The lip trill is the safest and most powerful exercise to expand vocal range.

In this exercise the vocal folds are in a close, safe environment. This decreases the threshold force needed to get the vocal folds to vibrate together.

That means the Lip Trill helps you sing those top notes with your registers in a Mix, rather than singing them in falsetto.

In addition to helping you expand your range safely, the lip trill is also great at ensuring a steady volume when you’re singing scales.

You can think of the lip trill as a compressor on your voice. It boosts the notes that you would normally sing in falsetto, and reduces the strain on the notes you might yell.

Here’s how you do it:

1.     Blow out some air to make your lips flop together.

This should be done in a very relaxed way. Make sure that you’re not straining or “pushing” the air to get the lips moving.

Just relax the lips and let them gently vibrate together.

If you’re having a hard time getting the lips to trill together, try saying “Buh, Buh, Buh” quickly in order to draw your lips together.

Then try blowing some air between your lips while maintaining the “Buh” feeling of the lips coming together.

2.     While your lips are flopping together, say the vowel “Uh” (as in “Utter”). It should have a bubbly sound like you’re under water.

3.     Now find a comfortable starting pitch (try C3 for guys and G3 for girls) and allow the lips to flop together while you sing the “Uh” vowel.

4.     Sing the following scale.

If you don’t have a piano handy, don’t worry. Here’s a video demonstrating the exercise in all the male and female keys so you can sing along.

A Few Things to Note

·      The whole point of the lip trill is to keep an even tone across your whole range, so make sure that your volume stays consistent when singing from bottom to top.

·      The lip trill also trains your voice to sing with a consistent amount of breath across your whole range, so keep your lips flopping evenly.

·      Remember to sing the vowel “Uh” as you’re doing the lip trill. Your tongue should remain flat and in the front of your mouth.

Now that we’ve sung up to the top of your range without disconnecting to falsetto or straining, let’s sing across your range with a slightly more open mouth.