The Intelligent Vocalist

Breathing, another controversial singing subject (what isn't?).  We can all agree breath is essential to singing, but you obviously know how to breath, and are probably doing it now, so why is singing so different? There are different schools of thought on the subject, and some teachers make breathing the most important thing in singing.  Other very successful teachers hardly touch on the subject.  What to do? In this episode, John gives his views on proper breathing (as well as LA traffic) and why it can be a relatively simple skill to acquire. He also includes a few exercises you can do to improve your control and awareness of breath.  

In this episode, John explains how to get and maintain a healthy speaking voice, and why it is essential for all singers to work on this.  Learn best practices and simple exercises you can use to get your best voice.  

This is one of the questions voice teachers get asked the most.  People are fascinated by singers, and would love to be able to do it, but don't think they can ever learn. John goes into his past experience with students, and explains how those with very little natural ability were able to become proficient, if not great, singers. John also explores ideas if tone deafness, and how he once thought he could never learn to sing properly.  

The passing of the great David Bowie is a great loss to the artistic community. In this episode, John reflects on one of Bowie's greatest vocal recordings, "Heroes," and looks into the debate of vocal technique versus vocal performance.  John gives his thoughts on how to strike a proper balance between giving your all in artistic expression, while still protecting your instrument.

Voice teachers are often divided into two camps: classical and contemporary.  There are often disagreements between these groups, sometimes it's not pretty. In this episode, John looks at the two major voice camps and gives his thoughts on some controversial points - specifically singers who are studying classically, but want to sing contemporary musical theatre or pop.  

In this episode you will learn about vocal registers and why they cause the dreaded cracks and breaks in the singing voice. John also tackles some of the myths and misunderstandings surrounding vocal breaks. Understanding why these breaks occur is one of the best ways to begin to correct them. 

There has been a move in recent years to denigrate singing scales, even accusing their use of hampering your vocal progress. John has his own opinion of singing scales, and how you can best use them in your own practice. John also shows you how to move from scales to sings more smoothly, eliminating a major source of frustration for singers.

Vocal health might be a somewhat unglamorous list of dos and don'ts, but it is a major part of being a good singer.   John explains key points you need to know to keep yourself healthy and to make sure your voice lasts. Understand key foods, medications, and lifestyle choices that can create serious problems for the singer. No matter how good your vocal technique is, if you don't stay healthy you will not be able to sing at your best.

Vocal resonance really is the difference between sounding awful, sounding just okay, or being absolutely amazing.  Resonance acts as the filter and the amplifier for the sound waves you create, and correctly adjusting your resonance is a must for good singing. John breaks down this complex subject into easy to understand bites.  Join him in this podcast and get crucial knowledge to become a better singer today!

Do you struggle with pitch?  Are you worried you might be tone deaf?  In this podcast John explains the main causes of singing out-of-tune and how to correct them. Struggling with pitch is an almost certainty if you are not using correct technique.  John gives you the understanding to fix these issues and to get your voice on path to in-tune singing. This episode is a must for anyone struggling with his or her voice.