1.1.2.d Navigating the Spectrum of Vocal Potential
Navigating the Spectrum of Vocal Potential
Unless we’ve met, I can’t know where you land on the potential spectrum. If you’re below baseline, it helps to realize there’s likely a reason for your frustration. You can explore the full course if you’d like more details. If you’re above (or well above) baseline, you might wonder, “Why should this matter?” Fair question—here’s why.
You’ll recall that your place on the potential spectrum is shaped by both genetics and environment; you simply ended up above baseline. I’d guess your early environment gave you an advantage. Still, as you move through life, you face many of the same challenges everyone else does. You might have a stronger “boat” than someone below baseline, but you’re both sailing the same stormy sea. Everything we’ve covered so far prepares you to navigate even bigger challenges. Let’s recap:
Singing is a core human function with a recognizable baseline of skill.
Humans are born with vast phonatory potential.
Genetic and environmental factors both shape your ultimate ability.
The voice (and singing) develops through four interacting systems.
Voice is a paradox:
It’s universal—everyone can do it without formal training.
It’s also scientifically complex, involving anatomy, physiology, acoustics, psychology, and more.
We’ve made major strides, yet many mysteries remain.
Confusion persists, partly due to centuries-old beliefs about singing.
Phonation is unique and fleeting. Two singers can produce nearly identical sounds yet experience them very differently, because we all perceive internal sensations in our own way.
Despite this, many teachers claim to know how it “should feel,” using terms like “head voice” or “chest voice” without clarifying that these are subjective labels.
Voice teaching often clings to outdated ideas, especially in classical traditions, making it tough to dispel myths.
Educators have documented methods for over five centuries. Some remain entrenched in the past, and a recent survey shows only 1 in 17 resources provide actionable diagnostic methods, leading to a “shoot first, ask questions later” mindset.
For at least 300,000 years, singing was a communal activity. Over the last 150, systemic changes have eroded that practice, pushing most people from active singers to passive observers. Coupled with flawed educational incentives, this has fueled widespread self-reported “tone deafness.”
So, my above-baseline friend, even though you’re doing well, you’re not immune to the same forces that hold others back. Maybe you’ve faced trauma-related setbacks. I certainly have. You’ve likely also encountered plenty of bad teaching. Rather than listing every example of poor instruction, I want to share broader insights that can help you spot potential pitfalls.
We Don’t Need No Stinking Diagnosis! (Bad Teaching #1)
We usually turn to an expert to solve a problem. The car won’t start—call a mechanic. The water goes cold mid-shower—call a plumber. You’re stuck on a skiing plateau—hire an instructor. In each case, you want a solution. Once the problem is “fixed,” you assume you can move on.
But consider: is any solution satisfying without a proper diagnosis? Anyone who’s had a recurring tech glitch knows the feeling. You hand your device to a savvy person, they press a few mystery keys, and it works again. Curious, you ask what went wrong; they shrug—“No idea, it just needed a reset.” You walk away more anxious than relieved, because a month later, the glitch might come back. It’s whack-a-mole, and eventually you stop trusting the “fix.”
Enter the Voice Teacher
This same cycle is oddly common in singing. You bring a vocal concern—persistent breathiness or a cracking high note—to a teacher, hoping they’ll fix it. They prescribe an exercise, and sure enough, it helps briefly. But if that exercise is applied without uncovering why the problem existed, it’s likely to return. Many teachers treat the singing voice like a black box: throw in the “correct” vowel, or a new posture trick, or more breath support, hoping it magically resets.
The real question is: Why do so many teachers—and singers—accept solutions before diagnosis? The overlooked but vital element in vocal pedagogy is diagnosis.
A Four-Century Legacy of Omission
Looking back to the Renaissance, it’s clear that many treatises and lesson books emphasize how to sing—breath control, diction, resonance—without systematically addressing vocal faults or their causes. Giovanni Camillo Maffei’s 1562 treatise, an early work on “how to sing,” offers practical tips but no clear framework for diagnosing problems.
