let me introduce you to powerful voice strengthening exercises for singers
improve vocal cord closure and vocal power smooth transitions between registers extend
your vocal range and learn how to sing without straining sounds good let's start
hi and welcome if we haven't met yet I am Katrina speech-language pathologist from how to improve
singing and here on this channel I share tips on how to use your voice in a healthy and efficient
way so if you don't want to miss any of my future videos consider subscribing to this channel and
hitting that Bell notification icon so you want to know how to strengthen vocal chords without
straining you may be surprised what I am going to tell you in this video the voice exercises to
strengthen vocal chords are drumroll please draw exercises have you heard about straw exercises if
not no problem I am going to give you some basic information so that you can start improving your
voice today straw exercises or straw for nation have many benefits for a singing voice here are
some examples straw exercises are excellent vocal cord closure exercises so you may use
them to eliminate unwanted breath Ernest straw exercises encourage legato or smooth singing
because they require a steady air flow during straw exercises your vocal cords are aligned
well therefore these vocal chord exercises help erase breaks in voice my favorite benefit is
sound production without muscular and vocal effort you don't need to press or strain your
muscles to sing therefore these exercises are wonderful for strained vocal cords but they are
very useful for singer who wants to learn how to not strain your voice when singing now you
may be asking oh is this possible well here is the short answer straw exercises are so called
as opt exercises or semi occluded vocal tract exercises these are exercises during which the
a partial closure or narrowing in the vocal tract when you produce sounds with an open mouth without
narrowing the vocal cords have to resist the pressure that is created below them but if you
create narrowing in the vocal tract in the case of straw exercises the narrowing is at the lips
back pressure is created there's back pressure above the vocal cords then encourages better
vocal cord position and vocal cord closure sounds complicated but it really is not if you push too
much air through the vocal cords two things can happen the vocal cords either cannot resist the
pressure and they leak air and you will sound breathy or the vocal cords resist this pressure
by tightening which results in pressed for nation and vocal strain so straw exercises are a great
tool for singers who use either too much or too little air when singing so what do you need for
this exercise a straw or several straws of different ways I would encourage you to use
fully biodegradable environment-friendly straws made of paper straw or bamboo or you can also
use reusable straws made of metal glass or silicon I also saw singers using bucatini pasta which is
spaghetti like pasta with a hole running through the middle I personally use straws made out of
actual straw and because they are completely natural they already come with different ways
if this is your first time doing straw exercises then experiment with different ways of straws the
smaller the diameter the more challenging task because the back pressure created by this thin
straw will be larger so pause this video and go and find yourself a straw I'll wait right here
good you are back now let me show you a very basic straw exercise and if you stay until the end I
will tell you where to get more straw exercises put the straw in your mouth and make a good feel
of with your lips around the straw don't let the air escape through the nose or mouth and if you
are not sure if air is escaping through your nose you can plug it and vocalize in this way
use the bell ooh one vocalizing during straw exercises this vowel will encourage neutral
position of the larynx because the sound with a straw will never be as loud as the sound with
an open mouth focus on the sensations where do you feel the vibrations can you hear and feel
the airflow through the straw how much air do you need can you feel the back pressure
how does it feel now inhale through the nose and then phonate through the mouth and straw
choose a page in your comfortable speaking range and sustain the sound notice that you
will be using much less air than during vocal exercises with an open mouth put
a hand in front of this draw and feel the air coming out if you don't feel the air you are
cutting it off at the level of the vocal cords also make sure that the air is not
escaping through the nose if it does pinch your nose and sustain the sound in this way
try to make the sound as a resonant as possible
feel the vibrations in your lips in your soft palate in the straw
this is a very basic exercise but you can use straws for four nating
on any pitch high or low or for practicing scales and arpeggios
or even for practicing your repertoire especially challenging parts of your songs
now if you want more straw exercises click this link to learn more straw for nation doesn't sound
like much but believe me it's a wonderful tool used in speech therapy for strengthening fragile
voices and nowadays straw exercises are becoming more and more popular among voice teachers and
singers for building healthy and strong voices and the reason is simple they really work and
that is all for now if you like this video click the like button and share it with your friends and
of course don't forget to check out my other videos right here below I will see you soon