Singing Guide: Glenn Close
Vocal technique, exercises, tips and relevant resources
Glenn Close is well-known as a versatile actress. Yet, besides her acting talent, Glenn has an astonishing voice that should not be forgotten. Her remarkable voice is characterized by its deep, rich, resonant quality and its powerful low register. Glenn Close is also known for using her chest voice with great control and precision.
To learn singing like Glenn Close, you should start working on your chest voice. Singing in this register requires you to use a little more air than usual. Hence, controlling the stream of air you use, and the chest muscles you activate, will help you achieve a robust and full-bodied sound like Glenn Close’s. To achieve the sound’s power, we recommend working on your breath control by practicing exercises such as Farinelli Breathing and sustaining a long note.
Once you have acquired the basic chest voice technique, you can start exploring Glenn Close’s songs to master her sound. To showcase her voice, she chooses Broadway and musical pieces such as "Send in the Clowns," which tests a singer's vocal ability to present the song's emotions. You can also practice her version of "With One Look" from the musical Sunset Boulevard, which demonstrates her commanding performance style and powerful voice.
Another fundamental aspect of Glenn Close's technique is the control she has over her voice's resonance. To achieve this, it is necessary to understand that controlling your voice involves understanding what is happening in your throat, mouth, and nasal area. You can start by reading about vocal resonance and use the vocal range test to get a sense of your natural voice's range. Once you understand and practice manipulating your voice's placement, you can work on particular phrases or songs such as "As if We Never Said Goodbye" from Sunset Boulevard to develop more control over your voice’s resonance.
Finally, proper breathing, intonation, and articulation are essential to replicate Glenn Close's brilliant sound. To perfect breathing and intonation start with exercises such as Diaphragm Bounce, where you learn to control your diaphragm and soften the glottal onsets. Equally, correct articulation can be learned with the Finger Bite technique. It involves biting down your fingers or a pencil and relaying a phrase. The exercise essentially tunes your voice's articulation and gives you better control over it. To build on this and find songs in Glenn Close's vocal profile, you can use song search and access sheet music, karaoke tracks, lyrics, and much more.
In conclusion, to sing like Glenn Close, it is fundamental to practice in your chest voice with good breath control, manipulate your voice's placement, and articulate correctly. Of course, exploring Glenn Close's musical repertoire will also help you to emote and feel your voice. With Singing Carrots’ resources and these tips, you can train your voice to control your timbre, match her song interpretation, and recreate the magic of her voice.