What is chest voice anyway? Chest voice is the lower range of someone’s voice. It is used to hit low notes in songs and can be identified by its powerful, full sound. Every aspiring singer should make sure they have a good handle on their chest voice as it is the foundation for the rest of the voice!
So let’s find your chest voice! First, place your hand over your chest, higher up towards your collar bone. Then speak in a normal tone. You should feel vibrations in your chest. Now, sing something in the same tone that you just spoke in or speak the same phrase you just said in a monotone, song-like way. You should feel the same vibrations in your chest. This is your chest voice. Although it feels like the sound is coming from your chest, it is actually coming from your vocal chords, like all spoken sound does. This lower sound is produced by your vocal cords thickening and shortening.
Like we said before, a firm foundation in chest voice is a must for a well-rounded voice. Many problems with singing higher are the result of a singer not properly developing their chest voice. Think of your voice like a ladder. If the bottom of the ladder is unsteady, climbing higher is going to be a shaky business. So if the bottom of your voice is not fully developed, the top of your voice will experience difficulties as well!
To properly develop the chest voice, practice until you have achieved a warm, full sound without cracks. To obtain this sound, you need to make sure you are singing with enough airflow, otherwise the result will be a gravelly, unsteady sound. Moreover, you need to make sure you are singing with the right amount of energy. Low energy will produce an unsteady sound, while too much energy will result in a strained or cracked voice.
As with all things voice related, practice makes perfect and a beginning singer would do well to spend a good amount of time experimenting with these variables until they are happy with their chest voice.
Finally, beware of singing too high with the chest voice. The belting sound you hear from many pop singers is not chest voice. They are using an advanced technique called mixing to achieve that sound. Many beginning singers will try to achieve those great belty sounds by pulling up on their chest voice and as a result, straining and even potentially damaging their voice. Be patient and stick to songs in a lower register to develop that chest voice.
Happy Practicing!
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