MITIGATING RISK OF INJURY IN ROCK SINGING

VC 565: Intro to Vocal Pedagogy

Nicholas Duffin

The New England Conservatory of Music

November 11, 2019

Table of Contents
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 1

INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………….2
PURPOSE………………....…………………………………………………………....…2
VOCAL EFFECTS...…………………………………………………………………………….2
FRY……………………...…………………………………………………………….…..2
FALSE CORD……...………………………………………………………………….….3
DEATH…………………………………………………………………………………....4
HYBRID………...………………………………………………………………………...5
OVERLAY DISTORTION…………………...……………………………………...…...6
EXTREME SCREAM DISTORTION…………….……………………………………...7
DISTORTION…………………...……………....………………………………………...8
CREAK & CREAKING....…………………...…………………………………………...9
RATLLE………………….…………………...…...…………………………………….10
GROWL………………….…………………...……………………………………..…...11
GRUNT…………………..…………………...………………………………………….12
SCREAMS…………………...…………………………………………………………..13
MICROPHONES...……………………………………………………………………………..13
TYPES OF MICROPHONES…...………………………………………………...…….13
TECHNIQUES…………………....……………………………………………………..14
BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………………………….…..15

Introduction
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Purpose

Any form of voice use involves risk of injury or damage. Each form of voice use has its

own set of unique challenges. Rock singing is no exception. One of the aspects of rock singing

that sets it apart is its use of vocal effects. Many of the effects used in rock singing may cause

damage if done improperly. Teachers such as Melissa Cross, Robert Lunte, Matthew Edwards,

and the teachers at Complete Vocal Technique, and many more provide insight as to healthy

production of these vocal effects. Additionally, rock singing employs the help of microphones,

which allow the singer to be heard amidst the other instruments involved in rock music. If the

right microphones are used, and the singer has the technique required to use them, a significant

amount of vocal load can be taken off the singer. With the help of professionals like Melissa

Cross, et al., there are tactics to mitigate vocal injury, and support rock singers’ vocal health.

Vocal Effects

Fry

Fry is a term used by Melissa Cross. It is an effect in which the vocal folds “create a

passive wall, behind which there is sustained breath pressure.” This type of effect “produces the

most amount of consistent overtone” and “causes the least amount of wear and tear on the vocal

cords.” It is versatile in that the vocalist can switch between fry and unaffected clean tone

without stopping the flow of sound. The pitch of fry can be changed by the position of the

larynx, as well as the position of the soft palate. When the larynx sits lower and the soft palate is

raised, the pitch is lower. The “overtone” of the fry can remain the same, regardless of pitch

and/or vowel choice. All of this can be seen in figure 1. The lowest pitch on the spectrogram is

the fundamental pitch, hovering around E4. At the beginning of the clip, the singer is singing an

[i] vowel. Roughly a third of the way through the clip, he switches to an [a] vowel. The
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 3

fundamental does not change. The lower of the two “overtones” drops but stays relatively

consistent. The higher “overtone” stays on roughly the same pitch. In order to achieve this, the

singer had to change his laryngeal position.

Figure 1: Fry Scream - Phil Labonte. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

False Cord

False Cord is another term used by Melissa Cross. This type of effect occurs when the

false folds are brought together. False Cord can be performed on pitch. Cross warns that this

effect is intended for baritones, because the risk of damage for tenors is considerably higher.

False Cord also requires a greater amount of breath support, “or you will rip up your vocal
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 4

cords.” Although Cross’ remarks are not directly substantiated with data about these risks, her

anecdotal knowledge is significant. When looking at figure 2, there are other aspects of this

sound that can be gleaned. The first is that there is a relatively consistent set of harmonics, which

is regularly associated with a sung note. This means that this is an effect that the vocalist is

intended to sing or speak through, creating a pitch that originates from the true vocal folds.

Additionally, we can see a pitch happening below the fundamental pitch. This is presumably

coming from the vibration of the false folds.

Figure 2: False Fold Scream - Melissa Cross. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Death
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 5

Death is a term used by Melissa Cross. This effect occurs when a short, powerful burst of

air is pushed through the folds. This burst of air creates “a little hole in the cords.” This effect

requires the greatest amount of breath support, according to Cross. Figure 3 is a spectrogram of

Melissa Cross demonstrating this effect twice in succession. This is an example that is generally

not meant to be sung through. Cross does not indicate that this sound should be sung through in

any of her instructional videos, however CVT’s “Screams” effect bears great resemblance and

does involve some version of putting the sound on various pitches.

