There is a lot to be said on the subject of singing the highest notes.
I meet so many people who seem solely interested in being able to sing high. “What note was that?” they ask frequently. A lot of this stems, in my opinion, from the TV talent show era where a singer starts singing, and as soon as they hit a high note, the crowd goes wild, as if it is their ability to sing a big high note makes them a great singer.
What rubbish!
Do you know, it’s so much harder and technically challenging to singing a quiet note than a high note ?! Singing the loudest, highest notes does not make you a great singer. It is what you can do technically across the voice, and your ability to ‘perform’ and ‘engage’ which makes you a great singer.
An example, compare Whitney Houston’s ‘I have Nothing’ with Michael Jackson’s ‘She’s Out Of My Mind’. Both are amazing songs, both heartfelt, both moving, both engaging. They achieve the same result, yet one is a huge belter and the other an incredibly emotional and delicate song.
Which is better ?
Yes, that was of course a rhetorical question. They are equally difficult to perform, and equally effective. It’s so much more about vocal technique than it is about how high you can sing. However, you need great technical ability to sing both these songs.
Below are 5 Awesome Tips on How to Sing Higher Notes – take a look.
Now, of course, when auditioning or planning your set-list for your performance, you need to consider what the audience is looking to hear and what experience you want to give them, but you also need to think about making sure your performance delivers. You need to make sure you are performing at your very best and you can only this with great technique.
Forget about the longest, highest, loudest notes and think about engagement, emotion, character and delivery. It’s not necessaily the big belter which will ‘get the job’ or win over the audience.
That said, there will be times where the requirement to singer these ‘money’ notes will be needed and you need to be able to deliver them each and every time.
Some further advice to help you:
1. Work the mid range of the voice where you build towards your ‘break-point’ and sing through it with ease
2. Learn to take bigger breaths even when you don’t think you will need it – it’s amazing how much breath you need or the low quiet notes! But, when you are going for a big one, build up to it by breathing early and ‘topping up’ rather than ‘filling from empty’.
3. Use staccato exercises to strenghten the stomach muscles
4. Control vibrato – the more you use, the more breath you will lose!
5. Never shout. Control the sound with breath and precision.
Increasing your range is never going to happen overnight, so work with a good vocal coach on technique and be consistent – regular vocal workouts, warm ups and coaching will go a long way in helping you get to where you ‘need’ to get to, and whilst being realistic in your goals. The more regularly and consistent you train the voice, the more likely you will achieve your goals.
Finally, I would like to hear from you on the tips and tricks you use to get those big ‘money’ notes out, so please comment below.
What advice can you offer those
needing to hit those big ‘money’ notes ?
