My “mixed voice” sounds too girly and I was wondering if maybe I was going through the same problem as I’ve seen you state before, being I’m singing in head voice instead of a mix. When I do a “mm” sound and just bring myself up to the “mixed voice” area, I open up my mouth and the placing feels different (throat a bit more squeezed but somewhat comfortable) and the texture feels different as well. I was wondering if I was on the way to belting or was I on the right track.
-Kieron
It’s hard for me to say without actually hearing your voice, but here are some thoughts from my own experiences.One thing that you shouldn’t experience is too much more pressure in the throat. There is an element of leaning into the sound which is healthy, but if you feel too much, then you’ve gone too far. Watch for outer muscles in the neck engaging. Also, if the larynx goes up, you’ve gone too far. I speak about this quite a bit in my article on How to Sing High Notes, if you’re interested in reading more on the topic.
I’d also like to add that one of the best descriptions I hear from a singer that’s newly singing in a mix is that it feels very imbalanced. That feeling of imbalance is only a reflection of allowing the voice to create the sound instead of controlling it in some way.
Finally, let’s address tone. Granted, when you’re first learning to sing in a mix it may not sound perfect, but it should be a solid tone lacking breathiness. If you hear breathiness in the tone, to me, it’s not a mix voice.
I hope this is somewhat helpful. Guiding someone based on description only certainly isn’t the most effective manner, but it’s better than nothing. My final piece of advice is let your voice be your guide. If it hurts, then you’ve gone too far and there’s no benefit of continuing down that path.
Best of luck!
Vocal Coach Ken Taylor