written by W.N Vincent
Are there effective ways to avoid vocal cracks? Let’s face it; having a vocal crack is every vocalist’s worst nightmare. You might ask, “Why does my voice experience all the cracks and roughness, even when I don’t sing all the time?”
Usually, your voice gets cracked up when the muscles involved in singing suddenly stretch beyond their limits, become shortened or tightened. The reason for this may vary, from strenuous singing, extended periods of singing, dehydration, poor technique (in singing and breathing), environmental factors, physiological (health) factors, and so on.
As a vocalist, your voice is your No. 1 instrument and you need to keep it well. How? You need to pay attention to what happens as you sing.
Keeping the voice free from cracks is quite difficult for many singers to do.
Do you consider yourself in this category? Here are 7 effective ways to avoid vocal cracks. These steps will help you to preserve and maximize your voices.
- Talk Less
What you do when you are not singing shows whenever you are singing.
Do you engage in activities that put a strain on the voice when you’re not singing? Some vocalists are naturally chatty. For some, the nature of their job requires them to talk for long periods, daily. So, when they stop by for rehearsals at the end of the day’s job, they lose their voice just one hour down the road!
If you fall in this category, it would help to have some conscious control over how you talk. It would help if you avoid shouting as you go about your job. Talk less and try to save your voice for only important conversations. Try to avoid shouting while having simple conversations. Learning to talk calmly is a discipline you need to imbibe as a vocalist.
- Stay Hydrated
Many vocalists still undermine the effect of fluid (water) on the voice. Often, it might seem impossible to point out how water helps your voice, but you will gradually notice the remarkable effects of staying hydrated.
It is advised to take up to 7 – 8 glasses of water per day, to stay healthy, but when it comes to vocalists, I always advise that we take up to 8 – 9 glasses per day (do that little extra). This is because we need to preserve our voice and keep it in shape to do things the average human can not do (because we are superhumans!)
If you plan to avoid vocal cracks, then stay hydrated, always.
- Do Not Neglect Vocal Warm-ups
Before you jump into singing, always do light warm-ups! Breath exercises, vocal warm-ups, any other kind of exercise to get your voice and body in tune for singing.
Imagine that you wake up in the morning, head straight to your car, crank up the engine, and drive off to work, every day. Your car will break down soon because it lacks proper ‘warm-up’. The same applies to your voice!
Maybe you came in for a rehearsal or performance, straight from work (you had a very busy day), whatever the case may be, start with some light warm-ups. You may want to consider the range of lip thrill, humming, whatever! It will help you feel relaxed and get your voice ready to work.
- Poor Technique
One of the reasons for a cracked voice is poor vocal technique. This begs several questions:
How do you sing?
Is there any strain in your throat (neck region) when you sing?
Do you have good breath support when you sing?
Do you shout when you try to sing high notes that are beyond your vocal range?
Any of the above can cause a strain, crack, or serious vocal injury.
Beyond having a good voice, the technique is everything!
Singing with the right technique will make an average vocalist sound good, but the wrong technique will make a good vocalist sound average or less. And if the technique is right, you’ll experience fewer vocal cracks.
- Avoid Irritants
One of the biggest vocal fold irritants is smoke. Avoid substances that irritate the vocal folds such as chemicals, paint, dust, or strong liquids. Avoid attempting to clear your throat by coughing as this is very harmful to the vocal cords. Instead, try drinking a glass of water.
Avoid cold environments or a room with an air conditioning system, during cold seasons. Staying in a freezing environment will lead to dryness in your vocal folds as you constantly inhale cold air. Also, singing in this condition may lead to vocal cracks.
- Know When to Stop Singing!
A myth goes thus:
“Push through the barrier when singing high notes. Soon you’ll sing them more comfortably.”
While you may become tempted to believe this, there’s not much truth in it. Not many beginner vocalists know their vocal/singing range, so they attempt to sing notes that are way beyond their range. This eventually leads to cracks and even vocal injuries.
Once the note you’re trying to vocalise feels too high and UNCOMFORTABLE, STOP SINGING or take a break!
Singing higher notes (or lower notes as the case may be) doesn’t happen by magic or forced.
Reaching the higher or lower limits of your range happens with strategic practice and exercises and not by shouting or forcing it.
Do not be a lazy singer, but know when singing high notes (for example) becomes uncomfortable, and know when to take a break or STOP!
This is one of the effective ways to avoid vocal cracks.
- Practice Slowing Down
Finally, stress, anxiety, and other forms of negativity can grab a hold of your singing voice. Anxiety, for example, causes the muscles involved in singing to tighten, and this can affect the quality and performance of your voice.
Anxiety can present itself as a shaky, crackly, unevenly pitched, and weakly voice. However, here’s what to do whenever you find yourself breathing down your neck—slow down.
Calm down and take things one step at a time. One way I often calm myself down when I’m enveloped in anxiety is to slowly and deeply inhale and exhale. This exercise helps me to gain control and steady my breathing.
Let me ask. Can you sing properly after a long jog? Odds are that you can’t. You’ll need to breathe calmly and coordinate yourself before you can sing properly.
Remember…!
Your breath is the fuel of your voice!
There you have it! 7 effective ways to avoid vocal cracks. I hope you enjoy stress-free singing now and beyond.
Cheers!
If you are already experiencing vocal cracks, here are a few things you can do to recover your voice quickly; click here.
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