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VOICE ACTING Got A Thin-Sounding Voice? Develop Rich, Full Resonance With These Tongue-Jaw Tips November 11, 2014  By Ann S. Utterback, Ph.D. Voice Specialist Author, Broadcaster's Survival Guide A thin voice is one of the problems news directors contact me about most often. They ask me if there is anything that can be done about it. I always tell them that it’s one of the toughest problems to fix, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. I have heard almost 100% improvement in some clients, but it takes a devoted person who will work diligently to make the change. Why is it so hard? There may be multiple reasons why the person is using a thin voice. Some of them are physiological and some of them may be psychological. Consider Marilyn Monroe’s voice. It was thin and childlike for a reason. It made her appear vulnerable and helpless, which fit most of the roles she was given. WHAT'S HAPPENING: TONGUE & JAW But let’s look at the physiological reasons for a thin voice. The problems are in the position of the tongue and the openness of the jaw. Both of these contribute to the amount of air that can resonate in the oral cavity. The more air that resonates, the richer and fuller the voice sounds. So:
Let’s try an exercise to feel the tongue issue. Say the word, "gone” a few times. Now say the word, "good” a few times, trying to keep the tongue in the same position on the vowel sound for both. Switch between the two words to get the feeling of the tongue in the low position for "gone.” This will help you feel the lower tongue position so you can carry it over into other vowels. NOW OPEN WIDE ... For the openness of the jaw, I tell clients to think of an inverted megaphone with the large part in the back of the mouth and the narrow opening in the front. This gives you a nice opening of the jaw. To practice this, say "ah” and then any word to follow it. Try to keep the open feeling you get with "ah” as you say the other word. PRACTICE, PRACTICE Both of these exercises are important in beginning to turn a thin voice into a rich, full voice. The bummer is that you have to practice every day, and it may take months before you hear a change. Here’s an added tip that will begin to help immediately: Avoid smiling while talking. Smiling works against the small opening of the mouth and actually makes your voice sound higher pitched. And, finally, if you need to sound childlike for a voice over, try humping up your tongue in your mouth and not opening your jaw very much! --------------------------------------------  ABOUT ANNAnn
S. Utterback, Ph.D., is a voice specialist with more than 40 years
experience and has helped hundreds of people make the most of their
voices, working with broadcasters, voice over artists and podcasters
around the world. An author of eight books and over 50 articles on
voice, her Broadcaster's Survival Guide
e-book offers more tips on dealing with holiday stress, plus advice on
how to improve your voice over performance by making simple lifestyle
changes.
Web: http://OnlineVoiceCoaching.comClick for: Broadcaster's Survival Guide |
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