Voice Culture

March 2019
 Content
• Introduction
• Why is Voice Culture Important
• Factors that influence and affect voice
quality
• Vocal Exercises to maintain voice
quality
• Techniques of voice culture unique to
Indian Classical Music
• Techniques of voice culture unique to
Western Classical Music
• Conclusion

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 Introduction
• Voice Culture primarily refers to the methodology adopted to train or control
the voice to sing effectively
• It is widely accepted as a branch of knowledge, which deals with the
techniques of right voice production
• It includes voice modulation, breath control techniques, voice projection
techniques and effective pronunciation
• Culturing or nurturing the voice is essential for a singer of any level, whether
a beginner or a seasoned artist
• Voice Culture helps improve the quality, power and endurance of the voice

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 Why is Voice Culture Important
• Two important factors for a good musician are good voice and sound musical
knowledge
• While sound musical knowledge can be gained by study, a good ‘musical’
voice is a result of practice or ‘riyaz’
• Voice Culture helps in the development of the vocal chords such that they are
in-tune with the musical impulses in the human brain
• Some areas that Voice Culture helps with include –
– Being able to sustain notes in adherence to sur without wavering
– Ability to render gamaks with control and speed,
– Ability to traverse various octaves,
– Correct articulation of sahitya
– Overcoming voice issues such as fatigue, hoarseness, lack of clarity in singing and
reduction in vocal range
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 Factors that influence singing
• Flexibility
– The vocal mechanism and speech organ must be flexible enough to enunciate the words and to
produce different musical phrases
• Shape of the mouth
– Important for correct pronunciation
• Vocal range
– Varies from person to person, however can be improved with training. Minimum traversable range
for an individual is two and a half octaves.
• Speed
– Agility of the vocal chords to produce musical phrases in any tempo influence the quality of singing
• Volume
– Appropriate loudness to reach the audience, without compromising on the tonal quality and the
bhava aspects
• Imagination
– Mental perception of the words and tone are important to render a note or word effectively.
Creativity in the musical phrases plays a very important role.
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 Vocal Exercises to maintain voice quality
• Warm up the voice to extend the vocal range
• Train to sing wide intervals comfortably
• Correcting vocal faults
• Effective breath control
• Flexible speech organs
• Practice techniques such as sustained singing of lower notes also called ‘Kharaj
Sadhana’ or western techniques like staccato – with a sharp break between
notes or legato – each note flowing smoothly after the other
• Controlling the volume as the context of presentation demands
• Vowel pronunciation

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 Techniques of voice culture unique to Indian Classical Music
• Selection of the correct singing scale and pitch
• Knowledge and sustained practice of each and every note in 2 ½ octaves
• Kharaj Sadhana or practice of notes in the lower octave
• Practice of Paltas and Alankars
• Practice of Lakshan Geet and Sargam Geet
• Practice of different types of taans
• Practice of correct pronunciation or articulation depending on the language
used in the bandish
• Merukhand gayaki style where different permutations and combinations of
notes are created and practiced over a period of time
• Practice of the different types of embellishments such as meend, gamak,
andolan, khatka, murki, zamzama etc.
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 Techniques of voice culture unique to Western Classical Music
• Voice Type Classification
– Identification of correct voice type whether Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano or Contralto for
Females and Counter tenor, Tenor, Baritone or Bass for Males
• Vocal Pedagogy
– Anatomy and physiology as it relates to the physical process of singing
– Vocal health and voice disorders related to singing
– Breathing and air support for singing phonation
– Vocal resonation or Voice projection
– Vocal styles such as ballads, opera etc.
– Vocal diction
• Training Techniques such as sostenuto and legato, range extension, tone
quality, vibrato – gradually changing pitched while singing, and coloratura –
ornamentation of a melody with leaps and trills

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 Conclusion
• Voice culture is an integral part of voice training for singing whether in Indian
Classical or the Western styles of music
• Voice however forms the basic structure for Vocal Indian Music while
instruments are accompaniments whereas in Western Music, Voice is an
addition to the mainly instrumentally-generated structure of a Western
Classical Music composition; hence methods of Voice Training differ in both
styles
• No one method of voice training fits all
• Every voice is unique and it is essential for an individual to recognize the
characteristics of his / her own voice and practice voice culture accordingly
• At the end of the day regular Riyaz is imperative to maintain voice quality

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 Thank you

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