Welcome to Living A Vocal Life: A Podcast For Singers!

Welcome to the Living A Vocal Life Podcast, where I interview singers who have succeeded in creating a life in music. You’ll hear from vocalists of all genres, in different stages of their careers, including singers who’ve been on the Billboard charts and those who are teaching the next generation. What do they have in common? They're all performers with amazing stories to tell and experiences to share.

In our conversations, you’ll learn what inspired them to become a singer, the kinds of challenges they’ve encountered, and how they've overcome them. I'll also share what I've learned on my own journey as a singer and educator — practical tools and insights that will help you to live your best, most authentic vocal life.

Valerie Day in black and white striped turtleneck.

In this episode, I talk about the elements of style in singing with a focus on vibrato.

You’ll learn:

What vibrato is and how it functions.
How to use it to sound authentic in different styles of music.
And ways to experiment with it to make a song your own.

I’m excited to share this essential stylistic tool with you. I know that learning how and when to use vibrato will expand your artistic possibilities too!

For more about the elements of style in singing,
download this free eBook:

The Elements of Style In Singing & How To Make A Song Your Own

“When you’re learning to sing, you start by imitating others. But eventually, you want to be able to craft your own style, so you don’t sound like anyone else. After all, there’s only one you. Your body, your life experience, and your musical style and taste are unique.
”

— Valerie Day

Links:

You can find me on: Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

Links mentioned in today’s episode: My online course, Becoming A Singer: Setting The Stage To Live A Vocal Life.

Theme music for the Podcast was composed by John Smith. He edits all the podcast episodes too. (Thanks honey!)

