowering wasn't the answer.

Bob: Thanks for your helpful response. Expanding on what others have said in this thread, you've got to find your own way of singing the songs... not mimicing the original recording artist.

The reason? Your voice is different than theirs are/were. You came from a different starting point, and your end-result (when you have all the issues worked out) will be different, unique to you.

I'd like to suggest a couple things, mostly in approach. Don't think of covering an 'artist' or a 'performance'. Think about covering a 'song'. Expressed in terms a painter would use... don't try to make a copy of a Monet. Go to the pond that Monet painted, and make your own original.

The challenge with some of these songs is that they are often written to sit well in the original artist's range and tessitura... in a manner that would allow that particular person to sustain the tunes through concert tours and an entire career. To do that, a vocal artist at that level has to work a song into the voice via repetition and careful study.

The same issue exists with opera and art songs in classical music, which (these days) are no longer associated with particular singers. There are some roles that simply cannot be sung effectively by some voice types. For example, it takes a very special kind of tenor to sustain the requirements of the tenor hero in Bellini's 'I Puritani', who, in the last act, sings an aria with several high Db5, and 1 instance of the F above that.

As I said earlier, from a technical standpoint, being able to handle a song is not so much about building strength, but about building the technique to handle the requirements of the song. Some melodic patterns are challenging, whatever the key. Sometimes, transposition does help, but not always. Some vowel combinations on certain notes just do not work well in a particular voice.

As an additional recommendation, I suggest that you find the challenging parts of these particular songs, and think about what makes them that way for you. Pick a lick or a phrase, and think deeply about the sound combinations you must assemble in order to navigate it successfully. Determine the particular notes where you are losing ground, and then create a solution to the situation. If you get stuck... get some help with it. Post a clip here of the tricky section, and we'll see what we can come up with.

[VideoHere]

Bob: Thanks for your helpful response. Expanding on what others have said in this thread, you've got to find your own way of singing the songs... not mimicing the original recording artist.

The reason? Your voice is different than theirs are/were. You came from a different starting point, and your end-result (when you have all the issues worked out) will be different, unique to you.

I'd like to suggest a couple things, mostly in approach. Don't think of covering an 'artist' or a 'performance'. Think about covering a 'song'. Expressed in terms a painter would use... don't try to make a copy of a Monet. Go to the pond that Money painted, and make your own original.

The challenge with some of these songs is that they are often written to sit well in the original artist's range and tessitura... in a manner that would allow that particular person to sustain the tunes through concert tours and an entire career. To do that, a vocal artist at that level has to work a song into the voice via repetition and careful study.

The same issue exists with opera and art songs in classical music, which (these days) are no longer associated with particular singers. There are some roles that simply cannot be sung effectively by some voice types. For example, it takes a very special kind of tenor to sustain the requirements of the tenor hero in Bellini's 'I Puritani', who, in the last act, sings an aria with several high Db5, and 1 instance of the F above that.

As I said earlier, from a technical standpoint, being able to handle a song is not so much about building strength, but about building the technique to handle the requirements of the song. Some melodic patterns are challenging, whatever the key. Sometimes, transposition does help, but not always. Some vowel combinations on certain notes just do not work well in a particular voice.

As an additional recommendation, I suggest that you find the challenging parts of these particular songs, and think about what makes them that way for you. Pick a lick or a phrase, and think deeply about the sound combinations you must assemble in order to navigate it successfully. Determine the particular notes where you are losing ground, and then create a solution to the situation. If you get stuck... get some help with it. Post a clip here of the tricky section, and we'll see what we can come up with.

steve, (and all my forum friends) thanks for taking the time to reply. steve, let me think about what you've (and everyone else) has said.