Figure 3: Death Scream - Melissa Cross. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Hybrid
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 6

This term laid out briefly by Melissa Cross in “How to Scream like a Rocker”, describes

an effect that involves “sing[ing] with a rasp without scraping the vocal folds.” Cross references

the use of this effect in the song “Love, Reign o’er Me” by The Who. Based on what one can

hear in Melissa Cross’ example, and see in the spectrogram featured in figure 4, is that this does

fundamentally have harmonic material that resembles singing. The nature of the frequencies that

appear between harmonics is what makes hybrid scream distinct. The additional frequencies

occur inconsistently, and between a number of different harmonics. This indicates that there is an

inconsistent use of the effect itself, and that it is meant to be used among unaffected phonation.

Figure 4: Hybrid Scream - Melissa Cross. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 7

Overlay Distortion

Overlay Distortion is a term used by Robert Lunte. This effect is named for its use in

addition to an already clean, unaffected sound. Lunte demonstrates this in his video “Live

Demonstration | Robert Lunte | The Vocalist Studio.” He begins by singing a clear note, and then

engaging his ventricular folds in order to create a distortion that occurs alongside the note being

generated by his true vocal folds. The spectrogram in figure 5 shows Lunte when he is using the

effect. Frequencies associated with sung pitch are present in the low end, and at the top there are

a number of frequencies happening at similar intensities. This dense patch of frequency material

is what appears to make up the affected part of Lunte’s sound.

Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 8

Figure 5: Overlay Distortion - Robert Lunte. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Extreme Scream Distortion

Extreme Scream Distortion is a term used by Robert Lunte. This effect occurs when a

singer inhales, and phonates in vocal fry. According to Lunte, when done properly, this effect

should not cause any damage to the singer. A demonstration of this effect can be found in

Lunte’s video “How to Inhale Screamo Distortion When Singing | Robert Lunte | The Vocalist

Studio.” Figure 6 features a spectrogram of moments during this demonstration. This effect is

most notably devoid of harmonics normally seen in a sung pitch. Similar to figure 5, there is a

dense section of frequencies sounding together at similar intensities, creating the bulk of the
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 9

effect.

Figure 6: Extreme Scream Distortion - Robert Lunte. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Distortion

Distortion is a term used by Complete Vocal Technique. It is described as “a mixture of

‘noise’ and tone.” It “can be used alone or together with other effects, often creaking and rattle.”

Samples of distortion can be found on the Complete Vocal Technique website, along with

samples of all other effects they reference. Figure 7 shows that there are a number of harmonics

present, depending on which moment in the clip one looks at. There is subharmonic activity

below the fundamental, of which the exact source is unknown. The vocalist could be generating
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 10

subharmonics with either the true or false vocal folds. What is clear is that this is an effect that

intended to be sung through, based on the distinct harmonics that are present.

Figure 7: CVT Distortion - Male Sex Voice. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Creak & Creaking

Creak and Creaking are terms used by Complete Vocal Technique. This effect does not

involve any activity from the false folds, but rather “internal vibratory movements from different

parts of the vocal cords.” It is also mentioned that “[t]he vocal cords’ vibrations in both Creak

and Creaking have a complex but regular vibratory pattern.” Figures 8 & 9 each show Creak and

Creaking, respectively, in a male sex singer. The most notable difference between these two
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 11

sounds is how consistently the sound is affected. Creak acts more as a precursor to what ends up

as an unaffected phonation. Creaking, however, is being used throughout. This causes the

frequencies that are not harmonics to look very different between the two spectrograms. Due to

CVT’s grouping of these two sounds, it is believed that their articulation is similar, despite their

varied use. Generally, this means that creaking should be sung through, and creak, during the use

of the actual effect, should not.

Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 12

Figure 8: CVT Creak - Male Sex Voice. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Figure 9: CVT Creaking - Male Sex Voice. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Rattle

Rattle is a term used by Complete Vocal Technique. This effect “can be formed by

vibrations at the arytenoid cartilages, uvula, back of the tongue, the soft palate, or by making

saliva/mucosa over the arytenoids cartilages vibrate.” It “can be used alone or together with other

effects, for example Distortion.” This particular effect can be done separate from being sung, but

can also be sung through. In figure 10, the singer first sings a portamento up until getting to

rattle, and then sings a portamento down to return to singing. In the second half of the
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 13

spectrogram, the singer uses rattle while singing on a fairly consistent pitch. This second half

seems to combine the aspects of the sound we saw in the first half.

