These exercises are designed to strengthen your power voice.
Puffy cheeks
Think chipmunk cheeks! Puff your cheeks out with air and make a closed mouth “B” sound in a chest-dominant mix tone. You should feel a healthy pressure in your mouth and your diaphragm/ab muscles. This is a powerful exercise for building deep cord compression while protecting your vocal cords from strain. It’s a workout, but also therapy for a tired voice!
AW octave/long scale
Relax your voice as you head into the open vowel! Release, don’t tense up. Aim for a narrow mouth, slightly lowered larynx, and pharyngeal resonance to allow for the tilt of resonance into the higher range.
Try watching yourself in a mirror to make sure you’re keeping a narrow, consistent mouth shape as you go through the scales!
