Did you know? What if I told you that there are only a few very basic vocal ‘tools’ that you need to know about which will serve you well in every singing situation? Would you believe me? A good vocal sound is nearly always reliant on a firm grasp and knowledge of the basics. Simply explained in my free PDF companion guide to this article: Need Help with Singing Basics. A simple fact Getting to grips with or making improvements to your singing and the methods to achieve progress are all far easier and more accessible than you think. Consider this: we all have a speaking voice an ..read more

I know that you love to sing, because you're reading this post. You may belong (or have done in the past) to choirs and small ensemble singing groups. Perhaps you even get the opportunity to sing solo for concerts occasionally. But, I also know that there are times when you feel like the experience could be better. You know that all this singing should be paying off, but strangely it's not. Let's explore the difference between choral, ensemble, and solo singing... (I'm playing devil's advocate here... indulge me!) Choral singing is the art of singing in a lar ..read more

  In this video ... a short introduction to the knotty problem of how consonants can sabotage your sound. Everyone expects to sing vocal exercises on vowels, right? But not many singers will spend time examining how their consonants are formed, and how the articulators play their part.  For classical (if not all) singers, vocal technique issues around the interaction between vowels and consonants - and the relationship they have when it comes to maintaining the breath and keeping a constant airflow to the source of the sound - continue to be a source of frustration. Understandably, s ..read more

In any language, the tongue is a mighty muscle - and I’m sure if a cat (big or small) could talk, he or she would be truly proficient in its use. Can’t you just picture that?  Photo by Isabella Jusková on Unsplash A while back, according to Facebook, this topic was most popular - lots of likes. Everyone loved the picture of the big cat. What’s not to love? But hey! What about the content? I’m known for talking a lot about vocal technique basics. So essential, and yet in the scheme of things often very overlooked, with students wanting to rush on to the more complicated and glossy stuff ..read more

The more I teach, the more my own understanding as a singer grows.   A brilliant bonus from teaching something well is that you get to repeatedly learn the details and deep dive alongside your students and re-examine processes. Learning by doing. It's an excellent by-product - a wonderfully harmonious, serendipitous result. Learning how to sing well, and with confidence is not a journey you can embark upon with impatience. It IS going to take time, especially if (as I am) you're invested in the longevity of the voice you already have. Remember that the JOY is IN the journey, every s ..read more

From the Little Soprano archive. Originally written one Sunday morning, almost ten years ago, the comment it makes is still as pertinent as ever, especially for new or beginner singers, or those who have a penchant to return to classical singing. August 2014 I read the quote below earlier this morning and paused to think on it a while. I love to sing - everyone knows that - but I also love to write, and that love goes way, way back to before I ever sang a note. It was, I think my love of words that lit that first little singing flame. A beautiful marriage between verse and music. I was clearly ..read more

Where do you start, learning how to sing classically? You've got to want to do it - be excited and curious enough to get on board. The vocal journey has a very human beginning and it is good to remember that. At the heart of all we do as singers, is the joy of making music and the release of self-expression. Sharing with others is vital to the learning experience, because it provides a solid base for exchange, observation and mutual support. Also, there is no quick fix - no singing teacher worth their salt has a magic wand.  You - the singer in you - has to be bitten by the ..read more

   In 2020, I bought a new and interesting book, the delights of which I hardly had time to delve into amid all the extra online Virtual Studio classes and other activities, created by COVID-19 and the human desire for people, singers, to seek to connect. The book had been sitting on my desk in the study since mid-June that year. Seeing it still there one day, I thought to remind myself why I bought it in the first place. Glancing at the back cover told me everything I needed to know. "Somatic learning ... through the practice of these methods, a person can become more sensitive to ..read more

    Back to rehearsals soon? Voice feeling a bit rusty? Here's a little extra guidance beyond the tips I shared in the video above: Tip #5: Your vocal folds (or cords) are the only pair you'll ever have. You can't go and choose new ones when the old ones start to wear out. Imagine those little vocal folds, pristine and perfect at birth. Functioning with ease and as usual in babies and young children, with the best and most perfect vocal connection, there can be. What causes things to go wrong when all was perfect at the onset? True vocal folds are no bigger ..read more