Is anyone familiar to this sensation?

[Freddie]

I can sing heavily for a while say 40 minutes and still feel that I have a lot to give. But if I let my voice cool down afterwards I cant sing with the same twang and intensity again after this break say 30-40 minutes without singing.

Is this usual?

[wooddog]

Do you mean you can't find the same vocal for the rest of the night or just shortly after your break?

[ronws]

Most any band, if they play two sets, play one at about 45 minutes. Take a 20 minute break to drink water, go to the bathroom, relax, whatever. A headliner act may play for 1.5 hours to 2 hours, but they will sometimes have an instrumental extended passage somewhere in the middle of the show. This allows other band members to get some attention and the singer can rest. Also, the performance is the only strenuous thing they are going to do that day and they save themselves up for it. In fact, many a singer doesn't do interviews before the show and it's not because they are being rude or being "diva"-ish. It is to save the freshness for the show. Muscles in the throat are like any muscles you have elsewhere. You can train them and work them just fine but even an athlete needs a breather, now and then. And does light stretches all through out to keep the muscles limber and relaxed.

Also, as time goes on, the muscles "wear in" to what is going on. The way to avoid this dichotomy is to warm-up just before the performance, so that your voice is even through-out.

I'll go you one further. It can happen within the same song. I was recording "Immigrant Song." If the waveform analysis in Audacity software is to be believed, when I sing the banshee wail at the beginning, I'm singing it slightly different than I do with the repitition of the wail later in the song. Sound-wise, I can't hear the difference but is apparent in the waveform guides for that track.

Or, for whatever reason, you have gotten tired. And 30 minutes of rest is not the same as 24 hours of rest. Etc. Also, are you playing in clubs where there is a lot of dust, or smoking, or other things in the air? These things could have an effect on you. When you come in, you are fresh, free of the inhalants. But exposure over time changes the sound.

[gno]

Freddie - I beleive I can identify with what you are saying. It seems you might be in a sort of muscle tearing / building mode (like you were doing a weightlifting workout) which may be totally healthy. But after the workout you need recouperation time. I have been in that place before. Usually this isn't the case with me - I can sing for a long time with no issues like this because I have sufficient endurance to withstand hours of singing without getting into muscle tearing.

However - I'll get this condition if I'm doing something new or different. This happened yesterday with me. I usually sing in heavy full voice, but was doing a recording for a producer that required a lighter "off the voice" technique. I don't practice this style - and I hardly ever sing this style. After about a 40 minute recording session, , I felt fine, and I had good control during recording. But an hour later I tried singing this song again - I lost some control and was "tight". I think after recouperation (a good nights rest) I should be fine. Today I expect even better control and endurance in this style.

[Freddie]

guitartrek - It seems like you nailed the symptoms right there! And ive been experementing alot with different soundcolors lately as you may hear in my thread back in the review section.

Guess it will improve with time...not that it is this huge problem for me right now I mean...when I sing i usually sing effective for say an hour and then wait for the tissue to recouperate as you put it. I seldom have to sing 30 minutes here and 30 minutes there.

[akarawd]

I agree with guitartrek. One thing I do nowadays is spend the interval time warming down my voice and then building it up again.

3 months ago we did 40mins rehearsals stopped for 30mins while I did as mentioned above and then did the whole set again with absolutely no problem whatsoever.

[Steven Fraser]

I agree with guitartrek. One thing I do nowadays is spend the interval time warming down my voice and then building it up again.

3 months ago we did 40mins rehearsals stopped for 30mins while I did as mentioned above and then did the whole set again with absolutely no problem whatsoever.

akarawd & all: Yup. What you do vocally during the break can have a big effect. 30 mins is time enough for a voice to lose the fine-tune of coordination, especially if the person has been talking during the break. The warmdown and re-warmup are very good things to do, IMO.

[VideoHere]

akarawd & all: Yup. What you do vocally during the break can have a big effect. 30 mins is time enough for a voice to lose the fine-tune of coordination, especially if the person has been talking during the break. The warmdown and re-warmup are very good things to do, IMO.

i find as i get older, i warmup...and re-warmup.....and re-re-warmup.....and re-re-re-warmup!!! (lol!!!)

[Daniel155]

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[Reid355]

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[akarawd]

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Daniel155

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Reid355

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