Chest voice vs head voice
A series of pitches that are produced in a similar way.
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Side by side
| Chest voice | Head voice | |
|---|---|---|
| Range | Lower part of your range | Higher part of your range |
| Timbre | Thicker, fuller | Thinner, lighter |
| Vocal folds | More depth of vocal fold engaged | Stretched and thin |
| Used most in | Speech | Emotive expression: laughing, crying, cheering |
| Vibrations felt in | The chest | The head |
To achieve a large range of pitches, dynamics and colors, singers must develop control over their registration.
Why your voice feels inconsistent
A foundational goal with any instrument is to be able to produce an even, consistent scale throughout its range, without any abrupt interruption or change in tone.
To achieve this, the voice must develop a flexible control over both chest voice and head voice.
All voices have chest and head voice. However, usually one of these registers is stronger than the other.
When this is true, producing a stable, clear tone throughout a wide range of pitches can feel impossible.
The only way to achieve an even, seamless tone from the top of your range to the very bottom is to develop your mixed voice.
The first stage is to develop and strengthen your chest voice and your head voice.