How To Use Vibrato To Sound Authentic In A Style & Make A Song Your Own
What is style? And why is it important?
When you’re learning to sing, you start by imitating others. But eventually, you want to be able to craft your own style, so you don’t sound like anyone else. After all, there’s only one you. Your body, your life experience, and your musical style and taste are unique.
It’s also essential to sound authentic within a specific genre.
Whether you sing classical music, heavy metal, pop, or jazz, there are stylistic norms you need to be aware of. Once you know what they are, you can find your sound within them, or ignore them entirely.
When you know how to use these stylistic tools, you’ll have more to experiment with, and you’ll expand your artistic possibilities.
Early in my artistic development, everything I sang sounded the same. I found myself boxed in by a limited stylistic palette. Some songs seemed to fit my voice. But others fell short. The sounds I heard in my head weren’t coming out of my mouth. It was so frustrating!
When I learned what to listen for in the recordings of other singers, and my own singing, it changed everything.
Now, when I learn a song, I have options; artistic choices that I couldn’t have imagined all those years ago.
Vowel color, rhythmic phrasing, diphthongs, and vibrato are some of the most important elements of any genre or style.
In this podcast episode, we’re going to focus on vibrato. You’ll learn:
What vibrato is and how it functions.
How to use it to sound authentic in different styles of music.
And ways to experiment with it to make a song your own.
I’m excited to share this essential stylistic tool with you. I know that learning how and when to use vibrato will expand your artistic possibilities too!
All About Vibrato
So, what is vibrato, and how is it created?
Vibrato comes from the Italian word vibrare, which means to vibrate or quiver.
So, imagine a straight line. We’ll call it the center of the pitch.
Now imagine a teeny tiny squiggly line running above and below the straight line.
In acoustic instruments, there are slight oscillations that take place above and below the center of the pitch when a note is played or sung. That’s what the tiny squiggly line is.
Now Imagine that tiny squiggly line getting wider until it becomes a wave.
When that oscillation becomes more evident, we call it vibrato.
The ‘extent of vibrato’ is a term that’s used to indicate the amount of pitch variation. In other words, it’s how far the wavy line moves above and below the center of the pitch.
The “rate of vibrato” describes the speed at which the wavy line moves forward. In other words, how fast or slow it’s sung.
What we want is for the wave above and below the pitch to be even. If it’s above the pitch, you’ll sound sharp. Below the pitch, you’ll sound flat.
My mom was an opera singer — and a really good one. But of course, I didn’t appreciate her voice growing up. I spent hours under the piano listening to her practice, and then, to get her attention, I’d tell her if she was sharp or flat. Little did I know that those ear training sessions under the piano would come in handy when I became a singer.
I also learned how to make fun of opera.
When people make fun of opera singers, what do they do? They sing a sound like this:
[Sing a wobbly soprano sound]
The oscillations aren’t even above and below the pitch, they’re actually on the lower side, so they drag the pitch down. The rate of vibrato is wobbly and wide too. While comical, that sound isn’t too far from what a singer’s vibrato sounds like when their abdominal support and vocal mechanism aren’t functioning well.
Stylistic Considerations
Now that you know what vibrato is, and how it functions, let’s talk about how vibrato sounds in different styles of music.
In general, pop and jazz styles have less vibrato than classical and musical theater. If you want to sound authentic singing in those styles, be aware of the rate and extent of vibrato you’re singing and whether it fits into that particular style’s parameters.
When listening to recordings of your favorite singers, close your eyes and ask yourself these questions:
How much vibrato is there?
What is it’s rate — is it fast or slow?
When does it begin — at the beginning, middle, or end of a phrase?
In or Out of Style?
Styles of vibrato go in and out of fashion. The faster vibrato that Snow White sang in the Disney movie of the same name was popular in the 1920s. You hear it in some folk and country music today, but not very often in pop.
Another example of a an approach to vibrato that you don’t hear much anymore, is what i call the Ethel Merman vibrato. [God Bless America]
There’s a song from the musical “Show Boat” that I like to use to illustrate how vibrato works as an element of style. Here’s “Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man,” sung with a classical-sounding vibrato.
[Sing Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man in classical style]
And here it is sung with a jazz/pop vibrato.
[Pop Style]
What’s different about each version?
In the classical example, the vibrato is wider and comes in sooner when I hold a note. In the pop/jazz version, I sang a straighter tone, and the vibrato came in towards the end of the held note if it was there at all.
What else was different? The key was higher in the classical example, and the vowel color was also darker. In future podcast episodes, I’ll take a deeper dive into these stylistic tools.
It’s so fun to take a song and transform it by changing the key you sing it in, playing with the vowel color, and experimenting with vibrato.
Expand Your Vibrato Possibilities
If you’re having trouble controlling the extent or rate of your vibrato, try using exaggeration. First, sing as straight a tone as you can on an OH Vowel.
[SING]
Then, sing as wide and slow of a vibrato as you can, slowly making it faster as you hold the note.
Like this: [SING]
You can also try playing with where the vibrato starts and ends. Sing it throughout a phrase, or sing straight tone for most of a phrase, then release it into vibrato at the end.
Like this: [SING]
Don’t worry if you sound goofy. This exercise is all about exaggeration and experimentation!
Conclusion
Outside of fitting into a genre, there are no rules on how to use vibrato. As an artist, you can sing it in any way that feels and sounds right to you. Just be aware of the kind of vibrato you’re singing and whether it’s helping or hurting your interpretation of the song.
Vibrato is just one element of style. Vowel color, the key you sing a song in, phrasing, diphthongs, melodic variation, and tempo all play a role in your interpretation.
In future episodes, you’ll learn more about these other elements of style.
Meanwhile, check out the quick how-to guide on listening to and experimenting with the elements of style on my website, valeriedaysings.com.
Experiment. Play. Create!
That’s it for this episode of Living A Vocal Life. You’ll find complete show notes and more offerings for singers at valeriedaysings.com.
You’ll also find information there about my new online course, Becoming A Singer, that’s launching April 6th! In it, you’ll learn how to create a strong foundation for your musical life so you can step out on stage confidently, with purpose.
I’d also love to hear from you! Please let me know what you found useful in this episode, and what you’d like to hear more of in episodes to come. You can get in touch right there on my website, or on my Facebook or Instagram pages @valeriedaysings, or on Twitter @valerieday.
If you like what you’ve heard, consider sharing with a friend. You can also subscribe on iTunes or wherever you go for podcasts. Better yet, leave a review! The more reviews, the easier it will be for other singers to find it.
Until next time, be well, and keep on singing!