(hey now, if i'm boring anyone, tiime to jump of now...lol!)

my hope is that you folks can empathize with me per your particular difficulties, and what i learn here will benefit us all...

unless i'm deceiving myself, unbeknowst to myself, i do tend to sound like him in the lower to mid areas without wanting to (i relate very strongly to what i hear as a punchy, sexy, gutteral sound which i gravitate to) ...but he has this way of always going up in pitches where then all of a sudden he jumps up to another level and it's like i'll hit the note(s) but it is such a physical feat (not a strain, not a tensing, not pulling chest...please, it's not this i watch in the mirror) it's a physical feat to produce that particular note(s). i do know one thing, it has a lot to do with support, because the more i support, (and i mean support, appoggio big time ) plus keep the neck and jaw relaxed, the more i increase my chances of hitting the notes.

rob, to answer your question, yes, with a capital "y" i exercise the voice dilligently 6 daya a week from the softest control oriented exercises to ones where i'm tired afterwards.

i have doing this for 6 months now..i'm working it buddy.

it may just be that i need more full voice range and development to do these particular songs.

i've made a daily vocal exercise out of "i've been waiting" "waiting" is a tenor high c sharp which is pushing it for me.

gotta help some customers, be right back...

[ronws]

I think Snax was on to something. It's not so much building muscles as it is learning to use them properly and reducing strain.

And I think our ears deceive us, as well. It may sound like, for instance, Lou Gramm is belting in chest but he is not. It is how what vowel is resonated. It may sound chesty but it is not.

[Snax]

By the way everyone, feel free to call me by my name which is Mike. My nickname Snax comes from my business Musky Snax fishing lures.

I often wonder if some of our favourite, hard to imitate singers do indeed have an unnatural ability to pull their chest voices higher? Singers such as Ronnie James Dio or David Coverdale have such full sounding voices way up into their range.

I think my biggest hurdle is that I likely need to begin singing in my head voice at a lower pitch than I do to have it blend better with my chest voice which is extremely powerful when I let it rip!

Right now, to me, I sound almost like two different singers when I sing above a certain pitch and my chest voice transitions to head. Perhaps it's more likely that I "feel" the chesty power releasing into the much less powerful sounding passagio area before I'm into my equally powerful but less full sounding head voice. The passagio notes I guess are where I need to work on to maintain the sound quality I so admire in some rock singers.

[VideoHere]

Bob: Thanks for your helpful response. Expanding on what others have said in this thread, you've got to find your own way of singing the songs... not mimicing the original recording artist.

The reason? Your voice is different than theirs are/were. You came from a different starting point, and your end-result (when you have all the issues worked out) will be different, unique to you.

I'd like to suggest a couple things, mostly in approach. Don't think of covering an 'artist' or a 'performance'. Think about covering a 'song'. Expressed in terms a painter would use... don't try to make a copy of a Monet. Go to the pond that Monet painted, and make your own original.

The challenge with some of these songs is that they are often written to sit well in the original artist's range and tessitura... in a manner that would allow that particular person to sustain the tunes through concert tours and an entire career. To do that, a vocal artist at that level has to work a song into the voice via repetition and careful study.

The same issue exists with opera and art songs in classical music, which (these days) are no longer associated with particular singers. There are some roles that simply cannot be sung effectively by some voice types. For example, it takes a very special kind of tenor to sustain the requirements of the tenor hero in Bellini's 'I Puritani', who, in the last act, sings an aria with several high Db5, and 1 instance of the F above that.

As I said earlier, from a technical standpoint, being able to handle a song is not so much about building strength, but about building the technique to handle the requirements of the song. Some melodic patterns are challenging, whatever the key. Sometimes, transposition does help, but not always. Some vowel combinations on certain notes just do not work well in a particular voice.

As an additional recommendation, I suggest that you find the challenging parts of these particular songs, and think about what makes them that way for you. Pick a lick or a phrase, and think deeply about the sound combinations you must assemble in order to navigate it successfully. Determine the particular notes where you are losing ground, and then create a solution to the situation. If you get stuck... get some help with it. Post a clip here of the tricky section, and we'll see what we can come up with.

