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Acting in Plays, Singing/Increase chest voice
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Question
Hello Mr. Martinfield,
I'm wondering if it's possible to increase your chest voice range? I'm a soprano and while I do have a decently strong chest voice on some of the lower notes, as soon as I hit about an E4 I need to start mixing or it starts to sound strained. I have no true belt to speak of, though can do a mix-belt.
My issue is that a local theatre will be doing Legally Blonde next year and while I would love to audition, due to my lack of chest voice range, I just don't have a good pop sound.
Are there exercises that can be done to increase this range? I think if I could comfortable sing in my chest voice even up to an A5 withour having to mix, I would be able to get by.
Thanks so much for your help,
Ashley
Hi, Ashley –
)
Thank you for the question.
In the Real World of professional singing – including regional theatre – it's never about being able "to get by". Nobody wants to shell out hard earned money on singers who are just getting by and never quite hit the mark.
Your job as a soprano is to be the best soprano in town and to be able to compete against other trained sopranos seeking that one job available to one soprano (and maybe an understudy) that season or with a particular company which has an opening for one soprano right now. Simple.
Trying to distort and compromise your voice in order compete against bonafide mezzo-sopranos, particularly the current Pop-variety who are lined-up around the block to do the role of "Elle" in LEGALLY BLONDE – is totally futile. Moreover, which Casting Director (or critic) do you think is not going to notice? If I'm on your audition panel, I will notice. And I will interrupt your 16-measure audition for that Pop/Belter role. "Thank you!"
It is totally possible for you as a soprano to develop more strength and ease in both your lower register and the lower portion of your middle register. The thing is – composers don't keep sopranos down in that area very much – simply because there's not a lot of dynamic down there. Those same notes are the territory of mezzo-sopranos, particularly those who "belt". That's where they make their living. That's where they shine. That's what distinguishes their roles from those of a soprano. As a soprano, you will never sustain yourself in mezzo-soprano roles and if you attempt it – you will create problems in your overall vocal production that will either ruin your range or cost you lots of money in an attempt to recover it.
My job as a professional vocal coach is to enable you to operate the equipment you've got. Your job as a soprano is to learn about the soprano repertoire and all the roles – and various singing opportunities – that might become available to you one of these days.
I am a vocal coach to working singers in the San Francisco Bay Area. I'm also the Editor and Publisher of SanFranciscoSentinel.com All my articles and interviews provide a link to my personal e-mail.
Check out my recent interview with popular TV host, David Perry, on "Ten Percent":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKeeTYTYMAI
Below are links to my articles and youtubes on San Francisco's entertainment and cultural scene:
The Sentinel's own editor Sean Martinfield is interviewed by David Perry on Comcast. Catch the Action!
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=166025
THOMAS JANE – An interview with the star of HBO's "Hung" and 3D Thriller "Dark Country"
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=166393
KYLE KETELSEN and JANE ARCHIBALD – Featured in SF Symphony's "Brahms Requiem", 11/17–20
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=166388
MICHAEL CORBETT – SF historian to speak at The Presidio, “The Creation of the Port and the Development of the City
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=166379
CIRQUE DU SOLEIL – Best Show In Town, Now Through December 18th at AT&T Park
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=166379
CARMEN – Closing the season at San Francisco Opera
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=166277
MAHARAJA – The Splendor of India's Royal Courts, at the Asian Art Museum
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PISSARRO'S PEOPLE – Stunning collection now at the Legion of Honor, through 1/22
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KYLE KETELSEN and JANE ARCHIBALD – Featured Soloists in SF Symphony's Presentation of the Brahms Requiem
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=166147
DAVID LOMELI – Performs at Día de los Muertos Community Concert with SF Symphony, Saturday, 11/5
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=166113
BEVAN DUFTY – A Conversation with The City's Most Effective Candidate for Mayor
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KRISTIN CLAYTON– A Conversation with "The Diva" of Teatro ZinZanni
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"XERXES" – At San Francisco Opera
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CD Release: "Feels Like Home", The Celtic Tenors ★★★★
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DON GIOVANNI – It's smart and new at San Francisco Opera
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"REAL STEEL" – Reels of money-making crap starring Hugh Jackman
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=163408
LUCAS MEACHEM – Former Adler Fellow to sing "Don Giovanni" at San Francisco Opera
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CAMERON CARPENTER – International Superstar Organist plays "Phantom of the Opera" at Davies Symphony Hall, Friday, October 30th
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"THE MILL & THE CROSS" – Film director Lech Majewski brings 16th Century masterpiece to life
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"LUCREZIA BORGIA" – A Hard Act To Swallow at San Francisco Opera
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EDDIE MULLER and "Fear Over Frisco" – An Interview with the Czar of Noir
