Exercises I use in the rehabilitation of damaged voices

Working with people who have had or continue to have Voice Damage is tricky because they are so fearful about using their voices, and rightly so. This fear creates inhibitions that must be overcome by learning healthy technique. I start by teaching one of the three essential elements of singing until it is mastered to a certain degree before I add the second element and when it is mastered to a certain degree, I see if the student is able to coordinate both functions simultaneously. Only then do I add the third element.

When it’s mastered, I see if the student can now coordinate three functions at the same time. It is necessary for the student to learn to divide her attention among several apparently opposite functions. He needs to be able to use a variety of muscle groups simultaneously and in different ways, even the other way around. All these muscle groups should not behave in the same way due to the action of the sympathetic muscles. These muscle groups must perform their functions very differently, and a good degree of mastery over a muscle group is needed before correct work can become a good habit, that is, done without much thought. Only when the function is relatively easy to perform is it possible to divide attention between another muscle group or function, and so on.

Exercises I use

1. I start working with just my breath. I develop the diaphragm with special exercises called pulsations. The pulsations are the first and most important element to master. The pulsations teach respiratory support in the most efficient and practical way. After that, I show the student how to use the breath to sing. (still no sound)

2. Next, I have the student apply the principles learned using a whispered vowel in which air is directed over the upper inner jaw or hard paddle using an H to instigate airflow and using only the whispered vowel. Until the student can coordinate both the diaphragm and forward air projection, I use a whispered vowel so there is no vocal effort.

3. Then I have the student apply everything learned in the first two stages, but with a spoken vowel, but using the letter H to encourage airflow.

4. I then show the student how to close the vocal cords with a special exercise I have developed for that purpose and only then can he pronounce the vowels (H in front) while 1. coordinating the flow of breath into the mask forward , WITH: 2. action of a diaphragm, AND: 3. closure of vocal cords.

When these elements become second nature to the student or patient, and he/she is able, over time, to resonate the voice on the higher resonators, while the flexible diaphragm acts as a motor for the airflow, then it is possible to produce the voice effortlessly.