I didn't have a hoarse or coarse throat after rehearsals for the first time in a long time. I'm not talking about the regular rehearsals we've been doing, I'm talking about the Christmas carol rehearsal we had.
A month ago, I wrote about my church's choir concert and what happened that day. My vocals were hurting and my voice sounded hoarse after all our rehearsals.
Our Christmas Carol rehearsal started the Saturday after our concert. The reason for doing this is so we can master the song soon enough and also avoid overusing our voices the day before the Christmas Carol. The Carol is scheduled to happen on the 18th of December, on a Sunday.
I've been mindful of my vocals, knowing they easily get tired after a while. The first thing I did was watch a lot of videos on YouTube about proper singing techniques.
So far, I've learned the importance of breathing correctly and supporting it. I also came across the video of a vocal coach who recommended 'Throat Coat' for a sore throat. This is for general throat care when a singer is having a cold.
I learned about the siren sound. The sound helps singers hit high notes without pushing too much and sounding flat. I learned that jaw tension can also cause hoarseness of the voice.
While watching these videos, I also learned a few things I could do to help my vocals stay healthy. I learned about breathing in moist air, taking honey, and staying hydrated too. In Nigeria, there is something we call bitter Kola and Tom Tom.
This was recommended by my church's music coordinator. Warming up and exercising the vocal cords is also helpful.
All of these are things I have been doing since the end of our last concert.
I have remained committed to doing all these things and I have been doing them religiously.
I make sure to drink the throat coat tea before I go to bed and eat the bitter Kola and the tom-tom menthol candy. I warm up my voice before singing. I make sure to stay hydrated by drinking a lot of water, and sometimes I put two teaspoonfuls of honey in warm water. I also breathe in moist air by steaming my vocal cords.
I steam by bringing a full kettle of water to a boil, then use a towel to cover my head and inhale the steam for about 10 minutes. Yesterday, I confirmed that this method works very quickly.
Upon waking up on Saturday morning, my nose felt blocked. It was difficult for me to breathe in and my throat felt very dry, so I had to quickly boil a kettle of water. When it was ready, I poured it into a bucket, covered my head with a towel, and inhaled the steam deeply.
While I was doing this, I felt those areas becoming free and hydrated even though I was not drinking water, it felt like it. I ate bitter kola and tomtom afterwards. Before I left the house that morning, I mixed a warm water and honey solution in the bottle I was going to take out.
When we got to church for rehearsals, we rehearsed a lot of songs with lots of high notes. After we were done, I noticed that I wasn't sounding hoarse, I didn't feel pain in my throat, and in summary, I felt okay.
Feeling that improvement made me realize that all I have been doing has been of some help to my vocals. I won't stop now.
If my vocal cords do not sound hoarse and rough on our Carol day and I can sing my songs with clear vocals, then I would know for sure that all I had been doing has greatly improved my vocal health. I still won't stop but will make it a lifestyle because I love to sing and I am happy when my voice is in great shape.
I almost left out the part where I have been craving popcorn. I checked on Google and found out that popcorn affects the vocal cords seriously. To avoid any risk, I'm choosing to wait until after Christmas Carol before eating it...I'll be eating it moderately.
That's it. Today being the first Sunday in December, we had our Thanksgiving service at church and the service was wonderful.
Thanks for reading.🙂
All images on this post are mine.