[VideoHere]

[quote=Steven Fraser

As an additional recommendation, I suggest that you find the challenging parts of these particular songs, and think about what makes them that way for you. Pick a lick or a phrase, and think deeply about the sound combinations you must assemble in order to navigate it successfully. Determine the particular notes where you are losing ground, and then create a solution to the situation. If you get stuck... get some help with it. Post a clip here of the tricky section, and we'll see what we can come up with.

well steve and folks i'll be naked as a jaybird on this, but i'm going for it.

i'm determined to nail this song.

i'll write quickly, because i lost the lousy first post.

here's the challenge..for those you aren't bored or familiar with this set of notes:

starting at 1:39 "i've been waiting"

they may be a piece of cake for a lot of you, but they are a real hurdle for me

i thought i'd help myself work on this spot by making an vocal exercise of it....

so here we go, going from from d4 to d5, the money note is tenor high c sharp

my trusty pc and $20 logitech mic. in front of the mirror there were no vains and arteries bulging.

http://www.box.net/shared/4v428siku9

then another attempt (reflux was in hybernation mode..lol!!!) and feeling warmed just hitting the notes over sand over (a little echo):

http://www.box.net/shared/3a948nvged

i hope it's just a matter of steady work on my range and repetition of the scale. i see the muscularity in his frontal neck muscles and i feel that perhaps that development plays a role?

thanks in advance for any feedback.

[Steven Fraser]

[well steve and folks i'll be naked as a jaybird on this, but i'm going for it.

i'm determined to nail this song.

i'll write quickly, because i lost the lousy first post.

here's the challenge..for those you aren't bored or familiar with this set of notes:

starting at 1:39 "i've been waiting"

they may be a piece of cake for a lot of you, but they are a real hurdle for me

i thought i'd help myself work on this spot by making an vocal exercise of it....

so here we go, going from from d4 to d5, the money note is tenor high c sharp

my trusty pc and $20 logitech mic. in front of the mirror there were no vains and arteries bulging.

http://www.box.net/shared/4v428siku9

then another attempt (reflux was in hybernation mode..lol!!!) and feeling warmed just hitting the notes over sand over (a little echo):

http://www.box.net/shared/3a948nvged

i hope it's just a matter of steady work on my range and repetition of the scale. i see the muscularity in his frontal neck muscles and i feel that perhaps that development plays a role?

thanks in advance for any feedback.

Bob: First, a comment about the 'muscularity' you notice. The frontal neck muscles are part of the harness that manages head position, stability and motion. Watch some of the other videos and see how he moves. I bet you'll see he maintains good consistency of head-to-chest position, even when he is moving around. Its good for them to be strong, especially for the stage performer.

Second, thanks for your exercise posts. I think you are doing very well, already.

If you have a crack (as in the first recording), slow the exercise down, and pay especial attention to the production of the note RIGHT BEFORE the crack. Make sure it is free and well-done. Also, As an alternative exercise, sing the note pattern of the phrase slowly and entirely on /e/, the vowel of the top note. Repeat the exercise transposing upward (as you have been doing) until the top note is 3 half steps higher than the song requires. The key to making this work is to keep the twang going, and to discover how to produce the notes well without poking at them.

[Steven Fraser]

Bob,

Here is a recording of a classical tenor, Alfredo Kraus, that 'd like to recommend you to listen to. Its of the aria 'Che Gelida Manina', from Puccini's La Boheme, as incorporated into a scene in a movie made during the height of his popularity.

If you want, you can listen to the whole thing to get a sense of what his voice sounds like in his main range, especially the consistency of the brightness, his singer's formant (aka twang with classical vowels). You'll hear that he rides it all the time, only reducing it for the very softest notes.

I think especially I'd like you to hear how he does the very long high C beginning about 3:18. The vowel is /e/ (like in your Journey song). Some tenors pronounce this vowel toward /E/ (eh), or some toward /A/ (ah as in Hat). This guy allows it to be brightened, toward /i/ (ee), almost if the syllable was 'Spee'. All tenors chose the particular shade that gives them the best alignment of their resonances, consistent with the overall tone quality of their entire voice. For Kraus, who had a very bright pingy voice throughout, this was the best choice. This pronunciation in his voice causes the second formant to tune to the 4th harmonic.

