Ep 61- How to Sing Mixed Voice - Tension is our Enemy!

Ep.61: How to Sing Mixed Voice: Tension is our Enemy!
Spanish Subtitles available. Special thanks to vampiroast.

When you’re learning to sing with a mix of Chest and Head Voice, it can be very challenging. We bring years of singing with bad habits. Usually those habits include too much outer muscle tension surrounding the larynx.

Inside this video I’m going to help you understand what is feels and sounds like to sing mix with and without a tension and how to eliminate it.

Hi, I’m Chuck Gilmore with Power To Sing.

Recently I was reading some notes I made about my singing when I was first learning to sing with mix. I’m so glad I wrote down some things I was struggling with along with some questions.

Dated 4-12-97 (almost exactly 19 years ago from the date of this video): “While singing [in our show at church], I could tell I was approaching my passaggio and would flip and disconnect--and wondered why I couldn’t get there connected.”

Later we had a discussion in a group singing class with our teacher and I wrote: “We read that if [we] hit too hard in the lower register I wouldn’t be able to negotiate passaggio connected. I sense I was singing too loud and pulling chest.”

It’s all so new at first. You’re not sure what’s right or wrong. You’re not sure what you’re feeling and if that’s the right feeling or the wrong feeling. It can be confusing and frustrating.

I’m going to show you what mix sounds and feels like to me. Then I’ll show you what the same phrase sounds like when there’s tension. Maybe this will help you.

My excerpt is from “Chess”, the song Anthem.

So, I want to show you what it’s like to have the same song...the same area of the song with some tension in it. I don’t like doing it because it kind of hurts me. [Demo 1]

You can hear there’s tension. And that tension causes the larynx to rise and that caused my vocal cords to crack. [Demo 2]

Voice feels relaxed and natural. There’s no stress or tension. The vocal cords are connected. The larynx felt like it was resting where it does when I speak. The vibrato was present and easy.
It felt like I was in control. I could feel the resonance move between my chest and head.

[Demo’s compared]

Virtually 100% of the time, when we have trouble singing with a mix it’s because external muscle tension outside the larynx is pulling the larynx upward.

This prevents the free vibration of the vocal cords. It also alters our resonance spaces. We react by trying to help the vocal cords which adds more squeezing and tension. The result is the pitch is flat or sharp, the tone is not the best because resonance spaces are changed and often words become unrecognizable. The voice is out of balance.

The remedy is to eliminate external muscle tension.

Here’s two simple exercises to eliminate tension. It’s called the Tongue Trill and we do it with closed lips or “Goo” [Demo]

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Once you can do these without tension, then practice pressing into the feeling of no tension...sometimes referred to as the feeling of “release”. Do this with the least amount of air pressure as possible. You’re training your vocal cords and air flow to work together in balance.

Gradually you can increase the air flow. If you feel yourself starting to lose the feeling of release and start gripping and grabbing, you are introducing tension. Reduce the loudness.

It takes time to retrain your neuromuscular system to coordinate your vocal cords and air flow so you can do it without external muscle tension.

This may help you find and maintain a mix voice faster than anything else you can do.

Mix is a vocal type. It means you’re singing from chest to head voice without any interruption in tone quality with an easy and natural and the larynx staying stable and resting.

Do you know your vocal type? I’m not referring to whether you’re soprano, alto, tenor or bass. Your vocal type is what you tend to do when you sing.

Download the free exercises for your vocal type and start working on them. They’re designed to help you eliminate outer muscle tension so you can develop and then strengthen your mix voice.

I’m Chuck Gilmore with Power To Sing. You can sing higher, with beauty, confidence and power.

I’ll see you inside the next video.

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Chuck Gilmore

Help us caption & translate this video!

Join Singers Impact:

[neilbonavita]

Thank you Chuck, that really helps. I learned two things: 1/ let go, and don't push and 2/ now I know the difference between my mix and falsetto. Great explanation and demo. I'm psyched to go work on and master what I learned.

[delmalouisrubin]

I starting to hear the difference. Still working on it. Thank you

[t-phillips-jazz]

This is the fight for me, I know I should think tall and relax, but I automatically pull and stretch wide. These videos are really making me aware.

[therandeydenyah]

Night and day between tension and proper method. Thank you! I plan to work on this!

[vampiroast]

Hi Chuck! I added Spanish subtitles to this video so you can reach many more people willing to learn!!! You may update the description of this video so Spanish talking viewers are aware. Have a nice day! And thanks for your videos!!! :D :D :D

[sinashaaeri]

Thanks alot, I found my second bridge mixed voice with your helps. And now I belive I can fix strain in my first bridge in mixed voice too. Thanks alot.

[kawumajovan]

You're the best coach
Thank you so much

[moe]

you sing that song beautifully i want a studio recording !

[Christian_Girl]

Thank you for this video. I'm in my 50's and have asthma, so singing can be a challenge now. But I still have some power in my voice I was told. I'm really learning a lot from your videos. By the way you have a beautiful voice!!! I've begun to use my head voice more but am trying to build the power bit by bit. I see the difference as you sing, and I had this problem. Now I'm beginning to see how I can use what you're teaching to help me. Thank you!

[iancaldeian]

This was helpful, thanks. Someone else suggests engaging the loft (soft-pallet) to transition smoothly.

[uncensored]

Goo with Mum hahahaha I was actually very impressed with this and it helped indescribably! Thank you sir!

[Rosannasfriend]

This is my first video watching you, and I'm impressed. Thanks!

[zoranpavlovic]

After third video I am hooked. Not singer but love to sing since last year at 46. I was laughing after you did external muscle tension example - it exactly happens to me singing Judas Priest classics or trying some other high pitched heavy metal vocals 😌 Excellent videos, subscribed! 👍

[digsfossils]

LOL 2:07 that's me. All the time. Thanks for the vid!

[dereknolin]

Great song choice! It is weird like I like the "wrong" version better, though? It sounds brighter and more powerful. If only you could do that without cracking and being pitchy.

[graymusic]

Hey, Great Lesson. I can connect my Chest to Head with the Right Compression But I can not Get Louder Right now with my mix. Is it normal? Will It get stronger over time?

[mechailaolog]

thank u sir..for ur very informative videos..

[Angesjw]

Thats an xray on whats going on with my voice, I was like a kid painting and just now can name a color and realize more!

[collinz]

So, even when singing in the light mixed? There should be tension on the cords but not the neck, right?

[jgtv]

Hi Chuck, I have a question. In the song “You Raise Me Up” by Josh Groban, is he pulling chest voice or kinda mixing it up especially on the high notes? This is one of my coach’s assignments and I sometimes struggle with it, but I can reach those high notes with pulled chest. I hope you’ll hear the song of him and identify if he’s using mixed voice on those high notes. Thank youu Chuck! I hope your answer helps for my training!