By: aaron adish
Submitted: 2010-10-18 02:26:32 | Word Count: 1039
Ouch, It Hurts When I Sing!
Once I 1st commenced to put in writing this text concerning voice issues in singers, I was trying for 2 experts from contrasting fields of medicine - "medical" and "holistic". What I found, instead, in the first practitioner that I interviewed, was a delightful mixture of the two.
The subsequent biography of Dr. Brian Hands was taken from the web site VOX Cura, his Toronto clinic. There is a link to the website at the bottom of this article.
"Dr. Brian Hands, M.D., FRCS (C), could be a member of the Royal Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons in his field of laryngology, sits on the Board of the Canadian Voice Foundation, may be a member of the Voice Foundation in the U.S. and is on the editorial board of The Medical Post.
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Brian Hands' life-long passion for the humanities, combined along with his medical follow as an ear, nose and throat specialist, has led to a growing apply among performing artists of all disciplines. He is voice consultant for the Canadian Opera Company, Stratford Competition, the most important theatrical companies, Mirvish Productions and the former Livent as well as major record labels."
I hope you will relish reading regarding Dr. Hands and his work treating singers with voice problems.
Linda Dessau: Why did you opt to concentrate on the voice issues of singers?
Brian Hands: As an ear, nose and throat resident, options for coaching in looking after voices is limited. Once a few years of apply, a board member of the hospital where I used to be operating offered me the position of voice doctor to the Canadian Opera Company. I quickly became fascinated and passionately excited by performers who use their voice - the purest sound somebody's will produce. I loved doing it. At that time, in Toronto, CATS and also the Phantom of the Opera were beginning their production. Touring singers from all over the world would call the Canadian Opera Company for referrals if they had voice problems whereas they were in Toronto; eventually rock singers, movie folks and theatre people from Stratford all started being referred. This is the work I purchase the greatest enjoyment from, and I attempt currently to limit my practice to only voice problems. I establish with the robust emotional aspects involved in performing; I love the creative arts.
I believe in taking a mind/body/soul approach and use elements of energy work, chakra therapy, color therapy and yoga. I realize the performers find these approaches straightforward to relate to.
I start with a Western medical method of taking a patient's history and doing a physical assessment. And once that's done, I house the emotional and religious aspects of the person.
I appreciate that my clients see me as non-threatening, like a friend - not a typical doctor who simply needs to label them and find them on their way. I see them as a whole entity and not simply as a medical problem.
Most voices DON'T have pathology, or a physical ailment. The singers are therefore relieved to listen to that their vocal cords are fine!
After some short minutes in my office we're usually in a position to induce to the deeper problems, emotional "baggage" which will are with them since childhood.
This brings more relief, the actual fact that someone is being attentive to them and understands them. I've heard many times, "How do you know so abundant concerning me, after we've just met?"
Another joy for me is facilitating, for these singers, the cathartic unharness of their pain through singing.
LD: What are the foremost common vocal disorders?
BH: Muscular tension dysphonia or supraglottic hyperfunction - excessive muscle tension in muscles higher than the larynx. Common symptoms are pain after singing, inability to hit high notes, issue in passaggio (transitioning between the various registers of the voice), constant clearing of the throat, pain in neck and head and tightness in the jaw.
LD: What's a myth concerning singing that you would like to correct?
BH: The myth that some people ought to just mouth the words as a result of they "cannot" sing - with training anyone can sing!
LD: What happens when a singer comes to your workplace for treatment?
BH: We take an intensive physical history, find out about any allergies, examine the neck and throat, and look within the mouth by using either a versatile or rigid endoscope. Frequently we use a refined video exam referred to as a videostroboscopic evaluation of the larynx. Once all of those procedures we tend to decide on a kind of treatment. The foremost common course of action is reassurance that there is no structural damage to the vocal cords, not to mention talking about the underlying emotional issues that are bringing on the physical symptoms. Typically treatment involves speech therapy, and sometimes speech therapy and medication. It's rare that a patient desires surgery.
LD: Could be a vocal disorder a lifelong issue? Why or why not?
BH: No, as a result of once somebody has mastered the correct breathing technique, they're going to eliminate the physical symptoms that cause them to the clinic in the first place. Respiration needs to determine a deep affiliation between the 3rd chakra (solar plexus) and also the 2nd chakra (creative energy) by planting their feet firmly on the bottom through the 1st chakra. With those connections in place, the patient will deliver a breath from the third chakra with inspiration from their heart (fourth chakra) and then to their fifth chakra (larynx, throat chakra). Often, the trouble is that the non secular association (7th chakra) has been broken and their intuitive center (sixth chakra) acknowledges this. And so there's a backlog of energy at the fifth chakra; an incoordinate activity with too much tension in the realm around the larynx (leading to the muscle tension described earlier).
Author Resource:-
Lulu Griffin has been writing articles online for nearly 2 years now. Not only does this author specialize in Speech Pathology, you can also check out latest website about
