COMPETITION VOCAL REMINDERS
The weekend of Regional Competition/Convention places many demands on our voices. Be intentional about caring for your instrument, and avoid choices that may cause vocal distress. Here are some tips to safeguard your vocal health. Take care of your voice, and it will take you places you’ve never dreamed you could go!! Have a joyful, healthy, happy convention weekend!
HYDRATE
TAKE SPECIAL CARE OF YOUR VOICE
STAY RESTED
MAKE HEALTHY CHOICES
The weekend of Regional Competition/Convention places many demands on our voices. Be intentional about caring for your instrument, and avoid choices that may cause vocal distress. Here are some tips to safeguard your vocal health. Take care of your voice, and it will take you places you’ve never dreamed you could go!! Have a joyful, healthy, happy convention weekend!
HYDRATE
- Drink lots and lots of water. And then drink some more! WAY more than you thirst for. Don’t wait until competition day! This must be a consistent habit to keep your vocal folds moist and the throat mucus thin and unobstructed. Also, make sure you’re getting enough electrolytes so that it will “stick”!
- Beware of climate change! We are singing in a desert environment. It’s a good idea to humidify your hotel room, which is a notoriously dry environment. Bring a portable humidifier and keep it running throughout the weekend. At the very least, keep your hotel room bathtub partially filled with water when it’s not in use! This helps to add humidity to your room. Double the amount of water you typically need in Southern California, while in Arizona, to be safe.
TAKE SPECIAL CARE OF YOUR VOICE
- Avoid clearing your throat. This is a harsh action that does more damage than good. It can become a very bad habit, so be aware of how much you are doing it. Swallow, drink more water, and, if you must, clear it lightly with a little more air, very gently!
- Always warm up your voice before you sing! We will only have a few rehearsals during competition weekend. Gently warm up your voice before coming to rehearsal. It’s a good idea to keep a warm-up recording with you and use it throughout the weekend, especially on chorus contest day.
- Be careful how you speak. Statistics show a high percentage of singer’s vocal problems begin with their speaking voice. If you’re using your voice in a loud manner you are abusing your voice. The high range is always what is affected most. Be very careful on airplanes (which are very dry and loud), in crowds, and when you’re excited…you may not realize how loudly you are speaking. That’s right…use your INSIDE VOICE all the time! In addition, learn how to find your speaking voice’s optimum pitch and speak in it consistently - use plenty of support and head voice. Remember it takes air to speak correctly – it is not just for good singing!
STAY RESTED
- Get the right amount of sleep. Fatigue will cause you to have to expend extra energy to use your WHOLE voice and to get into your open resonating sound, and into your high notes. You will push your voice harder than you should; it’s just inevitable. So, sleep! As many hours it takes for you to feel rested and energized.
MAKE HEALTHY CHOICES
- Pay attention to food choices.
- Foods and drinks that thicken the mucus in the laryngeal area or create too much stomach acid adversely affect vocal production.
- Eating late at night can damage the voice if the stomach acid it creates washes over your vocal cords while you are sleeping. Know what foods and drinks are triggers for you, especially close to performance time.
- Common foods to avoid include fatty and fried foods, spicy foods, thick sauces, milk and dairy products, sugared foods and drinks, coffee/caffeine, chocolate, and alcohol!!
- Supplements, Medications & Beauty Products
- Consistency in your routine is an important way to ensure a successful contest week.
- Avoid new supplements, medications, and beauty products the week of contest. This is NOT the right time to try new products!
- Please support the vocal and respiratory health of ALL San Diego singers by opting for fragrance-free products (makeup, skincare, haircare, etc.)
- Take your vitamins, especially Vitamin C! It’s always cold season these days. “Airborne” is a great over-the-counter supplement that helps strengthen the immune system to ward off colds.
