Have you ever wondered why some singers seem to effortlessly connect with their voice, delivering smooth and captivating performances, while other singers sound like their singing is full of tension and strain? Or maybe why some people quickly master new skills while others, despite their best efforts, seem to make little or no noticeable progress?
If you’ve ever felt stuck in a rut with your vocal development, understanding the role of sensory receptors, and how they influence your brain’s decision making when it comes singing, might offer some insight on how to rapidly improve your singing voice. This post explores how sensory receptors affect your singing and why your brain might be giving you less-than-helpful advice.
The basics of sensory receptors
Sensory receptors are vital in interpreting stimuli from both our external environment and internal state. They convert various stimuli into signals that our nervous system processes through sensory transduction. When activated, these receptors generate graded potentials in sensory neurons, which then transmit these signals to the central nervous system, (CNS). An easier way to think of our CNS is to simply picture it as the message-processing center of our brain.
The CNS interprets these signals, but this task is often complicated because sensory information falls into two broad categories:
- Sensation: This is straightforward and includes clear stimuli such as hot, cold, light and heavy. For example, if you accidentally touch a hot oven, your brain quickly signals you to move away to prevent burns.
- Perception: This involves more abstract and vague stimuli that don’t always provide a clear or immediate picture of what you’re experiencing. When learning to sing, your sensory receptors send a mix of sensation and perception messages, making it challenging for your brain to interpret and respond accurately.
Sensation vs. perception
Sensation is about the direct activation of sensory receptors by stimuli. It’s relatively simple and provides clear data (think of the immediate feeling of your fingers typing on a keyboard). Perception, on the other hand, integrates these sensory inputs into meaningful patterns. The accuracy of these patterns depends on familiarity with the actions you’re performing. For instance, seasoned typists have a clear sense of the tactile feedback and are highly familiar with the layout of the letters on the keyboard which allows them to move at practiced lightning fast speeds, whereas novice typists typically struggle with typing accuracy and the sensation of typing feels awkward and foreign to the fingers.
Types of sensory receptors
Sensory receptors come in different forms, each specialized for detecting specific types of stimuli:
- Neurons with free nerve endings: These are found in tissues like the dermis (a layer in your skin) and respond to pain and temperature changes.
- Encapsulated nerve endings: Located in structures like v, these are sensitive to pressure and touch.
- Specialized receptor cells: For example, photoreceptors in the retina (part of your eye) respond to light stimuli.
Vocal cords: unique sensory adaptations
Interestingly, vocal cords themselves lack tactile nerve endings. This means that singers don’t directly feel physical sensations from their vocal cords during singing. Instead, sensations like pitch and vibration are perceived indirectly through surrounding structures and proprioceptive feedback from muscles and joints. This unique sensory adaptation can make it challenging to accurately gauge vocal adjustments purely based on sensation.
Sensory experience in singing
Singers often describe unique sensations during performance. This includes feeling sound moving from an incorrectly-placed position below the larynx, through to a higher position against the hard/soft palettes. My singers (once they’ve been taught the role of the laryngeal tilt) begin to experience sound vibrations moving up into the back of their throat, behind the uvula. These sensations always feel a little strange at first because our brains can struggle to make sense of the combined messages from both our sensory and perception receptors.
Some singers might feel a note floating above their head when reaching higher pitches, despite their feet remaining firmly on the ground. This sensation of levitation is particularly strong in registers like mixed voice, or reinforced falsetto, when the voice correctly resonates higher up in the head.
In certain registers, especially when singing in mixed or reinforced falsetto, singers might experience a profound sensation of levitation. This subjective feeling occurs as higher notes resonate in the head voice, enhancing the emotional and physical engagement with the performance. This subjective feeling occurs as the vocal cords are thinning down, subsequently reducing the mass in the vocal cord causing the voice to feel lighter.
This often leads to a confusing feeling for the brain, because it starts to think we are floating or physically levitating off the ground. Understanding how our sensory receptors work can help singers make a better connection with their voice and improve their overall vocal performance.
Breaking the vicious cycle of bad singing habits
Bad singing habits can be difficult to break using traditional methods, largely because singers often follow the same misguided advice generated from their own brain. When the desired outcome isn’t achieved, the brain might say, “OK, keep going, next time try a little harder, you’ve almost got it.” In reality, this approach often leads to repeated failures because the brain fails to recognize that the problem lies in using incorrect techniques and/or incorrect breath coordination.
The key to overcoming these bad habits is to develop a heightened internal awareness of the correct sensations that indicate proper vocal technique. By learning to recognize and replicate these sensations, singers can break free from ineffective patterns and achieve rapid vocal improvements.
Harnessing sensory awareness for better singing
Understanding how sensory receptors function and their impact on singing can significantly enhance your vocal abilities. Sensory receptors send information in real-time, dealing with clear absolutes like hot or cold, while other receptors provide more abstract, vague messages. When your brain is overwhelmed, it might rely on the strongest sensations, which can lead to ineffective or incorrect singing advice.
To break free from inaccurate advice and improve your vocal technique, it’s crucial to discern whether the feedback from your brain that you’re receiving is genuinely helpful or potentially harmful. Ensure that your vocal coach or singing teacher uses up-to-date learning methods and demonstrates a thorough understanding of vocal anatomy and understands the mechanics of how the voice is naturally designed to work. Look for coaches who can physically demonstrate correct vocal techniques and provide professional-level singing demonstrations.
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