Raise the Soft Palate for Better Vocal Tone – Free Singing Tips A2Z

Creating a larger space inside your mouth by raising the soft palate, or fleshy part of the back of our throat, helps achieve a deeper more well rounded singing tone. One way to achieve this is to think of biting into a large apple. At SingSmart™ we like to call this APPLE AH. To practice, pretend you are about to bite into an imaginary apple and sing AH. A great way to practice this exercise is a vocal siren. Remember, it takes repetition of this action to retrain those muscles to hold that position so do this on a regular […] Read More

ENERGY, not effort – SingSmart, Not Hard.

ENERGY not effort is one of the most confusing concepts in singing. Energy in the tone is what we want and Effort is something we want to desperately to avoid. Energy is created naturally when our vocal instrument is in balance, and our body is involved in the singing process. It feels good. It feels easy. Sometimes it occurs naturally and other times we may have to make adjustments. Effort usually occurs when singers use their throat muscles/membranes and vocal cords improperly to create volume. We should actually feel and see very little happening in our throat area. There are […] Read More

Unify Your Vowels

Do you sing one word on a specific note easily, but another word on the same pitch seems much harder? You could probably use some practice and training on unifying your vowels. The ability to unify your vowels and make them sound as if they come from one instrument, having about the same high and low frequencies and blended with no cracks or breaks is one skill that separates the accomplished singer from an amateur. For ultimate training on all aspects singing, check out Singing Is Easy, Basic Foundation Series. Jaw tension can also cause issues with vowel unification.  Jaw […] Read More

Jumping Jacks can Save the Day

There are many reasons why singers might not have breath control at a performance. Whether you suffer stage fright, haven’t been diligent with your exercise routine or been sedentary that particular day, getting your vocal performance power source to work at it’s very best sometimes requires a kick-start: a quick set of Jumping Jacks can do just that. You see, it isn’t always about the singer’s ability to breathe properly for singing and sometimes it doesn’t come down to breathing technique at all…sometimes you just need to get your heart pumping to really take those deep breaths required to sing […] Read More