All Things Vocal Blog & Podcast by Judy Rodman: November 2017

Training & insights for stage and studio singers, speakers, vocal coaches and producers from professional vocal coach and author of "Power, Path & Performance" vocal training method. Download All Things Vocal podcast on your fav app!

Monday, November 20, 2017

Laryngitis scare: How to get your voice back - UPDATED


NOTE: The audio player should appear below, if not, please click on the title of this post and go online to hear. 
Available also on iTunes , Google Play, TuneIn Radio, Android apps

There's a condition in every singer's life when the scare sets in... it's called "Laryngitis". You feel it coming on... the dreaded bug that causes your vocal cords to swell...you lose your voice... then you get "well" but when you try to sing it's like you can't get it back! AAAAHHHH!!!! What can you do???

Here is my experience with successfully getting the voice back from laryngitis:

First... some things to do while your larynx is red and inflamed:

  • Voice rest (partial or complete)is very wise. When you must speak, don't whisper, which will cause more dehydration of your vocal cords. Instead, use clear bell-like tones. Better yet, write what you want to say on a pad. Silence is golden. 
  • Use a humidifier. If you use a warm one, you can put it right up to your face. If you use a cold air one, you must be careful NOT to aim it at your face or sleep with the door closed (think about how leaving a window open with cold night air would leave you sounding).
  • Drink copious amounts of water and watery drinks such as hot herbal teas like sage, ginger & lemon tea, the Master Tonic, lemon-honey-ceyenne pepper-in-water, dilute pineapple juice.
  • For a bad cough, try homemade honey & onion cough syrup. The last time I came down with viral laryngitis with terrible dry hacking cough, my mother reminded me of this from my childhood. It worked better to quell the coughing fits than anything else I tried! Caution: don't make it with honey for very young children. Use sugar instead.

Then, after the active infection causing the swelling is gone, and it doesn't hurt to talk:

  • Slowly and carefully do some vocal exercises to pump the interstitial fluid out of the tissues. [NOTE: Look at the bottom of this post for a free download of vocal recovery exercises I've added to this updated post. You are most welcome:)] 
  • Some of the exercises you'll find helpful: Lip trills, bubbles, siren sounds, easy scales... start in the middle of your range and work outward. Slowly expand, but DO NOT stretch your range where it hurts! As the swelling goes down, the voice comes back, and more vigorous vocalizing and stretching can be used to build back the strength and flexibility of the instrument. Be careful to avoid over-lifting the larynx for high notes.
  • When healing after a bad case of laryngitis, it's common to become "guarded" when using the recently wounded voice. Tension invariably and counterproductively builds as a singer tries to protect the cords. This is why it might be a good idea for you to see a trusted vocal coach in person, because you probably don't even realize the tension you could be holding in neck, shoulders, jaw, etc. Of course, if the laryngitis is not from a virus but from mis-use of your voice, a vocal coach is definitely the right way to go.
  • When you first begin vocalizing after healing, you might find yourself with a feeling of light hoarseness I call "the helium effect". In my experience, AS LONG AS YOU ARE NOT APPLYING TOO MUCH PRESSURE AT YOUR THROAT, this effect goes away after about 3 or 4 days. It's important that this effect not be because you are applying incorrect breath pressure or having your throat channel tight or constricted. NOTE: this "helium effect" is not a feeling of throat strain. It's just that you temporarily lose a bit of your low end.
  • To help you balance breath support and breath control, and to help you open your throat, I recommend "wall work". Stand with your back to the wall, head and heel against the wall. Keeping your chin flexibly level and putting your hands up about chest level so they aren't ribcage anchors, sing an easy song. Squeeze your butt for power so as to cause your chest to expand.
WARNING: If your laryngitis does not go away after a reasonable period of time and of proper vocal exercises, see a doctor. Chronic laryngitis can be a sign of cancer or of vocal polyps, nodes, etc. You need medical help to get to the bottom of chronic laryngitis, which could be life-threatening.

Have a Question? 

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posted by Unknown @ 7:20 AM   205 Comments

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Why Singing Without Playing Your Instrument Feels So Weird

Singing sans your instrument can be excruciating!
NOTE: The audio player should appear below, if not, please click on the title of this post and go online to hear. 
Available also on iTunes , Google Play, TuneIn Radio, Android apps


People who usually sing while playing guitar, bass, keyboards, drums or other instrument often find it weird and frustratingly difficult to sing as well without playing. The reasons can be psychological and physical.

