5 Secrets of Vibrato: How to Build a Smooth Natural Vibrato for Your Singing Voice
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5 Secrets of Vibrato: How to Build a Smooth Natural Vibrato for Your Singing Voice
Vibrato is a powerful tool that adds professionalism and style to the singing voice.
Vibrato is a slight variation in the pitch, due to the freely oscillating vocal cords that occurs when the singer has mastered breath control and technique. It requires the skill of an open throat and closed cords that come together properly. Vibrato will occur naturally for most singers, but can be developed in voices where it doesn’t occur naturally.
Natural vibrato occurs when a singer has developed good foundational vocal techniques, such as breath control, pitch accuracy, and tone quality. In essence, Natural Vibrato is the result of a relaxed and well-supported voice.
Some of you sing with more vibrato than straight tone.
Some of you have a fast vibrato.
Some of you have a wobbly or slow vibrato
And some of you have no vibrato.
Here are my top 5 secrets of a smooth natural vibrato for your singing voice.
1. Posture creates a freer, less constricted throat area
Vibrato won’t happen naturally with poor posture. Poor posture or a slumped chest interrupts the path of the breath and chokes the throat.
Here’s one of several reasons why. The weight of the head is 10 to 15 pounds. When posture is slumped (even slightly), the head is in a slightly forward position. With the head in this position, what is holding the weight of the head over the body? The neck. When the neck muscles hold the head over the body that go into a constant state of contraction which constricts the throat causing tightness and tension in the throat muscles. This tension prohibits the vibrato which is accomplished with free movement within the laryngeal muscles.
Start by lengthening the back of your neck and tipping your chin slightly down in a neutral position. Balance your head over your body as if it is resting there. At the same time, lengthen the small of your back.
Try this:
- Stand evenly in the center of both feet
- Soften your knees so they are not locked
- Scarecrow: Head sitting on top of spine
- Tuck your pelvis slightly underneath you
- Pull up tall out of the waist
- Shoulders at rest (heavy): down and back
- Lengthen the cervical spine (neck)
- Lift the base of your skull towards the ceiling
- The head is level + placed over your body (not in front of)
- The chin is slightly tipped down to achieve a level head position and a long cervical spine
As you stand in this alignment
- Notice if you feel your body working more on one side?
- Do you feel any tension anywhere?
- Do you feel any muscle pulling or pain anywhere?
- Any areas you feel tension are indicators of shortened muscles and areas that need attention and lengthening.
If you feel tension, after you get into position, gently take a step back and soften those areas. Over time this tension will go away. For now, practice this alignment before singing and during singing notice what is occurring and make notes.
2. Reducing tension at the throat using a transfer of the point of appoggio
Vibrato won’t happen naturally when the throat and neck muscles are too tight closing in on the laryngeal muscles. The throat needs to be freed up to get a natural vibrato.
I call this the “chest press” When done correctly takes the pressure off your throat and puts it at the chest wall which activates the pectorals so the vocal muscles are freer to oscillate and produce vibrato.
Try this:
- Stand in front of a mirror; press on your chest with both hands.
- Raise your chest higher than normal.
- Exhale, but don’t drop your chest. Keep your chest raised throughout your inhale—exhale.
- Put about 10 lbs of pressure on your chest while exhaling. As you do that, relax the back of your neck.
- Repeat singing an “ahhhh” and hold it out as long as possible without dropping your chest at ALL.
- Repeat and keep the back of your neck relaxed. Imagine the air spinning around in your mouth while singing – keep the pressure on your chest (see video).
With correct posture and vocal technique training, anyone can develop a natural and smooth vibrato!
Start with my Singers Gift Warmups. Click here to learn more and get a set for yourself!
3. Attaining the right speed and smoothness for your vibrato
A beautiful even and smooth vibrato has a lot to do with the speed and tempo.
If your vibrato is fast or a bit slow you can work on evening it out by developing better breath control and support.
A vibrato that is too fast generally comes from:
- Overpushing air rather than resonating freely
- Overuse of accessory muscles
- A tense throat and stomach muscles
- A tight neck constricts vibrato making you push more causing a “goat” vibrato or fast vibrato.
A vibrato that is too slow or wobbly is more manipulated than natural.
- Vocal muscles that are a little too lax
- Lack of good breath control
- Overusing the throat or manipulating the movement in the larynx
To develop a natural speed for your vibrato:
- Work on your posture and getting the chest lifted to support the voice.
- Diaphragmatic breathing to develop better and ample breath support
- Reduce tension in the neck and throat muscles
- Establishing support at the pectorals and chest wall by transferring the point of appoggio at the chest to take pressure off the voice (#2 above)
To work on decreasing vocal tension at the throat practice my vocal massage techniques inside my Singers Gift Vocal Warmups here.
Practice these vocal massages and more inside my Singers Gift Vocal Warmups — OR join my Vocal Freedom Circle to get the full vocal method including the warmups to develop a strong and healthy award-winning voice.
For more information on vocal massage techniques – click here to visit my blog 6 Secrets to a World-Class Voice: How to Build a Strong and Healthy Voice (see #4).
4. Troubleshooting a non-existent or fast vibrato
A non-existent vibrato happens because of too much tension at the throat. The tighter the throat muscles the less vibrato.
Tension causes a lack of vibrato or can also cause a “fast vibrato” by pushing air past the cords that “force” a fast vibrato.
Remember vibrato is a naturally occurring element resulting from a freer vocal throat and instrument.
If you’re having trouble creating natural vibrato, try some of the techniques below to kickstart your vibrato and get it moving.
For no vibrato try this:
- Keep your chest lifted closer to your chin during singing.
- Try the chest press technique to take pressure off the throat so it can ring more freely (#2 above). This is the most effective way to instantly get the vibrato moving. Practice this vocal technique inside my Singers Gift Vocal Warmups — OR join my Vocal Freedom Circle to get the full vocal method including the warmups to develop a strong and healthy award-winning voice.
For a fast vibrato try this:
- Work on posture and keeping your chest lifted during singing.
- Decrease tension in the neck
- Reduce throat tension. See my Mini Voice Lesson on Instagram to practice this technique with me here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CgU5WvyFbOi/
5. Practice control over straight tone and vibrato
Control over the vibrato is important for stylistic reasons. Using vibrato on all of your notes is generally a more operatic or musical theatre approach.
Underuse and overuse. Different styles use vibrato differently. The overuse of vibrato sounds unnatural in contemporary singing (Pop, Rock, and R&B). Control over vibrato is what you need to work into your skill level.
For a more natural style or contemporary approach overusing the vibrato sounds a bit too formal or “fussy”. In Pop singing, try using a straight tone at the top of note holds moving into vibrato instead of going right into vibrato.
Try this:
- Sing AH and hold the note out
- Sing AH and hold the note straight without vibrato
- Sing AH and hold the note straight with vibrato
- Now Sing AH and hold the note straight for 3 counts and then go into vibrato for 3 counts
Practice this to get more control over the breath. Straight tone is a technique to use to conserve the breath to sing longer. It is also a technique we use in vocal arranging for stylizing and dynamics.
For those of you who are looking to smooth out or build your vibrato watch my Mini Voice Lesson on vibrato on Instagram here.
You can also practice my Breathing Lessons on Instagram here:
If you’re still struggling, seek out a local vocal coach who’ll be able to observe your technique and introduce practical ways to develop your voice further.
JOIN ME EVERY WEDNESDAY AT 12 pm Eastern for my Weekly Livestream: Join me on YouTube (and Instagram, Facebook)– where I discuss the Blog of the Week followed by a short Q&A where you can ask me questions.
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