The concept of the child prodigy has been around for a very long time. Children accomplishing adult tasks has long drawn the attention of crowds everywhere. We have all heard and seen children become accomplished violinists, pianists, dancers, or actors; it is only natural that we would seek out child prodigies in the realm of singing. However, singing as a child is subject to many more limitations due to the nature of the human voice and how it matures as we age. The voice is a very delicate instrument. If the voice is not treated with care, it can easily be damaged.

A child’s voice should never be placed under the same vocal stress as an adult’s voice is. Really, there is no such thing as a “child vocal prodigy.” Though you may find some who claim otherwise, the very large majority of success some of these kinds of singers see is short-lived. Children who sing like adults often unknowingly use unhealthy techniques, like belting and depressing the larynx with the tongue. These are very vocally damaging habits that have often ruined young singers’ beautiful, healthy voices.

For example, there are some singing techniques that are often used in pop or musical theater styles that encourage heavy belting; most vocal professionals agree these techniques can be extremely damaging to the voice. One major reason that belting is a popular technique is that modern audiences often think that louder is better. This idea sends the message that only loud singing is good singing and that a child’s sound is not good enough as it is. This invites the young student to push their voice excessively. Heavy belting can create a large sound, but it results in real danger for any child’s voice. Singing lessons that focus on producing big, adult sounds can damage the young voice in a short period of time. We want to develop awareness of what is healthy singing for a child.

There is currently very little public knowledge regarding what vocal health in a child’s voice should sound like. And so, this unhealthy type of vocal production is often celebrated, but healthy vocalism in a child’s voice means allowing them to sound like a child. Children’s voices generally have a breathy quality and a limited range. This breathiness will disappear naturally as the child grows, as the larynx will continue to develop and calcify. This breathiness should never be eliminated through squeezing the vocal folds tightly, as this puts excessive pressure on the delicate vocal folds. Especially in a child’s voice, these techniques can injure the singer in a short time, often leading to the development of vocal polyps, nodules, or hemorrhages. 

One of the most important factors in achieving healthy singing habits with our young students is choosing music that suits their technical ability level, suits their range, helps them improve as singers, and of course also suits their own musical preferences. We will carefully consider what styles and specific songs are best suited for each individual child, keeping in mind their preferences as well as their limitations as a young singer. As our students mature, we will introduce more complex and technically demanding music at a pace which suits that student’s vocal maturity. Keep in mind that, just like with growth spurts, each child will mature at their own natural pace-- there is no set age at which a child’s voice will reach any particular point of maturity.

All of these factors considered, the best approach we can take in teaching children how to sing lies in carefully choosing appropriate music to learn and establishing healthy vocal habits while we allow the voice to naturally mature over time. We will often cover singing-related subjects such as acting, reading music, foreign languages, and confidently presenting ourselves on stage in conjunction with vocal technique-- none of these peripheral aspects of singing are limited by physical maturity. There is so much to learn, but we must remember that our goal is to treat childrens’ voices with care and set them up for long term health and success in singing!