Figure 10: CVT Rattle - Male Sex Voice. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Growl

Growl is a term used by Complete Vocal Technique. This effect occurs when “the

epiglottis tilts backwards and almost covers the vocal cords. This creates the hollow and dark

‘covered’ sound of the growl.” CVT also includes this important note: “Like all other effects,

growls must be produced with great accuracy to avoid misuse of the voice.” Growls show a

notable amount of harmonic material. The particular example shown in figure 11 has variation
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 14

between affected sound and pure phonation, but there are still basic harmonics visible. This is a

sound that is meant to be sung through.

Figure 11: CVT Growl - Male Sex Voice. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Grunt

Grunt is a term used by Complete Vocal Technique. This effect “is produced by making

the whole larynx vibrate in an open position. The arytenoids, the aryepiglottic folds, the

epiglottis, and the very base of the vocal tract are vibrating, creating very low frequencies at a

rather powerful volume.” The same note is given to Grunt as with Growl in regards to misuse.

As mentioned before, this sound bears resemblance to Melissa Cross’ Death Scream. CVT’s
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 15

approach is described somewhat differently from Cross’, but the similarities are easily heard, and

seen in figure 12. Interestingly, the vocalist who recorded this example was able to achieve some

level of phonation in the second half of the clip. This sets it apart from Cross’ Death scream. It is

notable how difficult it was for the vocalist to sing exact pitches in this example, which follows

the logic laid out by both Cross and CVT.

Figure 12: CVT Grunt - Male Sex Voice. Source: Dr. Ian Howell

Screams

Screams is a term used by Complete Vocal Technique. The exact physiology is not

explained by CVT, but it is noted that “it is important that the mode is maintained even during
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 16

the most ferocious Scream because it is the correct positioning of the mode that secures you

against straining your voice.”

Microphone Skills

Types of Microphones

Microphones come in many various forms, but their role in rock singing is to assist the

singer, either in recording or in a live performance. There are key aspects of microphones that

will affect the way they function. The first is the frequency response. Frequency response is

described by Matthew Edwards as “how accurately a microphone captures the tone quality of the

signal.” Although some microphones capture the exact measurements of the signal, others will

increase the decibel level of certain frequencies. These increases may affect the way a singer is

interpreted by a microphone. The next aspect is amplitude response. This refers to the angle at

which an audio signal must be positioned in order to be captured. Diagrams are often created by

microphone manufacturers in order to show a microphone’s amplitude response. Depending on

how the singer and/or microphone(s) are likely to be positioned, this can be a determining factor

in choosing the right microphone for the job. Another aspect is sensitivity. Depending on how

close a singer will be to a microphone, as well as the environment the microphone is in, some

microphones may be better suited than others. These are a few of the most important aspects of

microphones that will influence which microphone will work best to support a singer.

Techniques

Microphone technique is an aspect of rock singing that can significantly help mitigate

vocal injury. One of the main tactics used for certain vocal effects by teachers like Melissa Cross

is to cup the microphone. Cupping the microphone allows the singer to “concentrate the sound
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 17

that is coming from [their] mouth.” This technique is also used by Robert Lunte in his video

“How to Inhale Screamo Distortion When Singing | Robert Lunte | The Vocalist Studio.”

Conclusion

When trying to avoid vocal injury, it helps to know as much as possible about high-risk

aspects of singing, like vocal effects. Knowing simple things like whether to sing through an

effect, or what parts of the instrument are taking part in the sound can make a great difference in

mitigating risk. On top of that, knowing how to amplify the voice in order to decrease intensity

even further helps to mitigate these risks.

Bibliography

“Complete Vocal Technique.” Complete Vocal Institute. Accessed December 15, 2019.
https://completevocal.institute/complete-vocal-technique/.

Edwards, Matthew. So You Want to Sing Rock 'n' Roll: a Guide for Professionals. Rowman
& Littlefield, 2014.

Journal, Wall Street. “How to Scream Like a Rocker.” YouTube, YouTube, 24 May 2018,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXNUSk-7BOk.

Korycki, Denise, director. The Zen of Screaming. Loudmouth Inc., 2006.

Korycki, Denise, director. The Zen of Screaming 2. Loudmouth Inc., 2007.

Lunte, Robert. “How to Inhale Screamo Distortion When Singing | Robert Lunte | The
Vocalist Studio.” YouTube, YouTube, 21 Feb. 2013, www.youtube.com/watch?
v=GKuRaWHtZQQ.
Nicholas Duffin: Mitigating Injury 18

Lunte, Robert. “Live Demonstration | Robert Lunte | The Vocalist Studio.” YouTube, YouTube,
24 Feb. 2013, www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KKuPNFJeok.

News, VICE. “This Trained Singer Teaches Metal Bands How To Scream (HBO).” YouTube,
YouTube, 10 Aug. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=YD6wZNkffog.