You can hear in the notes leading up to the top that he sets up this pronunciation on the note before, where it is more obvious that the vowel has been shaded. That note is the Ab.

FYI, while he was likely singing it during the filming, its probably been voice-over'd. However, this is what he sounds like in many later recordings, with a somewhat darker pronunciation showing up in his voice as he grew older.

[keoladonaghy]

I'd be very interested to hear Robert's take on that Gramm vocal, and if he would consider that "covering". From tone he's getting and the little visual cues it seems like it is to me, though obviously I'm still new to this. When he sings "waiting" I'm not hearing what Robert refers to as the splatty "ay" vowel, but more towards "eh", if not completely.

[ronws]

I'd be very interested to hear Robert's take on that Gramm vocal, and if he would consider that "covering". From tone he's getting and the little visual cues it seems like it is to me, though obviously I'm still new to this. When he sings "waiting" I'm not hearing what Robert refers to as the splatty "ay" vowel, but more towards "eh", if not completely.

And I also hear some twang, mostly on the upper end. As for muscularity, Lou Gramm was physically fit all over. Some singers, such Dee Snider, spend part of their pre-stage warm-up doing push-ups or some other physical exercise. So, I don't think what Gramms neck looks like is all that much of indication of how he is singing. He is sweating like a sauna and the reflection of light can play tricks on you.

[gno]

Bob - it sounds like you are doing it without cracking in the correct key. the example where you cracked is a half step above that. I think your ascending excersize really worked. It does sound a tad bit tense, but with practice it should become more comfortable and resonant. I would make sure you don't practice too much. If you are indeed working on developing the muscles I would put 1 or 2 days rest inbetween practices. But that's only if your muscles aren't there yet. If your muscles are fine then there is no need for the extended rests.

Sounds good - you are curbing up there. On the live Foreigner video at 1:47 - "waiting" he flipped out of curbing into more of a head voice. His original recordings are curbing all the way, but in this performance he didn't stay in curbing for the Db. But you ARE in curbing up there - that's not easy! Goood job!

[gno]

Bob,

Here is a recording of a classical tenor, Alfredo Kraus, that 'd like to recommend you to listen to. Its of the aria 'Che Gelida Manina', from Puccini's La Boheme, as incorporated into a scene in a movie made during the height of his popularity.

If you want, you can listen to the whole thing to get a sense of what his voice sounds like in his main range, especially the consistency of the brightness, his singer's formant (aka twang with classical vowels). You'll hear that he rides it all the time, only reducing it for the very softest notes.

I think especially I'd like you to hear how he does the very long high C beginning about 3:18. The vowel is /e/ (like in your Journey song). Some tenors pronounce this vowel toward /E/ (eh), or some toward /A/ (ah as in Hat). This guy allows it to be brightened, toward /i/ (ee), almost if the syllable was 'Spee'. All tenors chose the particular shade that gives them the best alignment of their resonances, consistent with the overall tone quality of their entire voice. For Kraus, who had a very bright pingy voice throughout, this was the best choice. This pronunciation in his voice causes the second formant to tune to the 4th harmonic.

You can hear in the notes leading up to the top that he sets up this pronunciation on the note before, where it is more obvious that the vowel has been shaded. That note is the Ab.

FYI, while he was likely singing it during the filming, its probably been voice-over'd. However, this is what he sounds like in many later recordings, with a somewhat darker pronunciation showing up in his voice as he grew older.

Steven - he sang this 1/2 step above the original key - so his high C was really a high C#. That's unusual. I usually hear this song - especially live versions a 1/2 step below the original key. Pavarotti's studio recording was the original key but all other opera and live concert versions I could find were 1/2 step below - high note B. I find this interesting. Why? Is it common to transpose whole operas, or just single arias to suit a singer?

