How to Break Up With Jaw Tension When You Sing
Jaw tension is something that can fly under singers’ radar because he can look like he’s doing the right thing.
If your jaw is aching after you’ve whipped through 30 minutes of your favourite rock anthems or a RENT medley, it’s pretty clear something’s going on there.
But you wouldn’t necessarily point the finger in the jaw’s direction if it’s things like
- a shaky or cracky sound on high, strong or sustained notes
- a tickly feeling in your throat
- struggling to project or have the voice resonating “forward” (even when you’re shaping your vowels for that purpose)
But these vocal challenges can all potentially be the result of a tight, gripped or jutting out jaw.
Jaw tension is the result of a neural pathway or a habit that is effectively saying
“In order to create X sound, our jaw needs to lock/engage/tense up”
So our job in vocal practice is to PROVE THIS WRONG.
To disrupt the pattern.
To show the mind and the body that our cemented-in-place jaw is doing more harm than good when it comes to the free, resonant, clear sound we truly want.
And we do this by shaking things up.
Quite literally.
If your jaw really IS the culprit, this exercise will likely dish out one or more of the below for you…
✨ more resonance
✨ more ease and freedom in your sound
✨ potentially a more focused, forward feeling/easier projection
✨ clarity and stability
It’ll take some time to permanently break this habit, but it’s well worth it.
Begin by wiggling that jaw gently each time you notice it wanting to misbehave.
Then, once that is starting to feel pretty easy to do, alternate between loosening it with some movement and trying it without.
If the tension creeps back in, it’s a sign to go back to Step One for a but longer (and be kind to yourself in what can be a frustrating phase).