- Do you have a husky voice?
Maybe you would describe your singing voice
as raspy or rough.
Sometimes a husky sound is cool,
adding a great effect to your singing voice,
but if your voice is always husky, raspy or rough,
then your vocal health may well be at risk.
Today we're going to learn how to clean a husky voice,
making it crystal clear and healthy.
- [Technician] Sound check.
(feedback whining)
Check one, check two. (crowd cheering)
(upbeat, melodic music)
- G'day, there.
Welcome back to Voice Essentials,
the YouTube channel where everybody sings.
My name is Dr Dan, and I'm a Singing Voice Specialist.
I regularly work
with singers to rehabilitate their vocal health
when their voices have fallen into disrepair.
Unfortunately, there can be a stigma
surrounding vocal damage,
with some people incorrectly thinking
that singers who experience voice injuries
do so because their technique is poor,
or they're singing genres that wear and tear at the voice.
And while some singers do have poor technique,
and some vocal genres do cost the singer vocally
more than others,
it is naive to suggest that these things alone
contribute to vocal injury.
For example, a simple stifled sneeze
can result in a vocal fold hemorrhage.
With this being said,
we must recognize that there are some vocal practices
that expose the voice
to higher levels of wear and tear than others.
Take the husky voice for example.
A husky singing voice can provide a beautiful aesthetic
when applied to a jazz ballad or indie folk,
but we do need to acknowledge that a husky sound,
what some people call raspy or rough sound,
is a high-cost item on the vocal effects list.
Does this mean we shouldn't use it?
Absolutely not.
But what it does say is we need to use it wisely,
sparingly and intentionally.
This, in turn, means that we need to steer clear
of the habitually husky voice,
opting instead to develop a consistent clean tone.
Why?
Well that gruff edge that we hear
in the husky and raspy voice
is a disturbance in the breath stream,
often caused by either unbalanced vocal fold adduction
or supraglottic constriction.
One way to think about the wear and tear impact
of unbalanced vocal fold adduction
is to consider the wear and tear on an unbalanced tire.
When a car tire is misaligned,
not only does the tire wear unevenly,
reducing the life of the tire,
it also impacts on fuel economy and road handling.
So it is with the unbalanced vocal folds.
If the vocal folds are habitually being drawn together
for oscillation in a less than optimal way,
there can be a consequential
rubbing of the vocal fold's leading edge,
exposing the voice
to the development of pathologies like polyps and nodules.
And like the unbalanced tire,
the unbalanced voice typically experiences
a reduction in fuel economy,
what singing teachers call vocal stamina and road handling,
or in our case as singers, vocal agility and freedom.
As I just mentioned, the husky voice can also be
the result of supraglottic constriction.
Supraglottic is the vocal nerd's way of saying
above the vocal folds.
Supraglottic constriction generally refers
to tension and strain experienced in the laryngopharynx
and up into the pharynx.
I've got another video showing some great exercises
designed to help release supraglottic constriction,
so I'll leave a link in the description section below
if you'd like to check it out later.
Suffice to say, our aim as singers
is to always sing with vocal freedom,
allowing the voice
to resonate up and forward unhindered by tension.
I now wanna teach you a great exercise
designed to assist your vocal folds
to achieve better balance, but before I do,
please take a moment to hit the thumbs-up button
if you're enjoying today's video.
We're going to do two activities today.
The first is going to be a straw phonation exercise.
We'll be singing a single note into a straw
that sits in a bottle of water, just like this one.
Have a listen.
(hits a single piano key)
(humming) (blowing bubbles)
It is crucial when doing this exercise
that you place the hum into the lips
so that the sound is being directed into the straw only.
We also need to make sure
that there is no sound coming out of the nose
or escaping through the lips.
The only sound coming out should be going through the straw,
producing bubbles in the bottle.
Let's do a few of these together now.
I'm going to start this on F3
and then I'm gonna step it up in semitones.
(hits a single piano key)
(humming) (blowing bubbles)
(hits two piano keys consecutively)
(humming at a higher pitch) (blowing bubbles)
(hits two higher piano keys consecutively)
(humming at a higher pitch) (blowing bubbles)
One more.
(hits two higher piano keys consecutively)
(humming at a higher pitch) (blowing bubbles)
When done well,
this straw phonation activity assists the vocal folds
to come together in a much more balanced way.
It's important to not over-blow your air,
and equally make sure you don't under-blow the air also.
You're aiming for an even, consistent flow of air
and note, into the straw.
The bubbles in the bottle
will help you to manage the consistency of your flow.
The second activity is taken from my exercise CD,
Dr Dan's Voice Essentials.
Today we're using track four, Developing Twang.
I define twang as a clear focused resonance,
which is exactly what we're looking to produce today.
When we intentionally produce well-balanced twang,
we activate the aryepiglottic sphincter,
that singing teachers simply call the Twanger,
which in turn brings the vocal folds together
in a balanced, yet energetic manner.
Have a listen, and then we'll talk it through.
Starting on F3 again.
(hits a single piano key)
♪ Sing ♪
(humming NG) (hits several piano keys)
(hits several higher pitched piano keys)
♪ Sing ♪
(humming NG) (hits several piano keys)
(hits several higher pitched piano keys)
♪ Sing ♪
(humming NG) (hits several piano keys)
(hits several higher pitched piano keys)
♪ Sing ♪
(humming NG) (hits several piano keys)
(hits several higher pitched piano keys)
♪ One more ♪
♪ Sing ♪
(humming NG) (hits several piano keys)
Again if you don't have a keyboard at home
you can always download my exercise CD track
from the link in the description section below.
Notice, I'm using an NG sound in the exercise.
The NG engages the twanger
and draws the vocal folds together for balanced phonation.
It is important once again
that you get the breath pressure just right.
Too much air and the voice will constrict.
Too little and the vocal folds won't adduct cleanly
leaving you with a breathy sound,
which in this case is not ideal.
Neither of these activities
is the silver bullet to cleaning the husky voice,
but they will go a long way
towards helping to strengthen and balance
your vocal fold adduction.
Before you go, allow me to once again state
that there is nothing wrong
with choosing to singing with a husky, raspy
or rough vocal quality,
just make sure that it remains a choice
and doesn't become a habit.
I hope you've enjoyed today's video.
Leave any questions and comments below and as always,
if you haven't already,
take a moment to subscribe for weekly learn to sing videos
just like this one.
I hope to see you again soon.
I'm Dr Dan, sing well.