March 2004 Table of Contents

Your Voice For God
Singing at the Speed of Thought

By Chris Beatty

Any singer will mostly likely tell you their ultimate musical goal is for their voice to instinctively respond to the emotions and message of the music, as well as the passion in their own heart. Another way to say that: The singer wants to SING AT THE SPEED OF THOUGHT AND EMOTION. They think it, and it comes out of their mouth...every time. That's the dream.

The primary obstacle to that very valid goal is the physical aspect of the voice. To be precise, the voice is a mechanical, acoustical instrument. No matter how much you DESIRE to have your voice do certain things, the fact remains that the mechanics must be there.

I like to look at learning to sing like learning to drive a car. When I was 15, I was dreaming about driving; I could feel it in my bones. And, I knew it couldn't be too hard because hey, look at who's doing it! Old people, uncool people, kids no smarter than me. This will be easy. Then I took Driver's Education at my high school in Shorewood, Wisconsin. We didn't have behind-the-wheel training during the summer, so I opted to pay for my own course. I was MENTALLY ready because of so much practice in my dreams and imagination. But I wasn't PHYSICALLY ready. The first lesson was a disaster. I went over a curb while trying to turn, almost went the wrong way on a one-way street and most unfortunately, terrified my instructor.

Big car, busy downtown traffic that I wasn't used to and, of course, a standard transmission. What was the problem? Was I just dumb? No. The problem was that my PREPARATION hadn't caught up to my INSPIRATION. Certain skills and processes take time to develop no matter how much natural ability you have. A few weeks later it was beginning to be more natural, and of course, now it just happens without much effort. But it was a systematic process that involved the physical and mental. Muscle memory is an essential part of being excellent in driving, and in singing.

In my experience, most singers' dreams and desires are generally much further along than our vocal and hearing skills. But, as with driving, a systematic process involving physical and mental acuity will get you there. Let's look at what that really involves so that the gap between what the mind WANTS TO HEAR, and what the voice is ABLE TO DO, is significantly narrowed.

First, is the FIVE P's: PROPER PREPARATION PREVENTS POOR PERFORMANCE. And let's add to that, THE LESS YOU LEAVE TO CHANCE, THE LESS LIKELY YOU ARE TO HAVE PROBLEMS.

The fact is, we can be in control of a lot more than we may think. The right amount of inspiration, that's GOD'S PART, plus the right amount of preparation, that's OUR PART, is unbeatable. That's one reason why the more high profile an artist or group is, the more gear (sound, lighting, backdrops, etc.) they bring with them, and usually at great overhead expense! They simply don't want to leave the important things to chance. And, sound and lighting can be as important as musical skills when it come to a major performance. If there are to be surprises that require you to adjust what you'd planned, let them come from God, not man.

But to focus on the choir and worship team scenario: Just what kind of preparation is ideal, and how do we inspire and lead them to get it? First, the singers have to believe that being better equipped will actually make the group sound better. This can be done in two ways. Begin with irrefutable facts, such as:

1. The voice is physical.
2. You are a vocal athlete.
3. Athletes who care ALWAYS warm up and workout the body. It the best way to insure doing a good job and not getting injured (voice fatigue, abusive laryngitis, etc.).
4. Though helpful, knowing music theory and how to play the piano is not a necessary component to being a good singer.
5. Singing in a choir or worship team is a TEAM sport. Those who are solo-only minded need not apply, no matter how good they are. Team players have to be more concerned about the whole of the group than their own, personal sound.

Next, find several excellent recordings of choirs or worship teams who sing in the same style as your group. Let them hear excellence, giving them a benchmark and goal. Now, they know it's possible.

And here is where the rubber meets the road: It's time to work that physical instrument. And, just as with the football or basketball player in training camp, that means addressing aspects of singing with systematic exercises. Start by putting the instrument into position by having the singers lift their hands straight up over their heads. Then, bring the hands back, behind the neck, and give a slight lift. This establishes a posture that really serves the voice, with a long back of the neck, and the short front of the neck.

Breathing is next, and that means working the inhalation and exhalation muscles. The most challenging, fun and fruitful exercises involve sipping the breathing in through pursed lips, then exhaling on a loud "ssssss." The resistance offered by the lips causes the breathing muscles to develop more strength and agility. Make sure that you vary the exercises doing short 1-2-3-4 counts as well as longer, 1 through 16 counts. Also, use staccato as well as legato patterns. It should be mentioned that the best, natural breathing will have the ribs and chest comfortably expanded throughout, while the frontal abdominal wall does most of the visible work. The back and sides, at the waist, will expand on the first inhale and hover in this expanded position throughout the singing. (The Vocal Coach Complete Breathing CD has the principles and orchestrated exercises to make this extremely simple.)

Then it's time to move into any sort of imaginative exercises you can come up with. Major and minor scales and broken chords of all types are good starting points. To keep things fun and interesting, take some melodies they already know and have them sing short, staccato syllables, while paying special attention to posture and breathing.

Here's another consideration that will help your singers sing their best: Be flexible with the way you assign voices. Remember: God did not make us soprano, alto, tenor and bass. He simply made us communicators with different sizes and shapes of mechanism. Just like with the violin, viola, cello and bass, singers can cross over into another part's range. But, unlike the stringed instruments, many singers will begin to strain when getting into unfamiliar or fringe areas of the range. So, assuming it won't ruin a sensitive arrangement, don't compromise the sound of a piece by insisting the basses sing D's and E's above middle C when you can easily assign several tenors to cover that while the basses sing an octave lower, or not at all. And, when the tenor parts get threateningly high, use altos. Remember: Tenor doesn't necessarily mean male, and alto doesn't have to be female. Just get the job done with those God has put before you.

By alerting your group to the possibilities of excellence, and equipping them with the tools that work for your situation, you can raise the bar and accelerate the process to getting there.

In Summary:

1. Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. That includes Posture, Breathing, Warm-ups, Tone, Diction and Expression and Gestures.
2. The less you leave to chance, the less likely you are to have problems.
3. Singing at the speed of thought and emotion is an achievable goals.

Christopher Beatty–Training the Singers of Today and Tomorrow! Workshop or product information:
Vocal Coach, P.O. Box 2144, Brentwood, TN 37024.
615-331-1080 / www.vocalcoach.com
chris@vocalcoach.com

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