Forum: music.stackexchange.com
Tags: <technique><voice>
Title: how to build vocal stamina
Question: I have good technique. I'm self taught but I know all about singing and its techniques. I can use head voice and I'm comfortable with it. The problem I have is that I can't go through two or three songs without my voice starting to crack or just feeling tired. I don't force notes just so you know I try to sing as comfortably as I can.  How can I build up my voice's strength so I can last through a whole concert?

Answers:
sents: text: I think I know what you mean, I've faced the same issues from time to time.
text: As I understand you're not a professional singer.
text: Yes, a voice should become stronger over time as you train more.
text: The muscles that control your voice will indeed get a bit stronger but to be honest
text: I don't think singing should be compared to weightlifting for example.
text: It's more about mental training and proper coordination.
text: There's still a big warning sign.
text: When somebody sings the voice should not deteriorate but instead it should improve and get warmed up over time.
text: That alone tells me that it's likely that there's something wrong with your technique...
text: it could be anything.
text: It's common when someone overuses their voice that it feels "tired" for a sort amount of time afterwards.
text: After all, if you're still not a pro singer you can't really know if you're singing right unless you sound good and face no problems.
text: Until then you're just guessing.
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/10085/user40079
score: 4
sents: text: Singing is of course something requiring training and/or endurance.
text: If you ask "how do I get to run a marathon", the answer will involve lots of running.
text: That being said, if you are hoarse/strained after two or three songs, that's comparable about being shot after going up two stories of stairs.
text: If that's your starting point of doing a marathon, either you are doing something quite wrong and/or
text: you are woefully out of shape.
text: "Just do more and it will come naturally", just like with the running analogy, would appear to be reckless advice then without looking closer.
text: Try getting some actual supervision for a while.
text: It does not necessarily need to be one-on-one voice training: some choral work or basic singing courses might be enough to have somebody have an ear on you and
text: have you avoid doing staggeringly counterproductive things.
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/13191/user13191
score: 4
sents: text: I have the same issue.
text: A friend of mine gave me a tip which helped me.
text: Try to sing from deeper down your throat.
text: It is hard to explain, but basically, by doing so, you will stress your upper part of the throat less.
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/9975/Valentin Grégoire
score: 1
sents: text: This might help, in my experience I've sang my heart out for a very long time and my vocal endurance slowly built up.
text: I've always heard you need to workout to be a good singer
text: but I had lifted weights for a while too
text: but my progress to build vocal endurance was still slow.
text: I've recently (7 months ago) injured my wrists and I'm still recovering.
text: The doctor told me to I need to do aerobic exercise to help my healing.
text: This was the key for my singing.
text: After heavy endurance running and biking I started to see a large improvement in my vocal endurance.
text: I've heard from my vocal teacher in college that when the body gets tired, the voice is the first to be affected.
text: Having high arobic endurance means it takes much longer to get tired.
text: Also check your diet.
text: There are certain foods that seem to produce mucus on the vocal cords.
text: If you are eating these foods before you sing it would cause mucus build up.
text: Singing with extra mucus is a sure way to wear your vocal chords out quicker.
text: I hope this helps everyone out
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/24561/Nairda
score: 1
sents: text: Of course it takes time for your voice to get used to a lot of singing, but you can't compare it to running a marathon.
text: You just don't get better by doing it.
text: You get better by knowing what you do, discover mistakes in your technique and directly working on those problems.
text: If your voice is strained after a few songs, you propably have a problem with your breathing, which is propably the most important aspect in singing.
text: You may feel that you don't push or force the notes, but the fact that your voice starts to crack that fast tells me otherwise.
text: We could exchange a lot of tipps and how to do it right in theory, but in my opinion you won't get the results you want from a board on the internet.
text: If you really want to sing and don't want to ruin your voice, go get a vocal coach.
text: I know, they cost a lot of money, but it's worth it.
text: The right teacher can help you improve your voice and your overall singing experience a lot, so it's worth the money, even if you are no professional.
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/24260/Matthias Nicklisch
score: 1
sents: text: You feel tired because you aren't using your voice properly.
text: Do you use correct breath support?
text: Are your muscles trained and strong?
text: Are you singing according to your physical region (bass, baritone, tenor?).
text: To answer all these questions, and to reach your objectives, I recommend you to search for a good teacher.
text: I found a great singing teacher and it changed my life forever.
text: We can only get what we want if we dedicate and practice a lot (with correct supervision, of course).
text: Hope this helps.
text: No shortcut is good in the case of voices.
text: You can damage your own if you don't practice correctly.
text: Believe me.
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/24574/Raffael Bechara Rameh
score: 1

Summary of the answers:
S6: If you really want to sing and don't want to ruin your voice, go get a vocal coach. Also you can try to sing from deeper down your throat.
There are a number of things that you might want to consider to build up your voice's strength. However, the most effective will probably be to seek a vocal coach. Asides from this, you could try singing deeper in your throat or increasing your aerobic endurance.