Fast-forward to today, and not much has changed. We have volumes of advice on “proper” technique—how to shape vowels or balance onset. But diagnosing issues like nasality, strain, or register breaks remains a blind spot in many materials. These resources overflow with exercises and quick tips but offer few tools for pinpointing a fault’s origin.
McKinney’s Revelatory Moment
James C. McKinney, whom I mentioned earlier, highlights this gap in his book’s introduction. At a National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) workshop, he played ten recordings of distinct vocal faults and asked seasoned teachers three questions:
What’s wrong with the sound you hear?
What do you think is causing it?
How would you address it as the teacher?
Despite their expertise, most recognized something was off but couldn’t articulate why or how to fix it. Repeats of this experiment yielded the same results, even among highly skilled teachers at top institutions. Moving from “I hear a problem” to “I know the cause and solution” was a challenge.
McKinney’s 1994 text, The Diagnosis & Correction of Vocal Faults, aimed to address this gap. Unfortunately, he remains one of the few diagnostic-focused authors. His book still appears often in syllabi and conferences, but we should have many more resources like it.
Data That Speaks Volumes
The scarcity of diagnostic material isn’t just anecdotal. In a review of 1,387 vocal pedagogy sources, only 5.8% focused on vocal fault diagnosis—a 17:1 ratio of technique instruction to diagnostic material. Of Amazon’s top 100 singing books, 89% skip a troubleshooting chapter, and fewer than 4% of vocal pedagogy YouTube videos discuss diagnostic protocols in depth.
Academic journals cover diagnosis more—around 22%—but most target medical or scientific professionals, focusing on pathology rather than in-studio pedagogy. The field is drenched in “how-to-sing” advice yet lacks a systematic approach to figuring out what goes wrong when the technique breaks down.
“Hardly Any” Becomes “Hardly Anyone”
It’s even more telling that McKinney observed this diagnostic deficiency at a NATS conference, where members represent some of North America’s most dedicated voice professionals. If they couldn’t diagnose faults systematically, how many independent or part-time teachers—however musically talented—are also floundering? Imagine if plumbers, mechanics, or IT specialists had no reliable way to troubleshoot. The singing profession ends up in a “shoot first, ask questions later” cycle, leaning on guesswork, generic fixes, or “just support the sound.”
Lesson Summary
This segment highlights the importance of identifying and addressing the root causes of vocal faults rather than resorting to quick, incomplete fixes. Despite centuries of vocal instruction on “how to sing,” very few resources teach systematic diagnosis. Consequently, even skilled teachers may overlook the underlying reasons for a singer’s issues, leaving many students stuck in trial-and-error cycles.
Spectrum of Ability: Both genetics and environment influence whether a singer is “above” or “below” a certain baseline potential.
Diagnostic Deficit: Traditional voice pedagogy includes extensive technique advice but little guidance on analyzing vocal faults.
McKinney’s Contributions: James C. McKinney’s work is among the few that provide a structured approach to diagnosis, yet remains underutilized.
Systemic Impact: Without robust diagnostic methods, teachers and students often rely on guesswork and short-term fixes.
Exercise or Activity: “Root-Cause Vocal Analysis”
Identify a Vocal Challenge: Choose a brief singing example (your own or a recording) where you suspect something sounds “off” (e.g., breathy tone, pitch instability, or tension).
Describe the Fault: Write down what you notice—clarify if it’s tightness, lack of clarity, etc.
Hypothesize the Cause: Based on the lesson’s emphasis on diagnosis, think of possible sources (breath support, resonance, articulation, or psychological factors).
Formulate a Plan: Create a short list of exercises or focal points to test each hypothesis (e.g., an exercise focusing on relaxed jaw release for tension).
Record or Observe Again: Sing or listen a second time, applying these targeted adjustments. Note any changes in sound or ease, and refine your approach based on what you discover.
