How does on aquire a larger singing range?

Question

Before any of you say get a vocal teacher, I just want to know how the body does it. Say that you only have a 2 octave range and you want to go an octave higher. Do you get the higher octave by gradually strecthing the cords to hit the notes (until they stretch far enough to get the note and you get muscel-memory), or is it all about breath support and your vocal cords are already capable of hitting the notes? I hope this isn't confusing.

Answer 1

You do not "stretch" the vocal cords. You manipulate them. It is mostly about breath control and openness in the throat area. You must also avoid thickening your vocal cords in any way, this leads to the lessening of elasticity and therefore of range.

Answer 2

Yes, it IS about breath support and exercises to PROPERLY PLACE the vocal sound, working slowly to increase that range. Of course, voice lessons are the answer, because a teacher or vocal coach can help you to "shift gears" as you move over a wide range of notes. It's about practicing scales, particularly ones that span the gap between the "chest" and "head" voice. Whatever you do, DON'T push on those vocal cords ---you could wind up with vocal nodules and not be able to sing at all. There are books and websites on increasing your vocal range. I've listed a few sites below:

Answer 3

BOTH THE VOCAL CORDS AND THE BREATHING PATTERN WORK ALONG TO BRING WONDERFUL RANGES OF VOICE.YOU HAVE TO GET BOTH BALANCED AND ONE MORE THING THAT TRUELY CONTROLS SINGING IS THE RELAXED MODE OF VOCAL CORDS.THE MORE YOU KEEP THEM RELAXED YOU CAN ACHIEVE MORE TONES HIGH OR LOW.IF YOU BEGIN WITH MUCH CONTRACTED CORDS THEY WONT LET YOU GET THE PITCH YOU NEED.

Answer 4

i think the vocal cords can be treated like muscles. the more you work them (carefully), the more they can take. i've heard that we have two sets of cords, for higher and lower registers, but that it takes training to learn to control them both.