The Toddler's Voice

Have you ever heard a toddler when they're unhappy, tired, or just want attention? That voice could break glass! When I'm teaching voice, I often say 'how would a two year old sing this?', the answer, they just LET THEIR VOICE OUT. They don't TRY to do anything with their voice, it's just a natural, released voice that has incredible volume. Most of the time my students get it in their heads that when they sing, they have to control, cajole or 'project' their sound. All that does is lead to constriction, pushing and too much compression on the vocal cords. I can't stress enough that to sing correctly, you must release, never push the voice. There's a huge difference. You'll get so much warmth and volume when you use the body as a resonating chamber, rather than pushing the voice, or forcing volume by trying to 'project'. If you feel like you're pushing too much, 'sing like a two year old'!