By Keith Brunson
Andy Pearson is an audiobook narrator. It's a profession he has trained for all his life. Beginning in the 1970's Andy entered voice work as a radio disk jockey, "and I loved it," he tells me.
Fast forward 40 years, and Andy is still lovin' it.
In the last fifteen auditions, eleven authors have hired Andy. Right now, he's narrating this book.
It's 480 pages long and will take 14 days to complete. andypearsonvoice@gmail.com
So, to spend this amount of time using the human voice requires vocal healthcare. Simply stated, to put the voice through this much use requires doing certain things to keep Andy's pipes operable.
"I don't use dairy or bananas on a recording day," he comments, "because it produces crud in my vocal folds." Andy is talking about the way his voice performs. "I also use steam and tea before I record to make the mechanics of my voice do what I want it to do." Andy also mentions sleep. "If I sleep more than 7 hours, it takes a couple of hours to get the grogs and frogs out of my voice."
The most successful narrator nationally is USA Today's best-selling writer Tanya Eby. Tanya holds the distinction of narrating 1,000 books. Her vocal care is almost non-existent. "Some people are really fanatics about this, but not me," she says. "I drink plain hot water when I narrate because it feels good to my throat," Tanya tells me. "Your voice is a muscle, so treat it like one. I walk daily, eat well, relax and enjoy life fully; otherwise, I do no warmups, and I'm pretty laid back about it." www.tanyaeby.com/blog
Voiceover narration artist Tanya Eby.
Vocal health is ultra-important for the voiceover artist. Nationally known Los Angeles-based artist Bill Ratner speaks of vocal exercises necessary to keep the voice in tune and highly operational.
Bill Ratner at the mic using his vocal talents.
He speaks about vocal exercising in the "The Voice Choice" vodcast about the Art of Voiceover https://www.thevoicechoice.tv episode two. "To keep my voice from aging uncontrollably, I take classes and exercise my voice daily to ensure that the voice performs at will."
Mike George, Head Instructor at The Voice Shop, uses a specific vocal regiment to ensure he can perform well. www.voiceshopcoaching.com
Voice Coach Mike George (right) instructing a voice student at The Voice Shop in New York City.
"The night before, I do not drink alcohol, and on the day of, I avoid dairy, even soy, but I do drink black coffee." Mike also adds that he avoids bread. "I also exercise and make sure that I get enough sleep."
Doctors have noted the lack of sleep as one aspect the human body needs as badly as it needs air and food. Sleep is a must-have for peak performance in any professional or personal life. "Sleep recharges the body," says Dr. David Smith, "and without it, your body just won't operate optimally."
Dr. David Smith
"I'm damaged if I sleep too much and sleep too little," says Andy Pearson. "It just makes it very hard to perform well,"
The disciplines of maintaining an operable voice include avoiding phlegm-producing foods such as bread and bananas. And because no visual is involved, enunciation is affected when you don't respect your voice as you should.
Metal musician Ken Smiddy says good oral hygiene is vital to deliver an excellent vocal performance. On the night before a performance or the day of the show, "don't scream" so that when you perform, you can use that part of your voice when you need it. "Some people are very strict," Ken comments, and to perform well, "you Must treat your voice well."
Ken Smiddy in the recording studio before a vocal performance.
Physiologically, the voice is composed of the larynx or the voice box. The vocal cords comprise the vibratory system of the voice mechanism. The vocal tract is comprised of resonators that give a personal quality to the voice, and the modifiers or articulators form sound into voiced sounds. With such complex anatomy in the voice, vocal health care is vital for anyone in voiceover to maintain.
"And that means that if I don't take care of my voice, I can't narrate, so I always protect my instrument," says Andy Pearson. "So, vocal health, well… it's everything."
Keith Brunson is a writer and host of "The Voice Choice," a vodcast about the voiceover business. https://thevoicechoice.tv/
