If your cold is in your sinuses (i.e you just feel "stuffed up") and not in your lungs it means your vocal chords are probably healthy enough to sing. If you start getting a bad cough and are getting hoarse it's best to rest your voice and if at all possible cancel your show.
If you need the mouth and nose to help you produce sound, suffering from sinusitis will impact the quality of your singing voice. Sinusitis is a common issue where the sinus cavities become inflamed and swollen. The condition can present itself when the body is infected by bacteria or a virus.
Basically, you are triggering the swelling up in your sinus cavity by vibration and air pressure. It means you are channeling too much of the sound up there (because it's good at compressing air). A tense jaw is most likely to blame.
However, mucus can also keep you feeling clogged when singing. There are methods that can help you banish the clogged feeling. For example, steaming with a tea towel over your head, and taking deep breaths in through your nose and out through the mouth can all reduce mucus.
We've all experienced an abnormally “nasal” sound to our voice when we have nasal congestion or large tonsils and adenoids. This is called hyponasal speech (too little nasal resonance); however, in some cases the opposite may be true – there can be too much sound or air leaking through the nose while speaking.
The best way to deal with phlegm is with light vocalizing. This will keep your voice supple and flexible and cause the phlegm to vibrate off. Practice singing at a low volume on EE vowel scales and glissando's (start from you highest pitch and slide down to your lowest pitch).
The lower your soft palate, the more unsealed air can travel through your nose rather than your mouth, resulting in a nasal voice and flaring nostrils. Although some singers love the edgy tone it may add to their style, many wanting to remove the clogged-up sound in order to let those crystal-clear vocals shine.
Common viral infections, such as a cold or flu, can sometimes lead to a condition known as laryngitis – inflammation of the voice box, which causes swollen vocal folds (or vocal cords). Symptoms include hoarseness, a sore throat and an irritating cough.
Quite often, nasal resonance is caused by singing with the larynx a little too high, so more sound waves end up in the nasal tract. Another thing to consider is that some languages, such as the French language, tend to use nasalized vowels more. In contrast, the English language does not use as many nasal sounds.
Singers breathing in (summary): Singers can and should breathe in basically the same way they would do for healthy, efficient, everyday breathing, and include the SPLAT – 'Singers Please Loosen Abdominal Tension'. One key detail is that singers should always inhale through their mouth rather than their nose.
The best drinks before singing are warm drinks without caffeine or milk, warm water and herbal teas containing manuka honey, lemon and ginger are ideal. Warm or room-temperature water will hydrate your vocal cords, making them more supple and less liable to injury.
Nasal breathing has a number of benefits for singers. First the nose filters out allergens and other particles that could irritate the throat. Air exhaled through the nose also reabsorbs moisture more efficiently than mouth breathing. This reduces the chance of dehydration.
If you're sick and have a gig or rehearsal that night and the show must go on: rest your voice, drink fluids, inhale steam, hum. Unless you are really sick, the adrenaline of performing often will knock out most your cold symptoms for the duration of the gig. Take natural anti-inflammatories like turmeric and ginger.
The technique of the open throat is intended to promote a type of relaxation or vocal release in the throat that helps the singer avoid constriction and tension that would otherwise throttle or stifle the tone.
Some foods and beverages to avoid prior to singing are mucous producing foods such as dairy, stimulants such as caffeine and spicy foods, soft drinks, refined sugars, chocolate, iced drinks and alcohol (including wine and beer).
Using the straw is basically making the vocal tract longer because the straw is extending the space where the sound is resonating. The elongation of the vocal tract allows the larynx to lower to a neutral position. When the larynx is neutral, you can't over-squeeze.
The best thing you can do to improve your singing is singing regularly. “Practice makes perfect” is a cliché, but practice really does make you better. Singing every day strengthens your vocal cords, improves your vocal range, and will gradually lead you to a better vocal tone.
When does your singing voice fully develop? Different people mature at different rates, and this applies to your voice too. But generally speaking, singers usually see their singing voice start to really come on between the age of 20 – 30. Voices that have a deeper, heavier tone typically take longer to fully develop.
For most people, a minimum of thirty minutes every day is a good start. However, there is a thing as practicing too much, and you should always stop practicing if you feel a strain on your vocal cords. If you take breaks throughout the day, it will allow you to build the vocal stamina needed to practice more every day.
Singing can be both a natural talent and a skill. Some people are born with a tone that is naturally pleasing, but a good singing voice can be learnt. The best singers are those who devote the most amount of time and hard work to their passion.
Warm up your voice.
Simple humming is a nice warmup to bring the voice forward and prepare for a lengthy conversation or presentation.
It turns out we do it for many reasons: stress relief, happiness, great acoustics, or maybe just because we like to hear our own voices. No matter what the reason, keep it up. It's good for you. And if you've never tried it, pick a song, grab the showerhead and put on your own private concert.