[Steven Fraser]

Steven - he sang this 1/2 step above the original key - so his high C was really a high C#. That's unusual. I usually hear this song - especially live versions a 1/2 step below the original key. Pavarotti's studio recording was the original key but all other opera and live concert versions I could find were 1/2 step below - high note B. I find this interesting. Why? Is it common to transpose whole operas, or just single arias to suit a singer?

guitartrek: Yes, it is unusual to transpose up. The role of Rodolfo is usually done by a lyric tenor, and Kraus was lighter and higher than that. In tech-speak, his formants were naturally tuned a bit higher than those of the typical lyric tenor. By transposing up, the vowels of the aria aligned better with his harmonics.

IMO, since this was just a solo recording (and not in context of an entire opera) he just sang it in the key that worked best for him.

It is not common to transpose entire operas, but quite often done for an aria here and there. Some roles, such as Rosina in the Barber of Seville, can be done by mezzo or various types of soprano. Everybody sings the main aria (Una voce poco fa) in whatever key works best for them. I was in a college production of this particular opera. The friday night Rosina was a mezzo, the saturday night was a light high soprano. The orchestra learned both keys :-)

[Freddie]

in front of the mirror there were no vains and arteries bulging.

Dont get to hung up on this. Of course it is a sign of strain but I believe for these sounds(Lou Gramm etc) SOME muscle activity is needed...or is very difficult to TOTALLY be avoided.

I get it all the time but I dont care anymore...and Im quite happy with my stamina

Lou Gramm had it going alot to You dont always see it in the stage-lighting but I can most certainly tell you it is there!

[VideoHere]

Bob: First, a comment about the 'muscularity' you notice. The frontal neck muscles are part of the harness that manages head position, stability and motion. Watch some of the other videos and see how he moves. I bet you'll see he maintains good consistency of head-to-chest position, even when he is moving around. Its good for them to be strong, especially for the stage performer.

Second, thanks for your exercise posts. I think you are doing very well, already.

If you have a crack (as in the first recording), slow the exercise down, and pay especial attention to the production of the note RIGHT BEFORE the crack. Make sure it is free and well-done. Also, As an alternative exercise, sing the note pattern of the phrase slowly and entirely on /e/, the vowel of the top note. Repeat the exercise transposing upward (as you have been doing) until the top note is 3 half steps higher than the song requires. The key to making this work is to keep the twang going, and to discover how to produce the notes well without poking at them.

steve and everyone who replied thanks. i'm so releaved to know i'm getting there. i've never had a tougher set of notes than these.

steve, so it's not me just thnking this...this is tough stuff to do. but what specifically makes notes like these tough? are there pat answers?

[VideoHere]

Bob - it sounds like you are doing it without cracking in the correct key. the example where you cracked is a half step above that. I think your ascending excersize really worked. It does sound a tad bit tense, but with practice it should become more comfortable and resonant. I would make sure you don't practice too much. If you are indeed working on developing the muscles I would put 1 or 2 days rest inbetween practices. But that's only if your muscles aren't there yet. If your muscles are fine then there is no need for the extended rests.

Sounds good - you are curbing up there. On the live Foreigner video at 1:47 - "waiting" he flipped out of curbing into more of a head voice. His original recordings are curbing all the way, but in this performance he didn't stay in curbing for the Db. But you ARE in curbing up there - that's not easy! Goood job!

thanks for the reply. so it isn't easy up there...great, i needed confirmation of that.

here's a guy thats having an easier time of of it.

at 3:23 he's seems to be gliding through te "ive been waitng" part.

[VideoHere]

Right now, to me, I sound almost like two different singers when I sing above a certain pitch and my chest voice transitions to head. Perhaps it's more likely that I "feel" the chesty power releasing into the much less powerful sounding passagio area before I'm into my equally powerful but less full sounding head voice. The passagio notes I guess are where I need to work on to maintain the sound quality I so admire in some rock singers.

mike, i hear all too well what you're saying, but i'm confused.

weren't those powerful high notes in "love hursts" head voice notes? those really high notes you're saying were chest voice?