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Even Amateur Carolers Can Make a Joyful Noise
Nashville, TN
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Renee Grant-Williams
There's something about the holiday season that makes even the most amateur singer want to join in when it's time for traditional Christmas caroling. Renee Grant-Williams, the voice coach for some of Nashville's top-name stars, says caroling should be a joy for everyone -- even the most unlikely singers.
"The point of caroling is to celebrate the season, so relax and have fun," says Renee Grant-Williams. "Who cares if your pitch is off? And who can remember all the words to 'O Little Town of Bethlehem' anyway?"
Grant-Williams offers basic tips to give anyone's singing voice a little boost:
1. Breathe by relaxing the throat and lower diaphragm muscles. Picture air falling from the throat to below the waist. Don't fill up with air. Too much air in the chest area creates pressure around the neck.
2. Stand with a solid grip by pressing onto the ground with the balls of the feet. This takes strain off a singer's throat and supports the tone. The jaw should always be loose, but not necessarily wide open.
3. Try to feel the song vibrate at the top of the head rather than in the throat.
"I can't guarantee that you'll get a recording contract if you use these tips, but it might make singing carols just a little less intimidating and a lot more fun," says Grant-Williams.
Grant-Williams says it's important for carolers to protect their throats anytime they sing. For outdoor caroling, she encourages the caroler to layer clothing and use a scarf to keep the throat warm. For soothing tired throats don't forget to take a thermos of something hot to drink. But she says don't overdo it with the spiked eggnog because alcohol can be drying to the entire system as well as the throat.
"And please, when you sing, think about what the words really mean," says Grant-Williams. "That's probably the most helpful tip of all. It always amazes me how simply thinking about the words and their meaning can improve the tone."
Voice coach Renee Grant-Williams presents communication skills programs and coaches business executives, sales professionals and celebrity singers including Miley Cyrus (Hannah Montana), Keith Urban, Christina Aguilera, Randy Travis, Faith Hill, the Dixie Chicks, Tim McGraw, Linda Ronstadt, Bob Weir (Grateful Dead), Martina McBride, and Huey Lewis. A professional speaker and NSA member, she is the author of "Voice Power: Using Your Voice to Captivate, Persuade, and Command Attention" (AMACOM, NY), which has been endorsed by Paul Harvey, was selected for the "Soundview Executive Book Summaries" program, and has been translated into Italian, Japanese, and Arabic. She created and taught a course in public speaking for the Barnes & Noble Online University.
Grant-Williams has written for or been quoted by: United Press Int'l, Associated Press, Business Week, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Esquire, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, New York Post and San Francisco Chronicle. Broadcast appearances include ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, Bravo, Bloomberg, MTV, CMT, GAC, USA, BBC, PBS and NPR. Grant-Williams is a former voice instructor at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as well as the former director of the Division of Vocal Music at the University of California, Berkeley.
For more information or to schedule an interview with Renee Grant-Williams, call 615-259-4900 or visit www.MyVoiceCoach.com/Media.html.
"The point of caroling is to celebrate the season, so relax and have fun," says Renee Grant-Williams. "Who cares if your pitch is off? And who can remember all the words to 'O Little Town of Bethlehem' anyway?"
Grant-Williams offers basic tips to give anyone's singing voice a little boost:
1. Breathe by relaxing the throat and lower diaphragm muscles. Picture air falling from the throat to below the waist. Don't fill up with air. Too much air in the chest area creates pressure around the neck.
2. Stand with a solid grip by pressing onto the ground with the balls of the feet. This takes strain off a singer's throat and supports the tone. The jaw should always be loose, but not necessarily wide open.
3. Try to feel the song vibrate at the top of the head rather than in the throat.
"I can't guarantee that you'll get a recording contract if you use these tips, but it might make singing carols just a little less intimidating and a lot more fun," says Grant-Williams.
Grant-Williams says it's important for carolers to protect their throats anytime they sing. For outdoor caroling, she encourages the caroler to layer clothing and use a scarf to keep the throat warm. For soothing tired throats don't forget to take a thermos of something hot to drink. But she says don't overdo it with the spiked eggnog because alcohol can be drying to the entire system as well as the throat.
"And please, when you sing, think about what the words really mean," says Grant-Williams. "That's probably the most helpful tip of all. It always amazes me how simply thinking about the words and their meaning can improve the tone."
Voice coach Renee Grant-Williams presents communication skills programs and coaches business executives, sales professionals and celebrity singers including Miley Cyrus (Hannah Montana), Keith Urban, Christina Aguilera, Randy Travis, Faith Hill, the Dixie Chicks, Tim McGraw, Linda Ronstadt, Bob Weir (Grateful Dead), Martina McBride, and Huey Lewis. A professional speaker and NSA member, she is the author of "Voice Power: Using Your Voice to Captivate, Persuade, and Command Attention" (AMACOM, NY), which has been endorsed by Paul Harvey, was selected for the "Soundview Executive Book Summaries" program, and has been translated into Italian, Japanese, and Arabic. She created and taught a course in public speaking for the Barnes & Noble Online University.
Grant-Williams has written for or been quoted by: United Press Int'l, Associated Press, Business Week, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Esquire, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, New York Post and San Francisco Chronicle. Broadcast appearances include ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, Bravo, Bloomberg, MTV, CMT, GAC, USA, BBC, PBS and NPR. Grant-Williams is a former voice instructor at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as well as the former director of the Division of Vocal Music at the University of California, Berkeley.
For more information or to schedule an interview with Renee Grant-Williams, call 615-259-4900 or visit www.MyVoiceCoach.com/Media.html.
Elaine Collins
Office Manager
ProVoice
TN
615-259-4900
