December 2002 Table of Contents

Your Voice To God
Preserving The Voice Of The Choir Director & Teacher

By Chris Beatty

Tis The Season for Voice Fatigue

Attention choir directors and teachers!

If you are a classroom teacher (of any subject), or a busy church music director, there is about a 50% chance that you are suffering from some degree of voice fatigue, dry throat, limited endurance and overall voice discomfort. If you teach music in the classroom and direct a church choir you could have double trouble and be experiencing problems with high notes and/or voice cracking. And, it's one of the most music-heavy seasons of the year at schools and churches making it all quite voice threatening.

And there are other issues. Most of you probably drink too much caffeine, not enough water and teach in a room lacking good acoustics. Some of you are even competing with other noisy classes or sports programs in your immediate area. What's a teacher/director to do to preserve the voice?

Now, I know this may sound a bit extreme, but for many of you this is your life. I know, because I get calls and emails every week from teachers and choir directors asking for help. So, let's look at some specific actions that can help minimize vocal wear and tear, and maximize a healthy voice.

As we begin, let's consider this question: Why would those with the most training in voice and communications have so much trouble? Because teaching, by its very nature, puts you at greater risk for voice problems than the general population. In the same way serious athletes, who use their bodies regularly and aggressively, in any given sport, are more susceptible to injury than, say, the average grocery store cashier. It just goes with the territory.

Here are some potentially voice-saving suggestions. Please read them all as they are based on real life experience. They really do make a difference.

1. PUTTING NUMBERS TO WATER. I know you've heard this before, but it seems most teachers and singers don't understand the dangers of dehydration. The average teacher drinks over two cups of caffeinated beverages (coffee, coke) per day during the week. For many, that means two-and-a-half quarts of caffeine a week; two-and-half GALLONS a month. (30 gallons a year?! Okay, I'll stop.) And that's not including weekends. What's the big deal? Simply this: Caffeine is drying to a mechanism that requires very specific mucosal viscosity to lubricate the leading edges of the vocal folds. Have you considered that during a 3-minute song a singer's vocal folds vibrate, thousands and thousands of times. The same is true for teaching class, coaching a game etc. If you don't have the right hydration in the larynx it would be like driving your car with watered down or limited oil. A bare minimum amount of water is half your body weight in ounces. If you weigh150 pounds that means 75 ounces, or over nine cups daily. If you weigh 220 pounds that means a minimum of 110 ounces, or almost 14 cups. Most professional traveling singers I know try for about one gallon a day! Cutting way down on the caffeine will help this hydration stay with you.
2. TAKING MEDICATIONS? HYDRATE SOME MORE! If you take any medications on a regular basis there is a good chance that you are adding to the lubrication problem in the larynx. Ask your doctor or pharmacist about less-drying medications that accomplish the same result.
3. NATURAL AMPLIFICATION. Those of you who have been through vocal therapy know that one way to lessen the strain on the voice is to use your own vocal mechanism more efficiently. Specifically, it means learning to be as efficient as a newborn baby, or young child. They seldom have voice problems and they always get the message out! We are remarkable mechanical, acoustical instruments, but only when we allow our God-designed voice to function. Do you warm-up your voice before you teach, or coach, or sing? Do you, on an almost daily basis, remind yourself and your vocal mechanism how it should be physically resonating to easily project the tone? Do you ever video yourself teaching to see what you are actually doing vocally and with your teaching style? Remember: The pros, in any area, are constantly critiqued. They don't rely on the past to keep them being their best for the future. Neither should we. The Vocal Coach Complete Tone CD/cassette is masterful at leading the singer/teacher through this process of maximizing tone and projection efficiency.
4. REINFORCED AMPLIFICATION. The lucky ones out there have some sort of P.A. or sound system. It is a fact that choir directors and music teachers who have sound systems have far fewer vocal problems than those who don't. It also allows them to use sources other than their own voices or the piano to teach and demonstrate. One of our students bought her own headset microphone and a small amplifier. It has saved her voice, which was in jeopardy. Her schedule, which is typical of many elementary school music teachers, has her teaching an average of seven music classes per day, five days per week. That's a lot of intense use of the voice no matter how careful you are.
5. OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES. Ask yourself if there are other elements of your teaching environment that you can do something about. Is there competing sound coming from a noisy heating/cooling system that you can turn off for class or get fixed? Can you move to a quieter room or area? Is the air dangerously dry? If your room is too dry you will be more vulnerable to vocal problems. I keep my studio between 40%-50% which is healthy for me and my students. Portable, wick-type humidifiers cost around $90 and are well worth the investment. So is a humidity gage.
6. CHANGE YOUR METHODS of teaching. One of the reasons we at Vocal Coach have developed such an extensive series of warm-up and training CD's is to meet the needs of the music teacher and choir director. Why wear your voice (and mind) out creating effective and fun warm-ups? We've already done it, and our materials have a long history of success. Also, use gifted students, even assisting teachers to model good technique, teach parts, etc. A teacher who does all the demonstrating is often less effective, especially in this day and age where students are used to variety.
7. WORK FOR A LESS STRESSFUL LIFE. As absurd as this may sound there are a number of things most of us can do to alleviate at least some of life's dangerous stresses without leaving our job. If you've not read "The Adrenaline Stress Connection" by Archibald Hart you should. It could be lifesaving. For those of us who call ourselves Christians our stress defense begins with Acts 2:42. "They devoted themselves to the aspostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers." Teaching, fellowship, the Eucharist (communion) and prayer. It worked when it was written and it works today. As we do our part, and let God do His part we are building a foundation for less destructive stress. Notice I said less, not, none. The right kind of stress keeps us on our toes and actually helps us perform better. It's called, "Positive stress." But, unlike unhealthy stress, it diminishes shortly after the event and does not linger, threatening to destroy the body. A final thought on the spiritual: Try for a daily devotional reading (yes there is time for it), as well as meaningful, systematic prayer (be specific, and spend more time listening than talking). The final stress buster is physical exercise. Anything not used is more likely to atrophy and fail. We are, after all, physical beings. What we call "the voice" is actually a physical, mechanical, acoustical devise. Even taking a 20 minutes walk three times a week can be life-preserving. Finally, eat foods that are good for you. As obvious as that sounds, most teachers and musicians I know have terrible eating habits. If you eat balanced, nutritious meals you will feel better, perform better, be sick less often and have an overall better quality of life. That makes you more useful to the Lord, and those you serve.

In summary, there are things we can do to maximize and sustain our voices for the Lord and those we serve here on earth. I pray some of these suggestions will help you do just that.

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