We all ‘know’ about boys’ voices changing. But most people do not realize that girls’ voices change as well.
- For young men, the change is often abrupt and interferes with their singing for anywhere from 6 to 12 months as they adjust to their growth spurts. It takes courage and perseverance for young men to say “I want to keep singing–singing is NOT sissy–I don’t care if you laugh because this will eventually go away and it’s worth it to me to stick it out!” But in private lessons, young men can usually find a range that works for them to keep singing through their voice change. This is also an opportunity to learn the musicianship skills for singing as a man (singing harmony without being pulled off by other parts and reading bass clef among them) as well as speaking in a healthy voice.
- For young ladies, the voice change is usually quite subtle–over 2-3 years there will be a week or two at a time when a certain note or note range ‘just doesn’t work right’ and can be mistaken for a cold or infection or menstrual edema (swelling), but girls can usually find a range that allows them to continue to sing (chorally or solo) through their voice change.
“But what about kids who want to sing in musicals? Shouldn’t they have lessons?”
Healthy traditional vocal technique, usually referred to as bel canto, or ‘beautiful song’, is considered the foundational technique for all singers; this is the technique I teach all my singers. So the short answer to this question is, ‘yes, of course.’
That said, one must recognize that every style of singing that moves away from bel canto involves a change in technique away from that which maintains optimal vocal health. This would include belting (the musical-theatre sound that is very similar to shouting), popular jazz/ballad sounds like growling and/or breathiness, and rock/heavy metal vocalism. (For instance, this is why touring bands take regular breaks from touring, not only to produce new material, but to rest and recuperate.)
Children and adult amateurs who take part in musical theatre should choose their participation wisely. Any musical-theatre producer using child/adolescent singers or amateurs of any age should ensure that the singers involved are not being required to harm themselves in order to produce necessary volume of sound (by reducing the volume of the accompaniment or by amplifying the singers, often done by body miking).
I do regularly work with singers who are involved in amateur musical theatre and do my utmost to teach them how to reach their goals while maintaining good vocal health. This is an ongoing discussion between student and teacher–feel free to ask me directly! In general, I do not teach belting to students with immature voices, nor do I teach the more extreme sounds. I have taught students good microphone technique as an adjunct to our regular lessons.
“I’ve been told I’m tone-deaf, but I would love to be able to sing enough to…
- sing in church
- sing Christmas carols
- sing my child to sleep
- (add your wish)…”
“Tone-deaf” is used by most people as shorthand for “cannot match pitch”, meaning that the person attempting to sing is not ‘matching’–making–the same notes (pitches) as the music they are trying to sing along with.
Unfortunately, most persons who cannot match pitch were told at some point in their lives “You sound terrible! Don’t sing!” or “You have a horrible voice!” or “You’ve always been tone-deaf”. And these hurtful comments became self-fulfilling prophecies: just like telling a child they are bad at math–without a really good and supportive teacher, the child will stay bad at math.
Pitch-matching is a skill learned by experience; it is the same skill as learning to speak actual words instead of just making noises, and that is when it is most easily learned. However, pitch-matching can be taught to almost everyone, and I have taught students from 5 to 65 how to match pitch and sing!