Keep Your Singing Voice Healthy!

Anthony F. Jahn is Professor of Clinical Otolaryngology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. He is the author of more than 100 scholarly papers and several textbooks on vocal health. He has had an association with the Metropolitan Opera for more than 40 years and is also Adjunct Professor of Vocal Pedagogy at Westminster Choir College in Princeton.Youngnan Jenny Cho, MD is Assistant Professor of Clinical Otolaryngology at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. She has lectured internationally to both singers and physicians on disorders of the professional voice and is on the faculty of the Bel Canto Institute in Florence. Dr. Cho oversees health services at three Lincoln Center performing venues, including the Metropolitan Opera, where she is Director of Medical Services.

• Preface1. The Vocal Apparatus2. From Function to Performance3. Examining Your Instrument: A Hands-On Tour4. Monitoring Your Voice5. The Glissando Test: A Simple Vocal Check-Up6. Hearing and Singing7. Muscle Tension and the Voice8. Frequent Complaints, Common Sense Solutions9. A Practical Approach to Allergies10. Visiting the Voice Doctor11. Common disorders of the Larynx12. Vitamins, Supplements, Medications13. Alcohol, Coffee, and Tobacco14. Cortisone and the Voice15. Voice Rest16. Mindful Practice: A Medical Perspective17. Diet and Singing18. Exercise and Vocal Health19. The Living Instrument: The Voice Over Time20. The Singer: Artist and ArtisanAppendix 1. Ten Simple Tips for Keeping Your Voice HealthyAppendix 2. Anatomic Intermezzo: What Do You Call That Thing? Index

This is the clearest explanation I have ever read of the basic mechanics and physiology of singing. The authors avoid any medical or scientific jargon, yet what they say checks out when read by someone who also knows that jargon. They put their extensive clinical experience at the service of the reader without ever claiming too much certainty and with constant respect for the variability of voices and circumstances. All the while, they don't try to make the book a substitute for a doctor or a voice teacher, a temptation not avoided by everyone who writes about these topics. Dr. Jahn and Dr. Cho are experts both musically and medically, and have the additional gift of writing in straightforward English, with a good sense of narrative and crystal-clear organization. Every singer should read what they have to say.