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HENRY PHIPPS – A Conversation with Featured Boy Soprano in SF Opera's "Heart of a Soldier"
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"HEART OF A SOLDIER" – A Rapturous World Premiere At San Francisco Opera
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MEET MAESTRO NICOLA LUISOTTI – San Francisco Opera opens 2011/12 season with Puccini's "Turandot"
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SHN Presents – STOMP and How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Musical
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"HEART OF A SOLDIER" – SFOpera Presents World Premiere September 10th
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MEROLA OPERA’S GRAND FINALE – Meet Daniel Curran and Mark Diamond
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“HE WHO GETS SLAPPED” – A conversation with composer and pianist Matti Bye
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HEIDI MELTON – An Interview with “Sieglinde” in San Francisco Opera’s DIE WALKÜRE
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MARY GIBBONEY – An Interview with the star of “ABSOLUTELY SAN FRANCISCO”
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CAMERON CARPENTER – An Interview with Seán Martinfield
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AT LAST! – ANN HAMPTON CALLAWAY – An Interview with Seán Martinfield
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THIS GUN FOR HIRE, 1942 – Looking at "Now you see it, now you don't" sung by Veronica Lake
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"Would You Like A Souvenir?" – Sean Martinfield and Janet Roitz explore a song from Film Noir classic NORA PRENTISS (1947)
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Best regards,
Seán Martinfield
SanFranciscoSentinel.com
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?cat=65
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Answers by Expert:
Sean Martinfield
Expertise
I am a professional vocal coach in San Francisco. In addition to answers from a previous web site (Askme.com - where my "tag" was "VocalCoach") I have published over 2000 responses related to vocal training - particularly as it relates to Musical Theatre and Opera. I have 24 years of experience as Personal Trainer to singers and actors in the San Francisco Bay Area. I sang professionally for 20 years and know what it means to live the life of a musician. I can determine your voice category, i.e., Tenor, Baritone, Bass, Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano, Alto, Alto Belter, etc., and how to broaden and strengthen your range. Need an audition song for a Broadway Musical? I will give you suggestions that are appropriate to your vocal category and to requirements specified in the audition notice. I have also created a vocal methodology, "The Belter`s Method". It will enable those in Musical Theatre to practice more efficiently because it focuses on the demands of professional performers as well as to those auditioning for school and community productions, and as University and Conservatory performing arts majors. If what you want is a better voice and more control over your career moves and choices, contact me. Also, as the Editor of SanFranciscoSentinel.com, it is my privilege to review productions at the San Francisco Opera, Ballet and Symphony, as well as Broadway National Tours booked into San Francisco's Orpheum, Golden Gate and Curran Theatres. I also review works by A.C.T (the American Conservatory Theatre) and Magic Theatre. I cover select films, tributes and retrospects, and various international film festivals – particulary those booked into The City's opulent Castro Theatre – including the LGBT Frameline Festival, International Film Festival, Silent Film Festival, Jewish Film Festival, etc. For private vocal instruction, I can be contacted through SanFranciscoSentinel.com. Look under: Seán Martinfield, Sentinel Editor and Publisher.
Experience
As a vocal coach, I work primarily with singers and actors throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. My students range from absolute beginners to working professionals, from pre-schoolers to senior citizens. The vast majority of my clients come to me through recommendation. I know how to identify any singer's vocal category, i.e., soprano, tenor, alto, baritone, etc. I know how to muscle-up every singer's vocal range and to expand it beyond conventional definitions. I have developed a vocal methodology for those who want to know how to belt, THE BELTER'S METHOD. As a singer who spent half of his career doing Bel Canto, I know that classical or Italian methodologies do not work in Standard American music. Bel Canto cannot be "adapted" to meet the needs of contemporary American music, including the demands of the Musical Theatre.
There are a number of major components to my work as a vocal coach. The first is to identify the client's vocal category and to strengthen and maximize the vocal range accordingly. Then it's about teaching a reliable vocal workout that will enable the client to gain better control of their musicianship. That includes scale work to expand the vocal range and to improve placement, breath control, and diction. Then we work on material for the audition portfolio, the immediate job or assignment, a recording session, etc. My task to is to better equip singers and actors who are hoping to or relying upon their performance skills and vocal endurance to maintain a career in the Performing Arts. My clients regularly appear in cabarets and musical productions throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Some have worked in New York and gone on National Tours. For more information, Contact me at: Broadwaybelters@yahoo.com
Education/Credentials
San Francisco State University – BA in Theatre Arts; graduate work in Theatre, Philosophy, and Comparative Reiligion.
Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley – Graduate work in Ethics
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