Question:
I used to have a really “shouty” singing voice. A teacher taught me to open up my throat more and be more relaxed, which results in a better singing voice but it is very breathy and weak. Can you recommend any exercises to get rid of this excess breath? Does it have something to do with placement?
Answer:
“Placement, open throat and relaxing” are all kind of imprecise terms and because of that they can generate unwanted results. I find it more efficient to talk about vocal function.
There are three things that make the voice sound:
1. Pacing of the breath,
2. Vibration of the vocal folds,
3. Resonance.
To have a sound that is not “shouty” or “breathy” do not relax. Instead, do the right work! You need to expand the lower ribs, bring the vocal cords together with perfect timing and strength, and access all the resonators. You can get tips for all of these by reading other posts on breathing, phonation and resonance.
Your teacher’s approach might just take more time to develop a fully functioning voice and this might just be the first phase. If, however, it doesn’t improve don’t be afraid to try another teacher. We all have several teachers who help us with different phases of development.