1.1.3.a The Art of Singing Naturally
The Art of Singing Naturally
So, what does it mean to sing naturally? The word “natural” can be just as murky as labels like all organic or natural flavorings. I’ve taken great inspiration from Kristen Linklater and Theodore Dimon, but many excellent sources share this perspective. Regardless of who first described it, I view this process as excavation rather than construction. We’re working to reveal your innate capacity for expressive sound, not build a new method on top of your voice.
Theodore Dimon captures this idea in Your Body, Your Voice, where he warns that misguided “fixes” can block our inherent vocal expression. Rather than building a voice through training, the goal is to recapture the easy freedom we had as children:
“In most adults, this natural system is disrupted by harmful muscular patterns that interfere with proper coordination. Attempting to train individual vocal elements usually fails because the problem isn’t with the voice itself but with the larger bodily organization supporting it. The solution…isn’t to ‘build’ a voice but to restore the natural coordination system that children use instinctively—and to develop it at a conscious level.”
This physical disconnect affects artistic expression as well. Kristin Linklater’s Freeing the Natural Voice asserts that everyone can express a full range of emotion through the voice, but habits and tensions can conceal it:
“The basic assumption of the work is that everyone possesses a voice capable of expressing whatever gamut of emotion, complexity of mood, and subtlety of thought he or she experiences. The tensions acquired through living in this world, as well as defenses, inhibitions, and negative reactions to environmental influences, often diminish the efficiency of the natural voice to the point of distorted communication.”
Many practices help reconnect with your body’s innate wisdom—yoga, meditation, certain therapies, and more. The key is balancing intellect and instinct, rather than letting them clash. If you’re weighed down by rules, stress, or over-analysis, your body can’t access its intuitive gifts. That’s why knowing more only helps if it eases the fear that keeps you from letting go. Often, the best breakthroughs arrive when you least expect them.
Playful Practice
Theory is great, but you need practical, user-friendly ways to bring it to life—starting with a playful approach to your routine. Think of a baby exploring the world. When they crawl, stack blocks, or try new sounds, are they practicing or playing? We might say they’re just having fun. Yet fun is largely about mindset. My wife “practices” yoga daily but doesn’t feel it’s work. Meanwhile, I enjoy tinkering with home repairs. Our preferences differ, but both have two constants: engaged bodies and active minds.
Now picture a typical singing lesson or choir rehearsal: arrive, warm up, run some repertoire, leave. Maybe you cover a bit of theory, but it’s mostly routine—token exercises, then the same songs, rinse and repeat. This autopilot mode seeps into many music programs (I remember it from my early piano days). The body is idle, the mind shut off, and we endure it for the thrill of future performances. Those rare highs become an excuse to accept hours of dull, cookie-cutter instruction.
Discovering a Better Way
I’ve led my share of uninspiring rehearsals and practiced mindlessly, too; it happens. Fortunately, I had mentors who demonstrated more effective methods. One high school piano teacher continually linked understanding—technique, theory—to every note I played. Instead of forcing me through 15 minutes of isolated scales or theory drills, she showed how one concept flowed into the next: tetrachords made sense of scales, scales explained chord progressions, and progressions came alive in actual pieces. This approach sharpened my mind and heightened body awareness. She toggled between intellectual focus and physical sensation: if I didn’t feel something, she’d have me repeat it until I could articulate it.
This better way blends curiosity, physical awareness, and a spirit of play, even in repetitive tasks. You don’t need a teacher to order it—you can weave it into your own practice.
Aligning Cross Purposes: Novelty vs. Repetition
Your brain loves novelty—new experiences can boost dopamine levels by 20–30%. But repetition cements learned skills: practicing a vocal passage daily for weeks reorganizes neural connections in your auditory-motor cortex by 5–7%. Without variety, repetition gets boring. Without repetition, novelty never settles into muscle memory. The sweet spot is embodied mindfulness—alert yet relaxed attention to your body, fueling both the craving for novelty and the anchoring of new habits.
Heightened Proprioception
By consistently tuning in to jaw, ribcage, or tongue sensations, you amplify sensory data. Clarity increases coordination and motivation—your novelty-based dopamine stays active, even as you repeat drills.
Deeper Memory Encoding
Focused repetition strengthens neural circuits in the hippocampus more than half-hearted drilling. Yes, muscle memory forms over time, but mindful practice cements it far more effectively.
Balanced Arousal
Leaning too hard on novelty alone prevents thorough technique building; relying on repetition alone can cause disengagement. Embodied mindfulness balances both, letting your mind stay intrigued while you reinforce essential motor skills.
Systems within Systems: Integrating Vocal Units
Knowing the four functional units—Power (breathing), Vibration (vocal folds), Resonance (vocal tract), and Articulation (tongue, jaw, lips)—helps you sprinkle novelty into repetition. If you’re focusing on Power today, you might explore questions like: “Is my airflow consistent? What changes if I breathe more consciously?” By noticing these subtle differences, you keep your brain alert and your body engaged—a playful exploration that yields real insights.
Engaging the Brain for Rapid Progress
Simple vocal exercises become a playground for combining novelty and repetition. Where another singer might just go through the motions, you can experiment:
Novel Stimulus – Alter something small: your stance, environment, or even a small prop.
Embodied Focus – Sing with heightened awareness—where do you feel tension or release?
Repetition – Repeat, guided by the cues you just noticed.
Reflect & Refine – Ask, “Did that reduce tension? Did my tone change? What else shifted?”
Even tiny tweaks can make rehearsal feel fresh and sharpen your technique faster than generic routines. Paying attention to how each component meshes unifies mind, body, and voice, setting the stage for true mastery.
Turning Practice Into Play
The key is simple yet profound:
Inject novelty into each practice session.
Repeat with purpose, listening to your body’s immediate feedback.
Stay playful, like a child exploring a new gadget.
When singing practice becomes a sandbox of ideas instead of a chore, your growth skyrockets. Not only does your technique get better, but you also rediscover the wonder of making sound. Even your daily warm-ups can feel like treasure hunts once you stay alert to why each change matters.
Difficult passages may demand lots of repetition—eight tries before you nail it. Great! Except you got it wrong the first seven times. Balance that repetition with novelty: sing it in front of a mirror, stand on one foot, or pick up items around the room while vocalizing. You can even get your dog involved—tug of war, anyone? Novelty doesn’t have to be musical, just different, so your brain stays engaged rather than slipping into autopilot.
Ultimately, it’s play that transforms routine practice into creative exploration. Understanding the voice systems gives you the foundation to experiment wisely while reaping the joys of genuine curiosity. Blending novelty, repetition, and mindful awareness sets you on a path to remarkable progress—and unfiltered delight—in your singing.
Final Thoughts
You’ve now seen how curiosity, repetition, and body awareness can turn plain old “practice” into a vibrant, playful process. Next, we’ll look at how this sense of discovery paves the way for truly authentic, uninhibited singing—just like a child who finds joy in every new sound.
