Expert: Wanda Reinholdt - 1/18/2008

Question
Hello, again.  I just wanted to ask about a way to extend my range.  A few months ago I would have been desperately asking for a way to extend the upper part of my range, which now goes up to an A on a good day and an F# to a G daily with a warm up.  But, now I have a question about extending my lower range.  I only feel comfortable going down to a C, but I can do a B if I have to.  So, my question is what exercises can I do that will allow my lower range to be a lot more powerful and LOUD especially.  Does breathing properly affect this?  I do that now when I try to hit a lower note and it doesn't seem to help, but I am able to hit a lower note a lot easier if I switch to my chest voice (but then that sounds weird when I've been using my head voice the whole song).  Any help would be greatly appreciated.  Thank you!

Answer
Hi Kelly...Thanks for writing back with this question.

Lower range work has a lot to do with how relaxed you are and also on how your breath is working.  The best way to extend a range is to work on one note at a time.  

So first, do breathing exercises in through the nose and out through the mouth breathing deeply until you are relaxed.  

Then, I always suggest that singers do some scale work to work on range.  

When doing the scales, try to not move to a lower note until you get a clear sound on the note you are working on.  If you keep working on that note, you will eventually find it.  

By holding the note you are working on in the scale and moving the sound from head to chest to abdomen too you may also find that the lower notes come best when you place the voice in a different place.   

Does that help you at all?

Wanda