You can find yourself lost without your instrument on the live stage and in the recording studio:
  • Live, maybe you want to get out from behind your instrument for at least a song or two for a more direct and intimate connection to your audience, or just to change the optics and the energy of the show. 
  • In the studio, it's usually wise to do vocals as a controllable overdub instead of simultaneously singing and playing. 
Let me give you an interesting example. When I first moved to Nashville many years ago, I was sang a lot of background vocals in what they called "simul-sessions". These sessions were where the musicians, background vocalists and lead singers recorded together at the same time. It was a lot like live TV... if you messed up, it was painfully and publicly obvious and made others have to do-over as well, so there was great incentive (some might say stress) to get your part right the first time!

Anyway, this session was for none other than Johnny Cash. As we prepared to record, I remember that I watched a studio tech take the strings off his guitar and give it to him to hold while he was singing. His wise and legendary producer (Snake Reynolds) had noticed he sang better when attached to his guitar! At the time I wondered why that mattered; now I understand.

PLEASE NOTE: The information in this post is only for those who are most comfortable singing and playing, and feel that's where they sing the best. It's not for those...

  • who are NOT confident playing at the same time as singing.
  • who play with bad, crunched posture.
  • who actually DON'T have good enough vocal technique to sing well while playing.

Psychological issues of singing without playing

When your brain learns to do something, it programs as much of the action into automatic as it can in order to accomplish the goal much more efficiently, easier and faster. The brain literally lays down myelin sheath fiber highways around the neural synapse pathways it wants to memorize. If you change a factor, especially as significant as what the side limbs of your body are doing, it can throw the auto button back to manual! Then you start thinking about the "how" instead of the "what" that you are communicating.

The result can be frozen or guarded stance, missing body & facial language, numbness and other performance fails. Vocal issues and limitations creep in, sabotaging your confidence even more. There's no way your voice can do it's best when your brain is occupied with so much conscious thinking.

Physical issues of singing without playing

When your hands aren't playing, they don't know what to do and tend to fall like dead weight. This makes your arms into 'ribcage anchors'. Then the dropped, tight ribcage allows too much slack and uncontrolled movement in the dome of the diaphragm. Think of this as the kiss of death to breath control!

Without the familiar instrument at your hands to brace against, your head tends to drift forward. This again adds to the collapse of the ribcage, and also the tightening of the throat. Then the chin starts coming up and forward to hit notes which had been easy when you were playing simultaneously. Think of this as the kiss of death to tone, range, pitch ... and say hello to vocal strain!

What you can do

There are some ninja tricks that can help you sing as well - if not better - without your instrument! Please understand that every singer is unique. You may not be aware of what you're really doing and it's best to work with a coach who can diagnose your particular issues and fine tune these tactics for you. That said, here are 3 suggestions:

1. Check your posture

Stand flexibly tall instead of crouched forward. Balance your head over your heels intstead of your toes. Make sure the upper curve of your back is flexibly straight instead of pronounced. On stage, use body language of the magnet instead of the blowhard (interesting term isn't it?). In the studio, know how to position yourself at the mic so you are flexibly tall.

2. Use your hands

As I mentioned, the position and action of your hands affects your breath control, and breath control creates vocal control. If on stage you have a mic or mic stand in your hand, learn to use your grip to widen your ribcage. Mostly keep the butt end of the mic 45 degrees down, and the head of the mic right at your mouth. Squeeze it - not continually, just as you articulate your lyrics. Done correctly, this should create a pulling sensation that makes you tall and wide, opening your throat and ribcage. Just don't pull it away from your mouth much.  If singing in the studio, hold a backscratcher or the equivalent stick-shaped object between your palms, which should replicate the ribcage widening that happens when you play your instrument. Gently squeeze the stick between your palms to open your ribcage and brace your head back over your spine.

3. Focus on the point of the spear... the message

Here's where not having an instrument can help you. If you don't have to worry about playing the right chords, and you use these other ninja tricks so your voice feels controlled and strong, you can focus your mind even better onto the message and the person to whom you're singing.

Why I keep giving away the farm

I'd like to take a moment today and tell you why I create All Things Vocal blog and podcast. I put so much into it I've been told by many people that I 'give away the farm'. Actually, they are right... if you can't afford professional vocal training at all (keeping in mind I have a course that's just $19.95) then it is my purposeful intention that you can improve your vocal ability for free from the information you read and hear on All Things Vocal. You can help by sharing it with others. You can sign up for my newsletter at judyrodman.com to get monthly blog updates so you don't miss one!

However, there's so much more I can help you with. If your voice is important to you, and you want to go farther with more proven techniques, look into my training courses and/or take one-on-one singing or speaking lessons with me in person or online. The improvement you'll experience is fast... even one lesson can jump-start you to your next level of ability.

Your questions, comments and suggestions are always welcome! Do you play and sing? What's your experience with/without your instrument?

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posted by Judy Rodman @ 7:10 AM   2 Comments