The Modal or Chest Voice Register


         The modal or chest voice is the NATURAL register for speaking and singing, and the vast majority of both are done in this register. Women sometimes speak up into their Head voice as well but most daily speech activity still centers on the Modal or Chest Register.  This means that whenever you talk on the phone or to another person, you are most probably using your Modal or Chest Register.  This is one of the reasons why your Modal or Chest Register is more developed than other registers of your voice; you use it pretty constantly already.  As you sing higher and higher pitches, your Vocal Folds get longer, they become tenser, and they become thinner along their edges.  After you’ve worked consistently with a professional vocal coach and practiced regularly on your own (THIS is of tantamount importance), you should be able to phonate two octaves or more in Modal or Chest Register alone. 
         To achieve success with this register in particular, it is necessary to learn to be sensitive to and learn to make minor adjustments in your Larynx as your voice ascends.  If you don’t, the Larynx will adjust itself as it needs to but the result will be static, jerky adjustments that sound like vocal breaks and cracks in the voice.  Many of my students know that I talk about a Manual Shift (Stick Shift) car.  When you learn to drive a Manual Transmission, this means you have to do the shifting; an Automatic Transmission does the “shifting” for you.  You learn to watch your Odometer, to hear the sound of the engine as it’s revving, and eventually, to begin to “feel” when it’s time to change to the next gear.  This is how familiar you need to be with your voice.  You must also be HONEST with yourself and patient.  What I mean by this is that you need to be extremely familiar with your own voice; what it will and won’t do; where you feel “pressure” or struggle or it begins to feel “too high”; where you feel most comfortable and when you feel less comfortable.  These issues are not “problems”; they are simply the nuances of your voice that you need to, first, become aware of, and then, begin to work with in order to create ONE fluid, consistent voice, as opposed to a separate Chest voice and Head voice.  This requires a LOT of practice and hard work but it can be achieved.
         The color and timbre of the Chest or Modal voice is darker and warmer than the Head or Falsetto tones.  The overall sound tends to be fatter and richer than those produced on higher vocal pitches.  Every layer of the Vocal Folds is employed to create the Chest or Modal voice sound.  As with any area of the voice, strong breath support will help to power a strong Chest or Modal Register.
         Usually, between the Modal or Chest Register, and the Head Voice, there is a transitional area where you have a “break” (this occurs when you force your voice to continue in the Chest or Modal Register beyond the point where you should have transitioned to your Head Voice or Falsetto Register).  Check out Blog Post #75 to learn about working in this Passaggio.  The next blog post will be on the Falsetto Register and/or the Head Voice, and the differences between those two registers.
         Thanks so much for reading!  Read the following posts on Head Voice and Whistle Register.  As always, please send me any questions, comments, and/or future blog post suggestions.  If you have questions about my lessons or me, check out my website at www.SingitForward.net.  Sing it Forward!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Basic Music Theory - 1st Post - Notes, Rests, and Note Particulars

Image
          It is really important for a singer, even an amazingly gifted singer, to understand basic Music Theory.    That doesn’t mean you have to be any kind of virtuoso or study music theory for dozens of years but it does mean you need to study some fundamental or elemental aspects of theoretical concepts.   Your first “basic” lesson is below.   Stay tuned for more “installments” in the future.   Here goes: •             NOTES AND RESTS - Melodies in music are represented through patterns of “Notes” and “Rests”.   Here is a chart of the most common types of Notes and Rests: The Quarter Note is, by far, the most common type of Note and Rest but each of these notes and rests are important, universal, and frequently-occurring.   You DO need to know, however, that the values you see here CAN change, depending on the Time Signature (see the next post that covers Time Signatures) of the entire song.   The values shown here are applicable for any Time Signature with a
Read more

Vocal Quirks - Why do I Sometimes Yawn, Hiccup, Burp, or Crack?

When we begin singing, sometimes the very strangest things can happen. You may start yawning or burping or getting the hiccups or even hear your voice crack.   Why do these things happen, especially when you first begin singing?   Let’s explore some ideas…             Why Would Singing Make Me Yawn?   So, it’s true confession time.   I have always been told and believed that we yawn because our brains tell our lungs we need more Oxygen and so, initiate a deeper inhalation.   The yawn DOES cause a deeper breath and it IS a great way to practice deeper, voluntary breathing.   However, evidently the REAL reason we yawn is still for the brain but it is actually a “thermoregulating device”, which is to say the swift intake of air acts to normalize the temperature of your brain in the same way you might use a fan to automatically come on in your garage, if the temperature reaches a certain height.             So, why might you yawn when you begin a voice lesson?   W
Read more

Basic Music Theory - #3 - Rhythms and Putting it All Together

Image
So, here is the last installment in this beginning set of Music Theory posts.   I know I’ve covered an awful lot in these last 3 posts but I promise you, if you’ll devote a little consistent time to learning it, the benefits you’ll receive will far outweigh your small time investment.   These key components of Music Theory make up the essential underpinnings of composed music.   The next set of Music Theory posts will cover different types of Chords, Scales, and Chord Progressions but until then, enjoy these amazing pillars of Music Theory and send me any questions you still have once you’re done.   Here you go: •             RHYTHMS AND TEMPOS - I try to explain the “Beat” of music or the “Rhythm” like our own heartbeat.   It is a regular, constant “pulse” (literally).   Most of the time this “Beat” or “Pulse” is what you dance to, tap your foot to, or clap along with.   “Typical” Rhythms include the March (4/4 Time) and the Waltz (3/4 or 6/8 time), but oth
Read more