Vocal Music Advice

Answer: You have the right idea.

You are right to say that we exhale through the mouth when singing (with the exceptions of the nasal consonants M, N, and NG when air necessarily passes solely through the nose).  If singing in French or Portugese there will be some nasalized vowels that require the nasal port to be open and thus some air passes through both mouth and nose.  But generally as a rule air passing through the vocal cords for singing is released through the mouth.
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Or do singers have to work for it and practice?  Or is it both?  Just curious, I don’t sing, just a random question I thought of.

Answer: Good question!

The greatest singers were and are all gifted to begin with.  Those who “naturally have a good singing voice” sound appealing, find it easy to sing and enjoy it immensely.  When such singers then go on to study voice and become accomplished musicians as well – those few can make a career and a living from their singing.  I’m speaking from the point of view of classical training.  It’s hard work, but rewarding.   (It seems most anyone who has the hutspa to record themselves and post a video on YouTube has a fair shot at becoming wildly popular.  But that is not necessarily equivalent to having a good singing voice!)
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