Throat bleeding leads to improvement?

Question

I'm sure this is a rudimentary question, but say a person has a gravelly quality to his voice and very bad breath control. Would usage until bleeding be recommended? (I think I recall throat bleeding as improving singers, as the healed product is stronger?)

Answer 1

Never head of that and wouldn't try it. Imagine the germs that could produce to your vocal chords.

It would be great if we could tune our vocal chords like a guitar or whatever.

Answer 2

To the best of my knowledge you shouldn't sing until you bleed - I'd imagine that it could damage your vocal chords and make your voice worse than it already is. As for breath control, that's nothing to do with your throat, that's breathing. That takes practice, singing long notes, and doing diaphragm work (the diaphragm being a muscle somewhere near your stomach - when you breathe in fully you should be able to feel it) - good diaphragm control is a must for good breathing. As for the bleeding thing, doesn't sound legit at all to me.

Also, if the singing sounds gravelly, try maybe singing different ranges - try singing something a bit higher than you're used to, and see if that helps. You might jut be singing lower than you're able to and ending up in the vocal fry register. Also, don't sing quietly - sing at full volume - the tone will be completely different, as will the technique. If you're embarrassed, try singing where nobody else is there (like in the car, in the shower...).

Dunno if all that helps, but if not, bleeding bad. No bleeding good.

Answer 3

Who told you that??? They are very ignorant or they hate you and want you to fail. I have come across teachers who should not be teaching music, They should be picking up garbage.

It is a shame we have so many so-called teachers who don't know their a-s from a hole in the ground. Unfortunately there are a lot of them around. Only study with a well-know successful performer who also teaches.

Answer 4

ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!!!

Vocal cords are covered with a jello-like substance which will get damaged from poor technique (basically, voice abuse); in fact, it happens quite easily and very quickly. This substance is actually what vibrates when speaking or singing, and allows a singer to hit the highest notes.

Once the gelatinous covering has worn off, the vocal cords swell, and because they have more mass, it will deepen the pitch of the voice. Combined with a c***k in the cords, a gravelly voice results.

The next stage toward real trouble is the development of vocal nodules, which cause hoarseness that won't go away.

If you sing to the point of bleeding, you will develop PERMANENT scarring and wind up not only in a lot of pain, but you'll never sing again; your range will be gone and you will have chronic hoarseness/coarseness of your voice.

Stop NOW, and observe several weeks of voice rest, which includes:

Speaking as little as is humanly possible.

NO singing, humming, yelling, throat clearing, coughing, or loud whispering.

Avoid hot liquids. Even though you may find them to be soothing, they do nothing to alleviate swelling and can even make it worse. Drink cool, but not cold, liquids. Cold and carbonated stuff can trigger a coughing fit which makes your vocal cords slam together and prevents healing. The exception to this is sucking on ice chips.

Take an anti-inflammatory, like ibuprofen.

Learn to support the singing voice by using abdominal and lower back muscles. These are what drive the diaphragm and allow for much better breath control.