Focus On The Signal – Tune Out The Noise

In a previous blog post, I wrote about two of the biggest challenges in Vocal Training:

• Misinformation; and
• Misunderstand of terms.

Today, I want to address the first of these.

Misinformation comes to us as singers in two primary ways:

• The misinformation we give ourselves; and
• The misinformation we accept from others.

Perhaps the most significant source of misinformation we give ourselves is trying to listen to ourselves sing. Somehow, we assume (more misinformation) we can adjust or give physical or mental input based on what think we ‘hear.’ This is wrong, and can be dangerous, as it often leads to manipulation of the voice in unhealthy ways.

Especially for pop or contemporary singers (most of you) another prime example of misinformation we give ourselves is the statement “It sounds too Classical.”

Vocologists and Audiologists generally agree that while we do hear ourselves when we sing (roughly an 80% internal-20% external sourcing). But when actively singing we should not also actively listen. Rather, it’s about cultivating an awareness of how good singing feels (the internal sound response is part of this). It’s not how about how we think it sounds (external sound response).

So, if we can’t hear ourselves sing then how do we know it’s “…too Classical”? That’s the point, we can’t. And it isn’t.

In her article in Backstage magazine,  NYC vocal coach, Arden Kaywen, puts it like this:

Most singers think of listening as it relates to sound: listening to the sounds of the accompaniment…the sounds we make when we sing… This kind of listening is focused on external sound and our external experience with it. When we listen this way, we tend to force, manipulate, and push our voice as a means of controlling an outcome.

In another article at Neuroscience.com, the authors refer to a similar mode of brain activity:

…there are two activities that support its ability to establish reliable connections in the presence of significant biological background noise [our own singing sound]. Although the brain’s mechanisms are quite complex, these two activities act as what an electrical engineer calls a matched filter – a processing element used in high-performance radio systems, and now known to exist in nature.

For our purposes, the “…known to exist in nature…” means us – singers – as we sing.

We can train to avoid relying on that 20% of externally sourced ‘noise’ and focus instead on the internal ‘signal’ – how it feels to sing well.

This is training to sing healthfully and sustainably. And good vocal technique translates across any kind or sort of singing ‘style’ there is. IOW – good singing, is good singing, is good singing, regardless of style.

#stoplookandlisten
#dothereps
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