Imagine if you saw someone kicking a dog about 300 yards away, and you shouted 'Oy!'...

That's projection.

It's a voice that is not necessarily just loud, but carries a distance, and penetrates the ears...

Projecting your singing voice wants similar qualities, although, rather than penetrating, I would say 'makes people's ears perk up'.

I've found that most people can summon that kind of projective 'Oy' at will, but not everyone can. You might be one of the people that could project an Oy but doesn't feel confident to project your singing voice.

But just describing this Oy idea could well wake up in you, what it takes to project your voice. So that's why I mention that first...that might be all it takes for you, to switch on something you already know how to do unconsciously. If that's the case, then great. Don't bother reading any further.

But if you want the nitty-gritty of how to project well, read on...

Before I actually share the '3 ingredients', I've realised that there is an underlying mindset that will help you project.

This is intention, and confidence.

What are you intending to communicate with your singing? Do you want to actually reach people with your message? 
Do you feel confident enough to be truly heard?

You must be able to answer these questions and say 'yes' to the latter two, to be able to project.

Once you've got that down, you'll need the 3 ingredients, the 3 physical aspects of voice projection, to do it effectively and beautifully. Here you go:

So for your voice to carry, and captivate listeners ears, you need 3 parts of the voice to work in specific ways:

1. Breath Power.
You need your breath to arise from its deepest source and be energised enough to send your sound out strongly. Imagine that calling 'Oy' and you will probably feel a lot of movement in your lower abdomen. That's what you need to tap into.

2. Clear Tone.
This is what I call, what happens at the level of the vocal folds, i.e. in your throat. You need a clear, focused tone that is balanced and full, which is what happens when the vocal folds are working properly. What you DON'T want is a breathy tone, or a raspy, rough, or hard-edged sound. These will simply not project.

Unless you've already got it, this is not an easy one to help you with in writing. You really need face-to-face help with this. But, what you may find useful is to imagine your voice coming out like a bright, narrow torch beam rather than a wider, softer light-beam.

3. Bright Resonance.
Your lovely clear tone now needs to resonate with plenty of bright overtones so it can carry, and 'light up' the airwaves. This is what gives your voice 'ring'.

A nice way to do this is to imagine directing your voice up through your head, as if there were a passageway going up from your soft palate to the crown of your head, rather than sending your sound forward through the mouth.

This really makes a difference, try it out. 
( Many of my clients have transformed their formerly dull vocal qualities by incorporating this into their singing)

So that's all for now folks! I hope you've enjoyed this article and will get a lot out of it. 

If you want to get my help to unlock your strong, effective yet beautiful vocal projection skills, so that your singing will captivate audiences, or you can feel you have valuable and contributing voice in your choir, then I invite you to take up my 'Vocal Projection Mini-Course'