VIBRATO: EXERCISES, TECHNIQUES, ADVICE

Many teachers claim that vibrato (the inner "spinning" sound of the voice) cannot be developed through exercises.. They say it will appear in it's own good time. The problem is that this could take years, if ever, to happen. I've had almost total success using the following techniques with hundreds of students. Give it a try.

This is difficult to teach without your hearing me do the exercises, but here goes.

There are basically two ways to achieve a vibrato : The first (not good) is made by releasing rapid pulsations of breath. Try this by picking a comfortable note and singing it until you begin to run out of breath. Keep the sound very steady by being aware of your air flow.

Now, try that again, only this time break up the sound with a series of little "H"s: "ha-ha-ha-ha-ha, etc. Feel how your lower belly muscles are involved in the process.

Once you can do that omit the "H"s and just sing the repeated Ah"s, feeling the same lower stomach action. This sounds a lot like a kid making the sound of a car trying to start. (go for that memory rather than trying too hard to make your stomach move.) Take your time with this so you can recognize the mechanical "machine gun" effect this vibrato makes. Be very aware of the slight in and out movement going on in the lower belly. Now, understand that THERE SHOULD BE NO DISCERNIBLE ACTIVITY IN THE BELLY WHEN ADDING VIBRATO. What you are doing here does NOT produce a vibrato acceptable by most modern listeners, but you need to understand how it feels in order to avoid it.

The second (correct) way to produce a vibrato is by wavering the pitch, a little bit high, a little bit low. A good way to visualize this is to draw a straight line on a page, and then draw another line through it which crosses above and below as it follows the first line. This wavering line represents the sound as it crisscrosses the fundamental pitch, a little sharp- a little flat, a little sharp - a little flat.

Now, try holding your note again, only this time visualize that wavering line and follow that with your sound. Take this slowly. Don't be in hurry to get up to speed. Rushing things will actually impead your progress.

Now, sing a shorter note, making this wavering-pitch sound 3 times. (ah-ah-ah, only the pitch drops a little flat at the end of each ah) I'm using the written "uh" to represent the drop in pitch. Like this: Ah-uh, ah-uh, ah-uh. Make sure there are no "h"s anywhere in this exercises. Connect all three, don't separate them.

Once you are comfortable with making the 3 little wavering variations in the pitch add another group of 3, making 6 pitch wavers. Do this until you feel you can control this and add another group of 3, and so on. Notice that you are mostly taking the pitch flat when you move it up and down. (A-Ab, A-Ab, A-Ab) This is fine for now. As you continue to work with this exercise your body brain will recognize what you are trying to do, and begin to move the pitch a little sharp also. Don't force this. It will happen over a short period of time. (Weeks-a few months)

Dividing the pitch wavers into groups of 3 helps you control the sound. Think 1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-3. (Ah-uh,(1) ah-uh(2) ah-uh(3). connecting these into one continuous sound.

Air pulsation does occur, but you probably won't notice it. Certainly not by feeling any movement in the belly or diaphragm area. Also YOUR JAW HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS. DON'T LET IT MOVE UP AND DOWN. (I realize some terrific singers move their jaw with the vibrato, but even the greatest singers do some things wrong.)

This exercise will probably take more breath than you are used to using. Don't worry about that. As the vibrato becomes more and more a part of your voice that will go away.

Practice every day after re-reading this post. Don't worry that the sound is unnatural. This is just an exercise to train the sub-conscience to make the real vibrato. The pitch distance will get smaller as you continue to work.

As you get more comfortable with holding a note this way, go to a song and sing it, adding the 1-2-3 wavering sound to some of the longer notes. Try singing a scale slowly, moving each note for 6 wavers. (Do-o-o-o-o/ Re-eh-eh-eh-eh-eh/ Mi-e-e-e-e-e, etc; keep the smooth connection going) Make up your own variations on how to use this technique. Be very aware of the 1-2-3 pattern. You can drop this later.

Message me or post any questions. This is a complicated process.

DON'T MOVE YOUR BELLY OR JAW TO CREATE VIBRATO

Al

HEY BRO

This is fantastic. I got the right idea pretty much immediately after reading your post, and now I have a bit of control over my vibrato. I'm gonna need tons more practice, but this is a breakthrough

Somewhat related to the topic at hand: Do you have any idea how Matthew Good does his vibrato? I doesn't really sound like the regular type of vibrato you hear with most singers. It sounds a lot more "shaky" (which I suppose suits the aesthetic of his songs).

Is he doing something unhealthy? I heard he had problems with nodules on his vocal cords.

I happened to watch the Woodstock movie this past weekend, and I was struck by the truly excessive vibrato of Joan Baez. Yikes! She couldn't seem to hold a note without that motorboat sound immediately kicking in. This really ruined the performance for me.

And while I'm griping, I'll also say that I don't very much like Elvis Costello's vibrato--way too abrasive for my taste; it ruined the Burt Bacharach stuff for me, as well as much of the later material.

Thanks, Al, for these awesome tips, but I want to emphasize that vibrato is an art as well as a technique! It is a dangerous weapon that can easily recoil and take out the user.

Be careful out there.

I happened to watch the Woodstock movie this past weekend, and I was struck by the truly excessive vibrato of Joan Baez. Yikes! She couldn't seem to hold a note without that motorboat sound immediately kicking in. This really ruined the performance for me. And while I'm griping, I'll also say that I don't very much like Elvis Costello's vibrato--way too abrasive for my taste; it ruined the Burt Bacharach stuff for me, as well as much of the later material. Thanks, Al, for these awesome tips, but I want to emphasize that vibrato is an art as well as a technique! It is a dangerous weapon that can easily recoil and take out the user. Be careful out there.

Werd.

The whole 80's vibrato is a pet peeve of mine. So huge and excessive! There are many different ways to use vibrato, and it's a big part of what makes your voice your own, but I agree. Be careful. Judicious usage of vibrato is key.