Why Singers Should Play with Vowels: Heather Baker on Vocal Tract Shaping

In this Singer’s Guide podcast episode, Tessa interviews vocal coach Heather Baker (@thesingingteacher), founder member of the Institute of Vocal Advancement and a master’s-trained vocal pedagogy specialist, about the one thing she wishes singers knew. Heather emphasises experimenting with vocal tract shaping - playing with vowels and adjustable elements like the tongue, larynx, pharynx, jaw and lips - to find the unique configurations that help each individual voice resonate best. She explains that different shapes can make singing easier or harder and influence style choices. Tessa and Heather discuss using recordings and teacher feedback to counter inaccurate self-perception, building trust between internal sensations and external sound, and how willingness to be vulnerable and try new coordinations speeds vocal progress. 00:00 Welcome to Season Two 00:58 Meet Heather Baker 02:40 The Big Question 03:36 Vocal Tract Shaping Basics 05:58 Playful Experiments With Vowels 07:04 Style Choices Classical vs Belt 08:31 Recordings and Feedback Loops 10:35 Familiar vs Comfortable Sounds 11:35 Confidence Vulnerability and Growth 14:06 Where to Find Heather 14:55 Final Thanks and Goodbye   FIND HEATHER: Heather is a world-renowned singing teacher and vocal coach with over 25 years of experience working with contemporary singers. Her clients range from Award Winning Recording Artists to West End and Broadway performers to Complete Beginners and everything in-between! She is a Founding Director of The Institute of Vocal Advancement and has amassed over 10,000 followers across her social media platforms. Heather holds a Masters Degree in Vocal Pedagogy and has completed years of ongoing training and study on the voice. She is an expert in her field and has a passion for helping singers develop their true potential and achieve the results they deserve. https://www.thesingingteacher.biz/ TikTok - Instagram - Facebook   The Singer's Guide is hosted by Tessa Smith. www.tessasmith.com   ---- 🤫 THE QUIET PRACTICE TOOLKIT: 3 step-by-step exercises to improve your singing without making a sound https://subscribepage.io/quiet-practice-toolkit   ---- 🤩 Tap here to learn more about the Singer's Practice Hub: www.singerspracticehub.com   🥳 Tap here to work with Tessa: www.thesingersguide.com   🎵 Music by Tessa Smith 🎙 Hosted by Tessa Smith, creator of The Self-Validated Voice and The Singer's Practice Hub.