Heather's Happy Voice Blog

A young woman I teach went off to sing her first professional "session" today. I have no doubt it will be the first of many! Although she is an accomplished and confident singer,  she was shocked how her nerves played havoc with her body and mind, before she even left the house.  She called to ask me what to do. I thought I would share my advice... Firstly - Understand what's going on: Nerves, adrenaline, butterflies, nausea, shakiness, wobbly knees, shallow breathing, needing a wee..  These (charming!) symptoms are all natural responses to fear, excitement or other emotional arousal.  They are part of the body's primitive "fight, flight or freeze" response to danger, signalled by the amygdala in the brain.  Oxygen pumps to your muscles,  so you're ready to run and react in super-fast time. Great for saving you from a stampeding woolly mammoth, but singing a jingle for a TV commercial? Not so much. (Alas, the amygdala doesn't k...

 It's lovely to get into singing as an adult. It helps us relax and express ourselves, while providing those well-earned endorphins! Singing is a fabulous stress-buster as it  gets us breathing properly, helps the energy to flow and gets those feelings out! Many people feel as if singing gives them a therapeutic experience. The more  your  singing technique improves, the more control you gain and confidence grows as a result. Also, singing is such an individual form of expression, and everyone has their own relationship with their voice.  As well as being a singing teacher, I am also a qualified life coach, and use those skills to help people identify singing/creative goals. I try to  work with everyone in a way that suits them, towards achieving those goals, whatever they may be. Some people have instant access to their voices and  seem to sing effortlessly . Others need to develop an awareness of how the voice works, and  build up techni...