Author: Ivan Mihaljevic
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The concept of vocal modes in CVT
Vocal modes are the central concept in Complete Vocal Technique and at least half of all the questions singers using CVT are asking me as an authorized CVT teacher are related to modes. The CVT book and app say that about 95% of all technical issues in singing stem from incorrect use of the modes.…
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Why do vocal coaches disagree so much on what the correct technique is?
If you have spent some time gathering info on vocal technique from varied sources that don’t just belong to an offshoot of the same school of thought, you have probably noticed that descriptions of what you need to do vary a lot and sometimes downright contradict each other. Some say you need to inflate the…
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Why some singers don’t sound good even after mastering the technique and how to solve it?
Not seeing the forest for the trees Today I’d like to rant a little bit about a very common issue I encounter among singers, and sometimes even very experienced singers, who have spent some time studying singing technique. To facilitate technical discussions about singing, we come up with various terms to explain what we mean.…
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How on earth do you “sing from the diaphragm”?
“Sing from the diaphragm, not from your throat!” is a line you’re likely to hear repeated by everyone from your uncle Carl to your choir leader Betty. But what does that even mean? At first glance, the phrase might seem rather nonsensical because the diaphragm is primarily an inspiratory muscle (meaning it’s used to breathe…
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What is the correct laryngeal position for singing?
There are lots of differing opinions on the subject of laryngeal height for singing and you will hear a lot of prescriptive answers like “the larynx should always be low” or “the larynx should stay neutral” or “you shouldn’t let your larynx rise with pitch”. To quote one of my favorite books on the anatomy…
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The most common mistake singers make with singing lessons
Taking singing lessons with a great teacher is a fantastic way to pinpoint issues with your singing technique, develop strategies for improving your technique, style and expression, and learn new techniques. A competent teacher can quickly determine flaws in your current approach and provide you with tools to mitigate and eventually solve them. I’ll often…
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Why does pitch correction software struggle with raspy vocals?
Recently I wrote a detailed response in an audio engineering group where a user was asking why his pitch correction software was having trouble with tuning his raspy singing. Since I already went through the trouble of writing it out, I thought I’d share it as a here as well as I guess many singers…