Should I get a Vocal Coach?
If you want to improve your singing but are not sure whether singing lessons are worth it, this article should help you to decide.
I am a firm believer that there is no right or wrong way to sing, and that it is totally possible to be a great vocalist without having had any training. I personally know many singers who are a joy to listen to and have never taken a lesson in their life. So, are singing lessons worth it? And what is a good reason to seek out a coach?
Here are my top 5 reasons why you need to work with a vocal coach.
1) You’re worried about the health of your voice
I keep hearing about singers who have quit singing entirely, taken time out of their singing careers, or struggled with their mental health because of vocal strain and other problems with their voice. I was once one of these people and I know how hard it can be to find the right advice. So I will say this loud and clear. If your voice;
Sounds different to usual (i.e. husky or hoarse)
Feels different to usual (strained and effortful)
or
You have lost parts of your range…
You should DEFINITELY seek some professional advice. Whilst your doctor should be at the top of your list, a well trained vocal coach should sign post you to the right specialists, (a laryngologist, ENT or speech and language therapist.) They will assess your voice’s functionality, and train your body and voice so that it is flexible and strong. Most importantly, a great vocal coach will hold your hand through your vocal health crisis so that you don’t have to go through it alone.
2) You want to go to extremes
You can probably already sing in tune, and you may have even done some gigs and had great feedback. But if you want to be more than the proverbial #basicbitch of the singing world, you’re going to need to get familiar with vocal technique. Extremes such as singing very high or low, very loudly or quietly, holding notes for a long time, singing fast moving phrases, and using rough vocal affects such as grit or distortion, require some pretty complex coordinations of your instrument. Its extremely rare that a singer is born able to do any of this without guidance, and many experience vocal health problems in the process of trying (sorry to scaremonger but I’m honest because I care.) The reality is that your favourite metal vocalists are probably the most devoted singing students of them all, despite seeming so effortlessly cool (check out this video for evidence.) So do yourself a favour, save yourself some time and pain, and get some advice from a vocal coach.
3) You want to be able sing for a long time
If you are lucky enough to be able to do any of the above, the chances are that your voice will get tired after a few repetitions and that the rest of your gig will be a real struggle. If you want to do more than bash through a song brilliantly once or twice, it is essential to put in some work getting to know your voice on a deeper level, and getting into some good habits. This will include warming up and warming down, but also learning how to separate muscular effort levels from volume (loud does not have to equal extra effort!) Just like an athlete needs to build stamina in order to run a marathon, a singer who is seeking vocal endurance will need to spend some focussed time ironing out bad habits and allowing their voice to work at its optimal level. Fortunately, this approach will not only allow you to get through your gigs with stamina to spare, but will also set you up with the vocal fitness required for a long singing career.
4) You’ve stopped enjoying singing
As singers, we are a living instrument. This means that we cannot separate ourselves from our instrument in the way that a guitarist or pianist might. Our motor skills and our self image are intimately connected, so that when our voice doesn’t behave the way that we want it to, it can make us feel terrible about ourselves. For that reason when you’re going through a dip in your enjoyment, it can be hard to pinpoint for yourself what the problem is. The good news is, that there is usually a practical solution for whatever is bringing you down, and vocal coaches love doing the detective work to figure out what they are. In my experience these dips can be improved by identifying and releasing long term tension patterns. Singing should not hurt! Getting your voice back to a place where the sound flows freely will greatly enhance your enjoyment. Its also possible that you may be picking up on some pitching issues that just don’t sound quite right. A vocal coach will select exercises that directly solve your problems, and will know how to train your ear so that your musicality improves too.
5) You want to be able to sing a wider range of songs and genres
You may have already found a niche that you’re comfortable with, and that is awesome. However, do you hold secret desires to break out of your comfort zone and sing something completely different? Differing genres require the cross training of opposing skills. You may well be an excellent ballad singer already, but what if you wanted to smash out a rock classic and not feel like a complete fraud? Or perhaps you want to work on material that crosses through your bridge into a different register? Or something that is more upbeat? The more we repeat a certain skill the easier it becomes, and our voices remember how to do things a certain way. In general this is really helpful as it allows us to go into autopilot and not have to worry about what our voice will sound like when we open our mouth. However, this wonderful feature of our human make up can also hold us back when attempting to do something different. Fortunately a vocal coach will be able to spot which habits are serving you well and which are holding you back, and assign cross training exercises that will allow you to sing a wider variety of music, and feel authentic too.
So there you are. You might be completely happy with your voice exactly as it is and if that’s the case, you probably don’t need a vocal coach. However, if you are a little bit curious, you can find out if I might be the right fit for you by clicking here.
