Do you know what is meant by the term sing-song-like voice? You know, the talking voice that flows up and down in pitch throughout each sentence. Great speakers and presenters usually have this, and so do actors. The freedom of a sing-song-like speaking voice is usually prominent in people who are confident and interesting and/or happy. They are easy to listen to because their speaking voice changes pitch and inflections on every word.

Practising a sing-song-like speaking voice is a great step to finding your mix. Singing in a mix requires the freedom to “let go” of your default pitch for speaking.

So, grab a book and start reading. Pretend you are telling a fabulous story to a group of children, and in the story there are many different animals with different sounds. Some of the animal sounds are louder than others. Some of the animals are small and cute, while others are big and bold. Try to reflect this speech to the back of the room in a “free” and “continous” feeling. For fun, try and draw out the last word in every sentence on whatever pitch it lands on.

Simply float your speech on a steady stream of breath while  moving your pitch up and down. As you get comfortable with this, move your pitch even higher to your bridge area. Do not flip. Engage your body with the energy that is necessary to maintain this without getting louder.

This is a great exercise for vocal awareness.