Just to re-cap from part 1, the first step in singing those Rockstar or Diva notes perfectly is to be sure you are breathing with a proper singer’s breath and that you are getting in the right amount of air for each phrase. This is the most important step in nailing the biggest notes in the song with great power and pitch. If you don’t have your breathing figured out, nothing else will work.
The second part of the equation is engaging the right amount of Diaphragm Support. You will never use more diaphragm support than on the big Rock Star or Diva notes. This means that you will have filled up your air tank with a breath (air in/tummy out) and then you will create a big “pull” of your abdominal muscles (or what I generally refer to as your diaphragm) towards your backbone in a very quick and purposeful manner. This action is clearly described in a past blog called “Calling Voice”. That diaphragm movement is the second most important step in making the big notes without strain. Practice the “Calling Voice” exercise where you take in a big singer’s breath, pull your diaphragm quickly back towards your backbone and “call” (not yell) the word “HEY” as if you were trying to get someone’s attention across the street. This gives you the idea of how much energy has to come from your diaphragm to support the big notes. Keeping an open throat is really important to the success of the exercise. There should be no strain in your throat area if the power is coming from your diaphragm support. If you are disconnected from your diaphragm support you will be pushing from your throat which will eventually cause fatigue and loss of voice.
The final part of the equation to making big, floaty, effortless notes is “Vowel Modification”. Again, refer to a past blog with this title for more detail. Essentially, it means you will be changing the shape of your mouth to make the note float out easier. The way I describe it is that you “think” the modification, but you “sing” the actual word. Here is an example. (Forgive me for using a dated reference, but she was one of the most incredible singers… ever). In Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You”, there is a key change and she comes sailing in with big Diva notes on the words “And I”. The word “and” is not as tight as the word “I”, but can still use some modification. Here is the phonetic way I would modify these words:
“Think” “AHND” but “Sing” “AND” – all this does is drop your jaw lower so the note can sail out easier
“I” is a tougher modification because it is a dipthong (a vowel sound that has two vowel sounds within it – “A-EE” when you break it down). Our jaw tends to come up and create tension on the second vowel sound “EE”. So the way you would modify this word is:
“Think” “AH” (which will change the shape of your mouth to be more open with a dropped jaw) then add the tiniest of a “y” closure at the very end of the word but “Sing” “I”. Even if you don’t close with the small “y” sound, by the time you are forming the word “will” which follows it, your mouth shape has gently closed the word without the jaw coming up thus creating tension as your mouth sides pull back towards your ears. Try it both ways and see how big the difference is when you don’t close the word with a pronounced “EE” sound. Still sounds like the word “I”, but with a lot less strain.
Let’s review the 3 most important steps in making your big notes perfect:
1. Breathe Big (maximize your air tank with a proper singer’s breath – air in/tummy out)
2. Pull Big (pull your diaphragm support back towards your backbone quickly and with purpose)
3. Drop Big (drop your jaw to modify or open up a tight vowel sound)
If you follow this sequence, I guarantee that you will nail your most challenging notes in the song everytime.
Until next time… Breathe (Pull and Drop)
Happy Singing!
Angela
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