How to Sing Vibrato – The Seven Step Method

What is Vibrato

Vibrato is the quick oscillation on a note. There are a number of different things that are not a vibrato.

What’s Not Vibrato- The Ugly

Tremolo: This is similar to vibrato in the sense that the note moves up and down quickly. However, this isn’t vibrato as tremolo is way way quicker than this. Have you ever been so nervous that your voice is trembling? Well, tremolo is similar to that. In fact, if this is the way you are singing then try and stop. This isn’t the way you should be singing. Tremolo is produced as a result of pressure and using too much breath energy. It’s simply a case of trying too hard. Singing isn’t overly difficult, and you should never be singing and making it hurt your voice. (your core muscles, yes, they can hurt. But not ever your throat.

Trill: A trill is the rapid osculation between two distinct notes. Some even suggest that a trill is the way to learn how to get a good vibrato. It’s not. Simple as that. A trill and a vibrato are very different things. Trilling involves singing two separate notes. Vibrato doesn’t. Even a fast trill isn’t ever going to be a vibrato. Every single note that you sing goes through your larynx and for each note your larynx changes position ever so slightly. In vibrato this doesn’t happen, and the larynx stays in a neutral position. This is why a trill is one thing and vibrato is something else entirely.

The above two dealt with different voices that aren’t vibrato at all. Below are some examples of things that are trying to be vibrato but in fact aren’t at all and in some cases are downright silly.

What’s Not Vibrato- The Bad

Larynx hits: these is one method to producing vibrato whereby you put your hand on your larynx and as you are singing you tap your larynx and move it up and down. Please. Just. Don’t. Whilst you may get the effect of vibrato why do want to be interfering with your larynx when you are actually singing. It can even damage your voice if you sing this way as manipulating your larynx can cause it to bruise.

Diaphragm pulse: This is when you sing a note and whilst singing it you push your tummy in and release it. In and out, in and out. This isn’t a terrible thing to do if you want to get a feeling of vibrato. It will produce a result that is similar to a real vibrato. However, this isn’t really real and something that’s put on will never really work in the long run. A real vibrato has tone and sustenance to it. A diaphragm pulse doesn’t and will never sound good. More than this, if you continue to do this you will never be able to really produce a good vibrato as your abdominal muscles will have been trained to work and pulse the whole time. Not cool and not what we want.

What’s Not Vibrato – The Not So Bad

Gospel Jaw: In gospel jaw what the singer does is move their jaw in order to create vibrato. This actually is an OK method of producing vibrato and will give the vibrato a bigger emphasis. However, I don’t like it because it looks silly and is put on. I don’t like it when I see a singer standing on stage and seeing their whole mouth go in and out and pulse. To me it just looks bad in any area of singing when performing.

What we are aiming for is a pure vibrato and that comes from within. It’s not an external thing. Whilst there are many singers, both in pop style singing and more classical singing that use the Gospel Jaw, I’m still never going to recommend it until you reach the point on your singing journey where you can really sing vibrato properly anyway. I would say that until that point, just forget about it.

So What Exactly is Vibrato?

As we said above, vibrato is the quick oscillation on a single note. Your larynx stays in a neutral position throughout the whole thing. As we know, there are a bunch of muscles that are connected with your voice. And as we know with muscles, they can get fatigued. If you hold your arms straight out in front of you, you will notice that after a certain period of time, depending on your strength level, they will start to shake. The reason for this is because they are getting tired. In a sense, the same is true when it comes to vibrato. As your muscles become tired, they start to shake even though they are essentially staying in the same position. This is what vibrato is. It’s not the shaking that you can get when you are nervous and it’s not the rapid movement up and down. It like a muscle tiredness that you get.

Please remember that I’m not saying that you can only sing vibrato when you are tired or at the end of a note. It’s just a concept that lends itself to this explanation.

This isn’t a perfect explanation as I’m not suggesting that you have to get tired to sing vibrato. However, it’s a perfectly valid explanation without getting too technical which from experience, doesn’t really help. I can’t be bothered explaining it and you can’t be bothered listening to an in-depth biology lesson 🙂

What’s the real way of getting vibrato?

We’ve seen above that there are different methods of getting a vibrato. However, none of these are real. Unfortunately, there isn’t really a way to teach how to sing vibrato. It’s natural and comes from singing correctly. As long as you are continually practicing the methods taught here, you’ll be on the path to getting a rich, pure vibrato. I’m not going to leave you with nothing though. Below you’ll find some exercises to get you on the path to singing in the best possible method which will in turn give you the best chance of getting that vibrato that you always wanted.

1. Relax and open up:

Simply put, the more relaxed you are, the better you’ll be able to sing. I wouldn’t even say anything against having a shot of something strong just to calm your nerves. Make sure you’re warmed up with this walk-through guide. 

2. Do Some Belly Breaths

Pant like a dog and ensure that your tummy is going in and out whilst your shoulders are staying steady.

3. Stand Up Straight

Ensure that there is a straight line from the top of your head to your toes. (Yes, this may make your chest and tummy look bigger but hey, this is for your voice. If you are still nervous repeat step one?)

4. Stand in a Strong Position

Stand with your feet slightly apart so that you are in a strong position. Imagine that if someone gives you a slap on the back you won’t fall over!

5. Sing From Your Tummy

Ensure that you are singing from your stomach in the correct way. If you aren’t sure about how to do this, check out that post.

6. Listen!

It’s really important to not only listen to your voice but also to your body. If you feel that your body is resonating, you are already more than halfway there! You’ve also got to listen to how your voice actually comes out. Use your phone or something else to record yourself and allow yourself to be self-critical. We are in the training ground right now and it’s OK to make a mistake.

7. Keep on Singing

I know that this sounds almost silly, but the best way you’ll get better at vibrato is to just keep on singing and practicing. Keep going. You’ll get there in the end. Even if your notes may not be correct, you’ll still get to do a vibrato in the end. Don’t give up. It isn’t beyond you!

What I’m Not Going to Recommend

There are many things that you may find on the internet that say you should not do these things and then in the same post actually do them. Why is this so? No clue but I guess it’s just to make their posts longer. I’ll do the same, but I’ll put a big disclaimer before it.

DON’T DO THE FOLLOWING TO GET VIBRATO:

1. Trills

Trills are lovely and sound wonderful when the music asks for them. You can even have a little go at them in order to see what they sound like. But just don’t get confused and think that if you do this more quickly, you’ll end up with a vibrato. You won’t

2. Diaphragm Strikes

Push at your tummy whilst you are singing. You might get a vibrato from that, but I wouldn’t recommend it. At least, not unless you’re trying to get a six-pack.

3. Larynx Manipulation

Stand up as tall as you can and stick out your neck, find your larynx – the sticky out thing that you have in your neck. Everyone has one even if you don’t see it, (Especially true for women) and give it a wiggle as you are singing. Wahay! You’ve got vibrato. No, you don’t. You’ve just got a sore throat and a funny feeling in your neck.

Let’s Get Singing Vibrato!

In a nutshell there is no quick fix way to sing vibrato. It’s a process and if you are just starting out on your singing journey, then you have to just give it time. Keep practicing your singing and it will just come. I hope you have enjoyed this post and if you have any questions or comments just leave them below and I’ll get to them as soon as I can. Till next time – Keep on Singing!