World Voice Day (WVD) is a worldwide annual event that takes place on 16 April each year devoted to the celebration of the phenomenon of voice.

The aim of the day is to demonstrate the enormous importance of the voice in our daily lives.

Voice is a critical aspect of effective and healthy communication, and World Voice Day brings global awareness to the need for preventing voice problems, rehabilitating the deviant or sick voice, training the artistic voice, and researching the function and application of voice.

A goal of World Voice Day is to encourage all those who use their voice professionally or pleasure to learn to take care of their voice, and know how to seek help and training, and to support research on the voice.

A well-trained Voice is critical for many of our performers from actors to singers and comedians who talk non-stop during their act.

Here are some tips on World Voice Day for fellow actors and singers, professional or amateur to follow;

World Voice Day – Top Tips for Voice Care

Warming up and down:

Always warm up the body with stretches and wake up the breath BEFORE vocalising. Aligning the spine, releasing the knees and pelvis, followed by releasing tongue, neck and jaw tension should all be included in the warm-up.

After intensive vocalising, be quiet for a while – don’t go and party!

Body care:

• Check if certain foods (dairy produce and wheat are the most common examples) are increasing your mucus production and if so, try to avoid them
• Get plenty of sleep
• Avoid speaking in loud environments
• Drink plenty of water and cut down on very cold or sugary drinks
• Cut down or ideally stop all smoking
• Avoid excessive coughing or throat clearing: instead, try gently lengthening the back of your neck – keeping your chin level – and swallow slowly.

Indications of voice strain are:

Throat pain when you speak or swallow; a sore throat in the morning which disappears as your voice warms up; a hoarse, tired voice in the evening; an increase in mucus especially if it’s not discoloured; rapid changes in pitch or loss of control of your voice; vocal tiredness after just one rehearsal.

Vocal recovery:

Rest – a day or even a few hours are sufficient for basic voice recovery. However, don’t go back to work or to singing too soon, but give your vocal cords at least another 24 hours’ rest or you could end up with longer term vocal problems. Regular voice strain indicates the need to re-educate yourself about voice technique.

Never use sweets or medications intended to reduce throat pain just so you can carry on singing or talking – this is a safety precaution – as a singer needs to be able to feel full sensory feedback all the time. And lastly, never whisper.

Voice loss and persistent problems:

Persistent hoarseness may be a side-effect of medication that you are taking, so ask your GP for alternatives. You MUST ask your GP for a referral to an Ear, Nose and Throat consultant for appropriate help if:

• you are hoarse for more than two to three weeks
• you have regular hoarseness or voice loss
• you are constantly aware of vocal fatigue
• your voice quality changes significantly
• you have pain or difficulty swallowing.

If using your voice is part of your profession (singers, teachers, barristers) you can sometimes ask for a fast-track referral and jump the queue.

Some of the incredible talent we have performing at The Grand musically include;

In celebration of World Voice Day, Musical shows we have on:

• ELO Again
• The Rat Pack Live From Las Vegas
• Signed, Sealed, Delivered
• Islands in the Stream
• Bowie Experience – The Golden Years Tour
• Roy Orbison Story
• UK Pink Floyd Experience
• Some Guys Have All The Luck
• The Bon Jovi Experience
• The Lancashire Hotpots
• ABBA Mania
• Walk Like a Man
• Magic of Motown
• A Country Night in Nashville
• The Rolling Stones Story

Visit Natural Voice for more information.