The Voice Science Podcast

Why Does My Voice Strain? (And How to Fix It)

Vocal strain is one of the most common complaints singers bring into the studio — and one of the most misunderstood. In this episode, Drew walks through the mechanical cause of most strain, why the advice to “breathe deep and support” can actually make things worse for contemporary singers, and what to do instead. The episode covers the hyperfunction loop, the relationship between breath pressure and vocal fold closure, why singing softly is more physically demanding than it sounds, and how redirecting tension into the torso changes everything. Practical, science-grounded, and immediately applicable. If your throat gets scratchy on certain passages, if high notes feel like a fight, or if you hit a wall somewhere in the middle of your range — this episode is for you.

A Case for Voice Teacher/Trainer Licensure

Anyone can legally teach voice lessons in the United States. No degree. No clinical hours. No exam. No license. In this episode, contributor Timothy Wilds makes a direct and sometimes uncomfortable case for why that should change — and what a more professionalized field could look like. Timothy draws a pointed comparison between the credentialing standards required of speech-language pathologists and those expected of voice teachers, argues that the overlap between the two professions is larger than the industry acknowledges, and challenges the commonly cited reasons for keeping voice teaching unregulated. He also shares how his own teaching was transformed by pursuing deeper training — and why he believes evidence-based tools and voice science have a critical role to play in raising the bar for teachers at every level. Whether you’re a voice teacher, a student, or simply someone who cares about the integrity of the field — this episode is for you. Ready to go deeper? VoSci Academy gives you structured Practice Paths, real-time pitch and interval feedback, and biweekly Q&A calls. Learn more at voicescience.org

The Reason You Can't Sing Has Nothing to Do With Your Voice

When someone tells me they can't sing, I usually hear: I tried, it didn't sound right, so I assumed the instrument was broken. It almost never is. This episode unpacks why singing lives much closer to speech than most singers think, why what you hear of your own voice isn't what's coming out of your mouth, and why the first year of lessons is mostly about removing habits — not building new ones. We get into attractor states, the diaphragmatic breathing problem for pop and musical theatre singers, what every other instrument in the practice wing knows about fundamentals, and the research showing that how you practice matters far more than how long. Whether you have a teacher or you're going it alone, the path forward is the same: short sessions, specific goals, daily, and a recorder you're willing to listen back to. Ready to go deeper? VoSci Academy gives you structured Practice Paths, real-time pitch and interval feedback, and biweekly Q&A calls. Learn more at voicescience.org Presented by: Drew Williams Orozco Written by: Josh Manuel

Your Choir Director Is Your Real Voice Teacher — For Better or Worse

Your Choir Director Is Your Real Voice Teacher — For Better or Worse | The Voice Science Podcast Has your choir director ever told you to "open your mouth," "create more back space," or "raise your soft palate" — and you had no idea whether you were actually doing it right? You're not alone. And the stakes are higher than most people realize. A 2019 study by Chorus America reported that 54 million US adults and children sing in choirs. That means for the vast majority of singers, the choir rehearsal — not the private lesson — is where all the voice training is happening. In this episode, contributor Timothy Wilds unpacks what that really means: for choir directors, for choir members, and for the long-term vocal health of anyone who has ever stood in a section and tried to follow their director's instructions. You'll learn: * Why the choir rehearsal is the primary site of voice training — and why that matters * The real vocal knowledge gaps in choir directing, and why they exist * A practical three-part framework for decoding the most common choral directives: * "Open your mouth / drop your jaw" — what the director is after, and how to test it * "Open your throat / create more back space" — the anatomy behind the instruction, and how to find it * "Raise your soft palate" — what that actually means physically, and how to know you've done it * Why singers consistently overdo these adjustments — and what happens when they do * What choir members should expect from their directors, and how to advocate for themselves in the room 👉 Want structured training between rehearsals? Check out Practice Paths at voicescience.org [https://voicescience.org/] 🧠 Topics Covered: * Chorus America 2019 data on choral participation * Why most singers' vocal education comes from choir, not private lessons * Director knowledge gaps: church, school, and theatre contexts * Oral cavity opening — the one-finger test * Pharyngeal anatomy: dimensions, flexibility, and function * Velopharyngeal port, velum, and the "ng" soft palate test * The "Goldilocks position" across all three directives * Why oversized breaths and exaggerated adjustments undermine the goal 🔥 Helpful for: * Choir singers trying to understand what their director is actually asking for * Choir directors looking to be more precise and effective in rehearsal * Voice teachers working with students who have a choral background * Anyone whose primary vocal training has been in an ensemble setting

You Can’t Actually Sing from the Diaphragm - Here’s What Actually Works

Overview A complete rework of Episode 1. Expanded with two new sections — symptom mapping (what failing breath support looks and sounds like) and studio observations (teacher-focused patterns and honest expectations). Original content restructured to lead with the diaphragm myth as the primary hook. Estimated runtime: 18–22 minutes. Key Concepts * The diaphragm is an inhalation muscle that relaxes during singing — it cannot "support" the voice * Breath support = voluntary regulation of exhalation to manage subglottal pressure * Your body already produces enough pressure; the job is managing and extending it * The muscles you can actually control: external intercostals, pectorals, lats * Smaller controlled breaths > maximum breaths for contemporary styles * Failing support shows up in the body before it shows up in the sound * Too-small breaths are rare — running out of air is almost always a management problem * Results possible in session one; automation takes months; never fully automatic Research Notes * Traser et al. (2020): subglottal pressure for singing = 5–35 cmH2O; maximal inhalation = ~30 cmH2O recoil force * Fiz et al. (1993): healthy individuals produce up to 204 cmH2O; trumpet players up to 288 cmH2O — 8x+ the max needed for singing