Vocal Imbalance, Creating Vibrato…
Here’s a couple question/answers that I hope are helpful to all… Q: Dear Billy, I have been singing for 10 years now. I have sung in a choir for 4 years, in a theatre group for 3 years and am now singing at weddings and in bands professionally. I have also been
An Interview with Billy Purnell…
WHAT’S THE MAIN FOCUS OF YOUR TEACHING? I’ve always been considered more of a technique teacher, but I definitely appreciate the marriage between good technique and the ability to emote, to create a dynamic stage character. Now I’d say it’s a 60-40 combination of those two. For those who
Eat a Healthy Diet for Singing!!
The human voice emanates from a very delicate instrument; a finely tuned collection of tissue, cartilage, ligament, bone and mucus, that when operating efficiently can create a beautiful sound via vibration of the vocal folds resonating through the cavities of the throat, mouth, nose and sinuses. Singing is not only a spiritual
Acid Reflux, Allergies, Cracking Voice, Clearing Throat?
Here’s a question that came to me whose answer can help everyone who sings; it is such a common situation… Dear Billy, I sing soprano, high soprano and have been working on alot of opera songs. I have a question about my throat. When I sing sometimes and
Voice Training: How to Fight Phlegm
Phlegm: Creamy Or Extra Chunky?? Ewwwwwww…. As every professional voice training user knows, the presence of phlegm, or mucous, on the vocal folds can be a real pain in the butt when it comes to being your best for the all-important gig. We guzzle water, we clear our throats repeatedly,
Voice Training: How to Practice Screwing Up Onstage!
Huh? Who practices screwing up onstage? Isn’t the point not to screw up onstage? Well, the fact is, you will mess up, and you will never get to the point where you don’t mess up at times… why? Because you’re human! There is not a job on the planet where people
Voice Training Involves Hardware and Software!
I like to break down voice training into two major parts: the hardware and the software. The hardware consists of every physical element involved in vocal production; the lungs and diaphragm, the ribs, the throat, the arytenoids and other muscles, the voice box and vocal folds, and the mouth, including
Voice Training: Why reach for the stars??
So let’s ask the question that every artist asks of themselves on some sort of regular basis… “Self, what do I really want to do with my talent and what do I think is possible to accomplish?” If the answer to the first part is “I want to be famous”,
Voice Training: How to avoid damaging your vocal cords
What the Heck is a Nodule? Yeah, so you have been experiencing some difficulties with your voice during singing that you didn’t have a year ago, and you took the time to research the problems that pro singers run into and…ah, you found the word “nodule”. You probably said to
Why Singing in the Shower is NOT Practicing
Ah, the American shower…. that waterfall of acoustic distraction with a hard tile reverb chamber that sends harmonics into a swirling tornado of ambiguity, neutralizing the need for correct pitch and bringing every serious shower singer front and center in front of Adam, Blake or Simon with the winning performance. And
