The Journey Into Voice Lessons
A month ago, Sierra Cossingham began her musical journey with AVS. Fueled by a passion for music and a desire to explore her untapped artistic potential through singing lessons and musicianship training.
With a captivating background in the world of cinema, Sierra has always been an artistic soul, appreciating unique perspectives on storytelling and self-expression.
“I’ve always loved art in all forms and wanted to learn how to sing. I took dance and acting classes when I was younger but never sang. It was something I always wanted to learn,” says Sierra.
This complements her other artistic passions, including painting, drawing, archery, and cooking. Now, as she adds voice lessons to her repertoire, the creative maven sets out on a remarkable journey of self-expression, embracing both challenges and triumphs.
Currently, Sierra is honing her voice. Mastering the art of switching between different vocal registers and exploring new techniques to enhance her musical performances.
Painting Through Song
Sierra unlocks her artistic potential by understanding her vocal strengths and areas for improvement. The singing lessons focus on honing her head voice and mixed voice, aiming to gain vocal control, expand her range, and improve her stamina. These elements contribute to dynamic vocal performances across various musical genres.
“It’s been amazing to witness the transformation of my voice and feel confident about my vocal abilities.”
Guided by her vocal coach, Arabella, Sierra discovers a fun way to explore different vocal registers by emulating the tonalities of her favorite animated characters. From chest voice (our speaking voice) to flageolet, also known as “flute” voice, the dynamic duo explore all kinds of sounds and character voices.
For instance, SpongeBob’s voice might help a singer find a high larynx and brighter sounds. Whereas Patrick, the Star, might help a singer find a low larynx and dark sounds.
If we can find it in our speaking voice, it’s usually easier in our singing voice. That’s part of the reason that chest voice can be easier than head voice for singers. The head voice is particularly tricky because we don’t usually use this voice in everyday speech. A couple of examples are Princess Peach and Minnie Mouse.
Sierra’s recent notable achievement has been reinforcing her head voice! Providing her greater flexibility in her vocal mix and allowing her to reach sky-high notes in songs like “Beautifully Unfinished” by Ella Henderson.
Fusing Art And Music With Sierra’s Creative Journey
Sierra’s artistic disposition and Arabella’s expertise intertwine as they work on connecting music and art. Through a unique figure drawing exercise, Sierra shades in the parts of the figure where she feels the sound resonates as she sings. To illustrate this musical lesson, we could use red for the chest voice and blue for the head voice. The artist colors in the figure lightly or darkly depending on how connected or breathy the voice sounds. Finally, they add stylistic elements, like shaky lines for vibrato.
“Usually, this results in a funny drawing and a lot of laughter, but hopefully a better understanding of conductive versus sympathetic resonance,” explains Arabella. Which, in other words, is what you feel is happening versus what actually is happening. A good example of this is the chest voice. Our voice isn’t actually located in our chest, but enough singers feel vibrations in their chest to the point that it is aptly named. We can think of different vocal registers like mixing on a color wheel. “We have our primary colors and sounds, and then we can learn to mix to get different shades of the same thing,”.
Overcoming Challenges In Her Musical Journey
Transitioning between different vocal registers initially posed challenges for Sierra. One significant challenge she has overcome is navigating the passaggio in her voice. Sometimes known as a singer’s break. This can be a challenging section in any singer’s voice, but it also contributes to a unique sound, especially in contemporary pop. Sierra has put in a lot of effort to find a looser, more flexible mix, showing growth in both technical advancements and personal breakthroughs.
Empowering Aspirations With Music
Sierra urges aspiring musicians to believe in themselves and their abilities, recognizing music’s power to uplift, inspire, and transform lives.
This creative maven’s journey is just the beginning.
READY TO EXPLORE YOUR OWN ARTISTIC POTENTIAL?
Sierra enrolled in Arabella’s Voice Studio because it was tailored to her goals. Ensuring comprehensive training and nurturing her artistic potential.
Embrace your boundless artistic potential and enroll in our program now. Together we’ll explore the wonders of voice lessons, musicianship training, and the limitless possibilities of your musical journey!