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Hoarseness: The Top 5 Causes & How to Avoid It By Tammy Frederick Maybe you are like many singers who have experienced a dry, gravelly voice the morning after a hard night of singing. You may not be too concerned about this vocal roughness if you are able to rest your voice for a few days, but what if you have to perform again tonight? What if tonight’s performance has to be the best of your life? Now, the state of your voice becomes all consuming. How can I fix it? Is there some miracle liquid I can drink? How much water can I drink before the show? Although there are some tactics that will help ease hoarseness, curing chronic hoarseness permanently begins long before it even happens and it involves dealing with the number of factors that cause it. Read more...
The In’s and Out’s of Breathing By Tammy Frederick Breathing is our life support and an involuntary action that our body performs, so you would think we couldn’t get it wrong. But, many of us do not breathe properly, especially when we start singing. This can lead to a host of problems including hoarseness, vocal fatigue, inconsistent performances and can even affect your pitch. Breathing should feel free and easy - extra musculature and tension only serve to drain you of your much-needed energy. The main elements involved in breathing are the diaphragm, your posture, the inhalation and the exhalation. Once a basic understanding of these functions is developed, you can put it together to create superior vocal production. Read more...
The Singers Warm Up By Tammy Frederick The number one thing you can do to make an immediate impact in your singing is to start warming up your voice before you sing. Rehearsing and performing with no warm up is like a runner choosing not to stretch before hitting the pavement. Developing a warm up routine can benefit you for more than physical reasons; by taking the time to connect to your voice and prepare, you will set yourself up mentally for a great performance, practice or recording session. Read more...
Harmonizing By Tammy Frederick For some, harmonizing comes very naturally. You may have friends or colleagues or you may be one of these people yourself. For example, you are at a birthday party and the cake comes out; everybody starts singing Happy Birthday and then you hear a voice singing different notes than the rest of the group, but it is not a terrible sound, it is a blending of the sound. They have the ability to harmonize with the melody line of Happy Birthday. Although it may seem unattainable if it doesn’t come naturally, have no fear. Harmonizing is actually a very simple process that will just require some time and practice on your part. It is a skill that can definitely be learned. Read more...
How to Make Your Songs Sing By Tammy Frederick Songs are stories put to music. When we learn a new song it is important to learn it technically, note for note, and how to navigate it properly. But, it is equally important to think about the story within the song. Doing so will breathe life, confidence and emotion into them. Even if you are the songwriter, experimenting with the following suggestions can help make your songs really sing. To make the most of these exercises record yourself so you can note the differences and incorporate any worthy discoveries. Read more…
Developing Good Pitch By Tammy Frederick Everyone has good pitch. Everyone’s brain and ear is capable of hearing and matching pitches. So if this is the case why do we sing out of tune at times or a lot of the time? There are a few reasons why this occurs and being able to sing on pitch is not elusive to you as so many people think. The term Tone Deaf is thrown about very casually, but it is actually pretty rare for someone to actually be diagnosed with Amusia the medical term for tone deafness. In the majority of cases, singing “off pitch” at times is merely from a lack of vocal coordination. Read more...
“We have greatly appreciated Tammy's obvious talent and dedication for several years here at Canadian Musician magazine. The consistent expertise she offers our readers is intensely valuable.” Michael Filer, Former Editor, Canadian Musician magazine.

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