I’m a great fan of TED talks and this is one I watched recently that has great advice for voice over artists or indeed anyone using their voice. It’s from a talk given a few years ago by writer and sound expert Julian Treasure.

Initially it’s about things to do, or not to do, if you want people to really listen to what you say. Julian has a list of things that we should avoid in terms of how we conduct ourselves – for example he says: don’t gossip.

He also draws attention to how the voice can sound – particularly the difference between head voice, throat voice and chest voice – the last being the one we need to access if we want to give the voice extra weight, gravitas or perceived authority.

I also liked the six things he recommends for a voice warm up before you do anything involving your voice. If you watch the video this is around 7:30.

For many years I didn’t really bother with any kind of formal warm up but recently I have found that a few minutes spent warming up and loosening up your facial muscles and also the muscles in your shoulders too, pay big dividends in terms of improved voice performance.

I think a mix of Julian’s tips alongside something that US voice artist Bill DeWees recommends in this video will go a long way towards getting your vocal chords warmed up and ready to deliver the goods in the voice over booth.

You can see Julian Treasure here
and Bill DeWees’ warm up video here

Chris Radley
Voice Over Artist