How much can you develop your voice?

Question

I was just reading some biographies of world-known singers and many of them (if not most) seem to have started their careers very young, winning various talent competitions. On the other hand, I know singers who have been "shower performers" till their mid 20s or even 40s. I would like to know how far one can - by practising the technique - develop one's own voice? How much can one improve, taken that one already has "ear for music", but the voice might not yet have any volume, power or beautiful tone? Is it possible to become a (liked :) singer, even if the starting point is no promising?

Answer 1

You can develope your voice as much as you can depending on the effort and practice you do.

Try the following exercises to first analyze your voice’s strengths and weaknesses. Then continue to practice these exercises to develop and expand the voice. And very soon, you’ll have a voice that serves you – and your ideas – well.

RELAXATION

These exercises will help relax the body and relieve tension in the neck, important first steps in the vocal production process.

From a standing position, roll down slowly and back up, vertebra by vertebra.
Tense head back slightly, feeling the tension in the neck. Release the tension and feel the difference.
Roll the shoulders, forward and backward.
Roll the head around in a circle, feeling the stretch in the neck. Let the mouth drop open when the head rolls to the back.
Fill the lungs with air and hiss softly for 60 seconds while revolving the head and shrugging the shoulders.
WARM-UPS

Just as an athlete warms up the muscles before a workout or game, you must warm up your vocal muscles so that you don’t injure your throat.

Do a full-body yawn – open mouth, open eyes wide, stretch arms over head.
Make the face as small and pinched as possible - close the eyes, purse the lips, and frown. Then, make it as large as you can – open wide the eyes and mouth, lift the forehead.
Gently grab the larynx and move it from side to side. Keep the jaw slack – the larynx should feel quite moveable.
Warm up the jaw by saying “mah” or “yah” several times.
Warm up the tip of the tongue with “lah” or “tah”, keeping the jaw still as you speak.
Warm up the back of the tongue with “ah-ee”. Keep the jaw still and force the back of the tongue to arch high on “ee”.
BREATH SUPPORT

(excerpt from It’s Your Move: Dealing Yourself the Best Cards in Life and Work, by Cyndi Maxey and Jill Bremer, Financial Times Prentice Hall, 2004)

Abdominal breathing, also called diaphragmatic breathing, promotes relaxation and blood flow, detoxifies the inner organs, and supports the voice. The diaphragm is shaped like an upside-down bowl and acts as a partition between the heart and lungs above and all of the other internal organs below. When you inhale and the lungs fill with air, the diaphragm is forced downward by the lungs and the stomach expands. As you exhale, the lungs empty, the diaphragm relaxes back to its dome-like shape, and the stomach contracts. The more the diaphragm can move, the more the lungs can expand, bring in more oxygen, and release more carbon dioxide. You automatically breathe from the abdomen when you lay on your back, and usually when you’re seated, although this is not automatically deep breathing. Deep breathing takes advantage of the fact that the lungs are larger at the bottom.

Pant like a dog, keeping your shoulders still. Notice how your stomach bounces in and out.
Lie on your back and place a book on your stomach. Watch it rise and fall as you breathe.
Sitting in a chair, lean all the way over so that the chest is on the lap. Let your arms hang down to the side. Breathe in and out several times deeply and slowly, noting where the expansion is.
Stand or sit with your hands on your waist and breathe in through the nose. Sigh out through an open mouth and throat. Let the stomach cave in as you blow out every ounce of air. Wait until you feel you must breathe, then inhale slowly feeling the lungs filling deep down. Do not let the upper chest move.
Breathe in, then exhale quickly, as though you were punched in the stomach. Inhale, taking five, short quick gasps through an open mouth to fill the lungs completely. Feel the stomach grow bigger and bigger with each inhalation. Then exhale, blowing out over the course of five short exhalations. Repeat.
Stand facing a partner. Lean towards him with his fist pushing into your stomach. Say “ho, ho, ho”. With each “ho”, your stomach should push you away off and away from the fist.
RESONANCE

A resonant voice has a rich, pleasing sound. There are three areas where the voice can resonate: nose, mouth, throat. The goal for most voices is to have little nasality, utilizing primarily the mouth and throat cavities.

Say “Mama made Mary come home”. Repeat holding the nose – feel the resonance in the nose.
Say “Alone, alone, all all alone. Alone on a wide, wide sea”. Repeat, opening the mouth and throat to feel the resonance in the oral cavities.
Take a deep breath with the mouth loosely open. Sigh out on a stream of vibrations – “huh”.
Repeat the above exercise, closing the lips around “huh” to a hum. Try starting from a comfortable high note, moving slowly down the scale.
PITCH

A voice with highs and lows is more pleasant to listen to than one that is monotone. Try these exercises to expand the range of your voice.

Imitate a siren, softly on “oo” or “ah”, moving from low to high and low again.
Sing a descending five-note scale, moving from high to low on “huh”.
TONE

These exercises will help to develop your voice’s inflection and communicate the emotion of your message.

Say “I’d love to” eight different ways, suggesting the following emotions: anger, fear, doubt, determination, sarcasm, disgust, joy, pity, curiosity, indifference, regret.
Say “oh” suggesting each of these meanings: mild surprise, great surprise, polite interest, indifference, disappointment, pity, disgust, sarcasm.
Say “She saw me”, emphasizing alternately “she”, “saw”, and “me.” Suggest the following emotions: pleased surprise, horrified surprise, sarcasm.
ARTICULATION

When you articulate, your message becomes clear and understandable. The following exercises will develop the articulation mechanisms: lips, teeth, and tongue. Exaggerate the lips, teeth, and tongue as you say them.

“Bibbity-bobbity, Bibbity-bobbity, Bibbity-bobbity, boo.” “Tickety-tackety, Tickety-tackety, Tickety-tackety, too.”
“Ah-ee, ah-ee, ah-ee.”
“Lemon liniment.”
“A noisy noise annoys an oyster.”
“Round and round the rugged rock, the ragged rascal ran.”
“Strange strategic statistics.”
“Red leather, yellow leather.”
“Jump Charley.”

Answer 2

As a vocalist for the past 15 years, the best advice that I can offer is to continue to learn. Your voice can always improve if you train correctly. Everyone has limits, and the thing to remember is comfort. You want to be at a place where even the most difficult note is easy to execute. Think of it this way, there are people in excellent physical shape...let's take Stallone for example. He's 60 years old, and is in better shape than most people half his age. Then there are "Body Builders", people who are so muscular they can't wear a business suit. They keep getting bigger instead of maintaining a COMFORTABLE size. In the vocal world, I prefer longevity over a 10 year power burnout.

Answer 3

bypass and get your voiced assessed from a vocal instructor i.e to locate what type of voice you've (baritone, alto and so on). actually have some making a music training. making a music instructors provide you with homework/scales and so on. remember to coach thousands. seem, once you've an rather large organic voice you are able to improve for truly a lengthy time period by using your self. notwithstanding, at last, you'll favor some education

Answer 4

you have to beat least a Little bit talented to become a singer but you can develop your voice if have smth to develop/improve :):)

Answer 5

talk loud all the time