WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE INANIMATE OBJECT?
My Macbook Pro
All Change
Right so here is my first post, hopefully my thoughts will be of interest, if not I hope to get better with practice.
This nicely leads me onto the main thrust of my blog - change. I think change in every sense of the word is difficult. I know for starters that I am very much a creature of habit, and if I miss my regular weekly gym visit (should be two or three…) that I won’t go at all. I also know the feeling of pain and anguish when my nicely assembled schedule has a horrible early start slapped in the middle of the week (not a morning person) OUCH!
The more established the pattern or habit, the harder it is to change. I’m still convinced I will get my Nan onto a laptop, but as a person with many years of experience she is not to be trifled with. As the telesales people that call to sell her a chocolate teapot, or something else she really doesn’t need in her life and consequently receive a tongue lashing would testify! Don’t mess with Nans is my very best advice!
To the point, Voice is produced through a pattern of muscular use developed through practice, useful patterns are called technique or training and problematic patterns can be termed habits or faults. Practice can be conscious and focused or blissfully oblivious, but here is the thing, with the right guidance and enough focused practice a voice can change significantly.
As a voice coach I can work with a client and quickly establish a pattern of voice use which may increase range or power, perhaps even create a change in quality but here is the rub. Establishing any kind of change vocally is not easy, it is in fact very, very hard. Big question - How much are you willing to practice? How do you feel about change?
“But it feels uncomfortable”
“I don’t like how it sounds”
“I ache”
“I feel I’m working too hard”
“I can’t do it”
Whilst what you feel is extremely important often these questions/observations arise because you are doing something different. How do you feel about change?
Whilst what you feel is extremely important often these questions/observations arise because you are doing something different. How do you feel about change?
There are some that suggest that you are born with an innate ability vocally, whilst this is re-assuring to those people with this magical gift, it is actually a load of rubbish. Whilst I acknowledge that the nuts and bolts - size and orientation of the vocal mechanism are determined by genetics. What you are actually able to achieve with your larynx is determined purely by the patterns of use that are established through your life or in simple terms what you practice.
People with fabulous voice use often say to me “but I haven’t ever learned to sing or had any training” and my reply is always but I bet you have had a ton of practice, they usually say not really and then I ask them about singing along to their favourite artist and it usually turns out they sing along to amazing singers for around three hours a day, every day and have done so their whole lives!!!
Practice doesn’t always have to be with a coach, if you are lucky you may just stumble across a way of making your voice work for you. A coach is there to give you the tools to be able to achieve your vocal goals. It is however, only with hard graft and lots of practice that any new technique will feel natural. How hard are you willing to practice?
Change is really difficult, but if it wasn’t possible there would be no point in seeing a singing teacher or a voice coach. A colleague recently cited ‘natural voice’ as being the ideal. My reactive question is ‘natural to whom?’ With enough practice any quality can become ‘natural’, but is it just because it ‘looks’ easy that it is natural?
Perhaps this blog should have been titled Lets practice not all change but don’t judge too harshly, I will try to get it right next time!
James x
James Grimsey is a Certified master teacher of Estill voicecraft and Creative Director at Arts1 School of Performance. James is currently working on the X-Factor for ITV. You can contact James directly via james@jamesgrimsey.co.uk or leave a comment below
Acknowledgments
Jo Estill
Anne-Marie Speed (The Voice Explained)
James Grimsey is a Certified master teacher of Estill voicecraft and Creative Director at Arts1 School of Performance. James is currently working on the X-Factor for ITV. You can contact James directly via james@jamesgrimsey.co.uk or leave a comment below
Acknowledgments
Jo Estill
Anne-Marie Speed (The Voice Explained)
