Hey all

Ive been working through the screaming exercises and the witches cackle exercises, which have significantly improved my grit / power in my voice. However, after singing at band practice for 3 hours and nailing everything and not feeling any pain or strain in my throat etc i have found that my falsetto has gone! and has been replaced by a hoarse squeaky sound...

Any advice?

Hey man, congratulations on getting some results with your voice!

As for explanations for what you're experiencing. It sounds like your technique is good, but you're still getting worn down. You have to learn to tell the difference from bad technique and vocal muscle-building.

For example, if you're at the gym and you start doing pushups, and it starts to hurt, there are two possible explanations. The first is that your form is wrong. If your form (technique) is wrong, then you probably experience pain in your shoulders.

If you experience a feeling of not being able to go on any longer because your core and chest can't take any more pushups, that doesn't mean your technique is bad, it just means your stamina isn't up there yet. As you continue doing pushups with good form, your stamina improves, you can do more pushups over time, and you start to develop those muscles.

If your form is bad, though, the pain in your shoulders gets worse and worse to the point that you hurt yourself and can't do pushups anymore. Not because your muscles can't take it, but because your joints can't take the pressure from the bad form/technique.

I think what you're dealing with is not an issue with technique, just an issue with stamina. Just keep doing what you're doing. Make sure you have a proper warmup and cooldown session before and after every practice/performance. Drink plenty of water and do all the other vocal health stuff Jaime outlines in the book. Ensure your technique is good, and the stamina will come over time.

Last note. If your band practice is three hours long, but your practice sessions by yourself are only an hour, then yeah, you might feel some wearing down. That's normal I think, nothing to be overly concerned about. I would suggest adding in some longer practice sessions outside of band practice. If your band practices for three hours in one day, and you practice an hour a day for five days a week, maybe for one of those five solo practice days you do a three hour practice. That should help build up stamina.

Also, many more of us are active on Jaime's Facebook group. Join it if you want :)

http://facebook.com/groups/howtosingjaimevendera/

Hey Benny

Thanks for the advice it makes complete sense.. I have rested my voice for about a week and my falsetto came back. I think another part of the problem was trying to hear myself over a loud guitar, drums and bass in a tiny rehearsal space - i'm never going to win that battle...

Thanks guys!

If you falsetto is gone every rehearsal then it means you probably overdid it a little and are swelling.
The best way to check for swelling is to try a clean pure falsetto as that isolates the edges of the cords to see if they get enough closure.

I agree with most of what Benny said...Stamina,stretching...warming up and down will help.

Maybe record rehearsal to make sure you are not oversinging? More breaks may help.