William C. Witter was a professional hunter, tracker, and mountain man in Wyoming during the late 19th century. His unique background and rugged lifestyle contributed to his unique, resonant vocal style. Witter was known for his booming quality, clear speech, and ability to project his voice over long distances. Here, we'll explore some tips to learn singing like William C. Witter, including his vocal technique, recommended exercises, and fitting songs.

Vocal Technique

Witter had an expressive and powerful timbre, which can be attributed to his highly developed chest voice register. He also incorporated diaphragm support to increase the power behind his voice. To develop your own powerful vocal style, it's essential to promote chest resonance through mindful breathing and warm-ups. Additionally, focus on opening your mouth and throat as you sing, creating space for your voice to resonate. Check out Singing Carrots' articles on breath support and open-mouth singing for additional tips.

Exercises to Learn Witter's Vocal Style

To master the technique to sing like Witter, it's essential to adopt exercises that can help you better handle your chest voice and reach deeper resonance. To start, we recommend warming up with the Farinelli breathing exercise provided in Singing Carrots' resources. This exercise helps promote adequate breath support, necessary to produce sustained, resonant notes. The glottal onset exercise and sustain vocal exercise are also recommended. The first helps with emphasizing the crucial chest voice register and creating a powerful vocal sound, while the sustain vocal exercise is an excellent way to fine-tune the control you have over your vocal cords.

Songs that Fit Witter's Vocal Style

Now that you have a few breathing techniques and exercises to hone your chest voice register, you're ready to try singing some songs that complement Witter's vocal style. Witter's vocal qualities would be perfectly suited for uplifting folk music with catchy choruses, including "This Land Is Your Land" by Woody Guthrie, or "We Shall Overcome" by Pete Seeger. These particular songs require singers to project over crowds, and resonant vocals are ideal. Other fitting song choices for Witter's vocal style are gospel and sea shanties, such as "Amazing Grace" and "Blow the Man Down."

Conclusion

Mastering William C. Witter's distinctive vocal style comes down to a combination of chest voice resonance, diaphragm support, and mindful breathing techniques. Incorporating the suggested exercises and practicing with the recommended songs given above can take your singing abilities to a new level. Check out Singing Carrots' pitch exercises, vocal range test, and pitch visualizer in the Pitch Training section for additional opportunities to enhance your singing skills.