Recovering Vocals

JWens87

Hey there,
Just wondering if there is any technical advice for recovering vocals. I strained my vocals roughly 8 months ago and they are getting much better but I am still having issues with connecting and getting that open, free feeling, crisp vocals I had before I strained. I'm aware that a lot of the set back is due to being nervous about straining again. If there is any well rounded advice anyone has that can cover techniques based on this vocal training that would be great. I have stepped down to stage 1 of the vocal training and things seem to be progressing. I also must admit that I live in a dry climate and was an occasional cigar smoker up till about 6 months ago when I realized I was being stupid.
Thanks for any input

highmtn

I'll answer your question, but first, since I notice that you are listed as "member" here:

If you have a KTVA product, you can get more access to the forums than you now have as a "member".

So if you have purchased a KTVA Volume or Bundle, you should copy and paste into an email to ktvaforums@gmail.com and request a forums upgrade.  That will give you access to a lot more info that you should be taking advantage of.

OK, back to your question.  I'm guessing that your voice has some places on it that don't work so well, that used to work fine.  Have you been to a doctor to get scoped?  Chances are you're OK, but it might be a good idea to be seen.

Nodes can form, but usually that takes a long time and continuous abuse.  They're essentially calluses on the cords, or sometimes lesions.  The thing is, if you have some parts of your voice that have weakened, you need to be very lightly waking those parts of your voice up with gentle exercises that take you through those areas.  Not a lot of air, though.  Low-pressure, light singing that takes you through the areas that have basically atrophied.  You need to de-atrophy them.  Your body is smart, and it knows you've kind of stopped using that part of the voice.  You have to tell it, OK, now I want to sing those notes again, and I promise to be good this time.  So very lightly, patiently, and quietly, almost as quietly as you can, sing through the part of your voice that is weak. 

Don't overdo this.  We're talking about rehabilitating an atrophied part of your voice.  So be understanding and patient, and realize that this will take a period of time. If you don't do this and give it sufficient time for your body to heal itself back into reuse of this part of your range, it simply will remain atrophied. It's similar to teaching yourself to bridge at the passagio, only even more fragile.

Like I said, first things first.  Make sure you don't have an issue that a doctor should deal with.  Often the method above can prevent the need for surgical intervention.  I'm not giving medical advice.  I'm suggesting how you can wake your vocal range back up after making sure there isn't anything serious going on in there.

 

Bob

JWens87

Thanks so much for the info. What you are saying makes a lot of sense to me. I have slowed down the workouts to make them much more focused on rehab. This has helped with opening up my voice, especially with lower volumes of air. I wanted to reasure myself with a little advice from the forum to see if anyone had experienced this and I'm glad you had some good info. Mostly just impatients on my part. Can be pretty frustrating. Thanks so much