How to Improve Your Singing in Steps - Sing into a Corner
How to Improve Your Singing in Steps - Sing into a Corner
"How can I improve my singing without listening to myself sing?" a bewildered student asked. That's when I thought "Ah, it's time to teach her about the corner." No, it was not a punishment, but a brilliant technique that singers and voice teachers use to get an accurate gauge of their resonance.
Why does resonance matter? Isn't how we sound the most important thing? No, and in fact, for singers, the far more important piece of information is "How does it feel?" Singers improve the voice by feeling the singing physically. It's when the singer can feel something is "off" but doesn't quite know what adjustment to make that singing into a corner can make the biggest difference.
This is a quick and easy method to check yourself and make any physical adjustments necessary to fix your resonance in a way that is both safe and accurate. Find a corner in the room that is completely open so that you can stand in it. Face directly into the corner and step as close to the two walls as your shoulders will allow. Put your shoulders against each wall and sing directly into the ninety-degree angle. What you will hear is the resonance from your voice directed off each wall back into each of your ears.
The beauty of this exercise is that working with the feel of the resonance is the most accurate way to make adjustments because once the vibrations are felt and registered, the body adjusts itself without the singer having to think about it or get stuck in a lot of intellectual examination. The nervous system "knows" what to adjust. Feel is far more accurate than sound! Working with how it feels is the fastest way to improve your singing. When you're alone and don't have a teacher right there to hear and help, use the corner instead.