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Whether you are performing in summer stock theater, working a vocally demanding Shakespeare festival or keeping up with a busy audition schedule, your voice is the center of your craft. Your voice must be in top shape or you run the risk of losing a job or even more concerning – vocal injury. Sometimes the information on vocal care can be contradictory and confusing. Below are five tips that are proven to work and backed by research.
When you speak or sing, the vocal folds close against each other and then open to create the sound wave of your voice. That constant closing and opening (which can happen hundreds of times per second) means that the tissues of the vocal folds are impacting hundreds of thousands of times every day. In order for those tissues to function well and recover from all that use, they need to be fully hydrated.
There’s a lot of differing opinions about how much water to drink and what type of water is the best, but here’s a simple way to tell if you’re getting enough hydration – your urine should be pale yellow or clear throughout the day. Drink small amounts of water constantly throughout the day to ensure that your body has a chance to absorb the fluids you take in. Yes, you will have to take a few more bathroom breaks, but your voice will thank you!
Like all the other tissues in your body, your vocal folds, larynx, tongue, etc, all need for you to enjoy some prolonged, deep sleep in order to recover from the work your voice does all day long. Not only does sleep allow those muscles to recover, but sleep also allows your brain to organize or memorize any new co-ordinations you are trying to build in your voice. So “sleep on it” is good advice for multiple reasons!
So it seems that Mom was right, at least when it comes to good vocal health. Since your voice is another part of your amazing human body, it is directly affected by what you put into that body. No need to change your diet drastically, but knowing how food, drink or medicine impacts your voice can help you make smart choices that support your vocal health. Get to know your body’s allergies. There are simple blood or skin tests that an allergist can run to see if you have an allergy to milk, egg, gluten, etc. Eating a food that you are allergic to may cause excess mucous and inflammation which can directly affect your voice.
Peppermint tends to dehydrate, as do alcoholic drinks and caffeine. You don’t need to give up your morning coffee, but be aware that too much caffeine intake coupled with heavy voice use may cause vocal fatigue and strain.
Some types of pain killers that contain NSAIDs (you can search for a list of pain killers with NSAIDs) can leave singers more prone to vocal injury. For pain relief during heavy vocal use, turn to acetaminophen pain killers first.
If your voice feels tired or sounds raspy or you’ve lost some vocal range, your voice is telling you that it is stressed and needs a break. Your voice doesn’t “cry wolf”, so listen to what your voice is telling you. Vocal rest, hydration, sleep, therapeutic exercises, a visit to your Speech Language Pathologist or your Otolaryngologist may be just what your voice is crying out for. The sooner you listen and act quickly, the better your chances are for a speedy and full vocal recovery.
Most singers and professional voice users know the importance of a good vocal warm-up routine. Warm-ups are indispensable! However, cooling the voice down after significant use is overlooked by most performers. When you use your voice for extended periods of time or use extreme co-ordinations (for example, belting, projecting, singing in the limits of your range) the tissues of the larynx, throat and jaw can become tight and stressed.
By cooling down with gentle, low volume exercises you can help all those tissues relax and reset to their natural resting position.
When you help these tissues relax and reset, they can recover more quickly and be at peak performance the next time you are on stage.
Give your voice a little TLC and your voice is more likely to be at its very best when you need it most!
Need more advice?
Read Diet & Health or Maintaining Your Health In Live Entertainment
Growing up in a musical, performance oriented family, Camiah has spent much of her life in entertainment. After studying dance at Brigham Young University for a few years, she relocated to Georgia in 1996. Camiah has been teaching music in the Atlanta area for over 22 years. She has directed small orchestras, children's choirs, church choirs, created holiday performances, and teaches private voice lessons as well. Camiah is a certified instructor for Vocology in Practice (ViP) and International Voice Teachers of Mix (IVTOM). She is also a Mentor Teacher for both ViP and IVTOM, training and assisting other great voice teacher she to reach their full potential. As a voting member of Pan American Vocology Association, Camiah enjoys learning about cutting edge research, science and health standards from today's leading vocal scientists and doctors. She has helped many singers recover from vocal injury and surgery and assisted them as they re-enter their professional careers. Camiah has served as the Director of Musical Theatre for the VocalizeU Artist Intensive and Teacher Training in L.A., where she worked with the top professionals of the music industry and stunningly talented new artists. She also teaches voice for The Aurora Theater in Lawrenceville Georgia. Currently she teaches at Performer's Warehouse, a local performing arts school dedicated to preparing students for college auditions. Camiah is proud to have published multiple articles for ViP, IVTOM, The Nakedness Vocalist and iSing Magazine. Camiah has professional clients on Broadway, national tours and regional theaters. Her clients have been accepted to musical theater programs at prestigious universities such as Boston Conservatory, CCM, CMU, Webster, Syracuse, Texas State, Oklahoma University, BYU and Wright State. In addition to her love of music, Camiah enjoys time on stage where she recently played the female lead, "Connie Lou" in the southern tour of The Forgotten Carols in 2013 and 2015.
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