The secret of lip trills unveiled
Most singing students would have heard of ‘lip trills’, ‘lip rolls’ or ‘lip bubbles’ and likely wondered why singing teachers recommend doing them. What are lip trills, and do they truly benefit the voice? If so, why are lip trill exercises good and what are the benefits of practising them?
What are lip trills?
A lip trill is a semi-occluded (partially closed) vocal tract exercise. It is a vibration technique and quite a tickly experience that involves flapping of the lips during an exhale.
It is actually very similar in sound to what horses do when they flutter their nostrils during a ‘snort-blow’. (The horse in the pic is actually laughing more than snort-blowing, but was way too cute not to be included in this post).
The objective of lip trills and tongue trills (similar in nature, but involving tongue vibrations instead of the lips) is to mobilise the mucosa of the vocal folds, reduce phonatory effort and provide vocal warm-up.
A lip trill involves breathing the air out through the lips in a controlled way, so that not all air ‘escapes’ in one go. Instead, the air is being released in a steady motion to achieve an even and consistent stream without too much wobble.
If you blow too little or too much air, the lip trill will not work. So, the quality of a lip trill is often a great indication of the quality of your overall breath control.
What are the benefits of lip trills?
Lip trills are incredibly helpful in training a consistent breath flow. They are also one of the safest and gentlest exercises for the voice because they take the vocal ‘weight’ out of the voice. They have a wide range of benefits, which include:
- softening of the contact between the vocal folds
- reduction of phonation effort (lip trills make it easier to make a sound)
- relaxation of the excessive muscle tension
- balance of the subglottal and supraglottal pressures (the air pressure below and above the vocal folds)
- improvement of the circulation of fluid in the tissue of the vocal folds
- greater vocal resistance
- reduction of the risk of phonation trauma (vocal strain)
How do lip trills help with warming up your voice?
- All speaking and singing is produced upon exhalation. To make a speaking or singing sound, we need adequate respiratory support and coordination. Lip trills are one of the best exercises to set this coordination into motion without putting strain on the voice.
- They are also a great exercise to help you develop a smooth legato line between your vocal registers.
- Due to their semi-occluded nature (partially closed), they are a very safe vocal exercise. So, they are ideal to use at the beginning of your warm-up practice.
- Lip trills are a fabulous way to find strong vocal engagement without over-pressuring or over-adducting (squeezing together) of your vocal folds.
How to do the lip trill exercise?
- Stand in front of the mirror to make sure your posture is correctly aligned.
- Relax your jaw muscles, cheeks, and lips.
- Take a breath and send it out through pursed lips. Make sure your lips are not too tight.
- Let the lips flap and try to maintain a steady flow of breath without releasing too much air too quickly.
- If you struggle to achieve a lip trill, place your index fingers at the corners of your mouth and gently push the corners toward your nose as you blow the air out.
Once you have mastered the lip trill exercise and can produce a reliable, steady sound every time you do your lip trill, try lip trilling a song. Pick a relatively easy song and aim for a steady, consistent sound production. Make sure all notes are smooth and well connected (legato).