I remember teachers telling me to close my vocal cords, and occasionally do other stuff with them I had no idea how to do. Obviously that was frustrating, so I was relieved when I finally learned how to control them. Because closing the vocal cords is where real vocal control is achieved.

This article is part of my Singing techniques & Vocal exercises guide, where I break down the skills that make your voice easier to control and more expressive. Here, we’ll zoom in on the vocal cords: why it matters, how it really works, and the specific exercises that help singers get that true control.

How to close your vocal cords, in short

Real vocal control comes from one thing: getting your vocal cords to close cleanly, instead of forcing the sound with your jaw, throat and neck. The whole idea is:

1. Use less air, not more. Sound and air trade off: more air means a breathier, weaker sound, less air means a fuller, richer one.
2. Find the closure gently. Start with quiet, buzzy sounds or a straw, then small spoken sounds like “uh-oh.”
3. Keep it small. Closure should feel minimal, never a big pushy effort.

Everything below shows you how to feel it and build it.

What is false control over your singing? 

People who end up straining while they sing usually get a false sense of control by adding muscle tension. They tense the jaw, tongue, throat, neck, shoulders. It feels like “doing something to make the sound happen.” I was like that too. But all that does is narrow the resonance of your instrument and pressure the larynx and cords. It's extremely hard to control anything vocally that way.

What is a real vocal control?

Real control means you can shape your voice into different sounds, volumes and qualities with minimum effort. The biggest challenge is usually producing a full, rich, loud sound without effort. That's possible once you know how to close your vocal cords. Here's why.

Think of closing the cords like a balloon you let air escape through. The opening has to be tight enough to make a real sound. On its own it's a pretty horrible noise, but don't worry, your resonance dresses it up, so your actual voice won't sound like that.

Sound and air play a zero-sum game: more air, less sound; less air, more sound. Think of a whisper, lots of air, almost no sound. So closing the cords only a little lets more air through and gives an airy, whispery tone. Closing them fully (without shutting completely) gives a rich, loud one.

Another benefit: you can sing beautiful long phrases. The cords act as a gate that keeps the air from escaping too fast.

Meet George (why forcing never works)

Here's a quick reframe that explains the whole false-versus-real-control idea. There's a part of your brain whose only job is pitch: it sets your vocal cords to the exact length each note needs. I call him George, and he's already very good at his job.

False control is what happens when you try to do George's job for him, grabbing at notes with your throat and jaw. It feels like you're “doing something,” but all you're really doing is squeezing the very area that needs to be free. Your real job is much smaller: close the cords, make space, manage the air. Leave the notes to George.

How do I close my vocal cords?

The following exercises will teach you how to fully close your vocal cords.

Is an airy sound a bad thing? 

No, and yes. The healthy default is for the cords to close fully when they vibrate. But plenty of styles, pop, rock, jazz, use some air on purpose. I just wouldn't sing airy all the time, it isn't sustainable, the cords don't love it. Once you can close them, you can always choose to let a little air back in. I just want you to have the choice.

Before the more active exercises below, there's an easier on-ramp, and it's the one I'd start a nervous beginner on.

Make a small, continuous, buzzy sound: a hum, a lip trill (“brr”), a rolled r, or an NG (as in the end of “tongue”). These are what we call semi-occluded sounds, which is a fancy way of saying you narrow the airway so your vocal cords don't have to do all the work alone. The gentle back-pressure is like a little massage for the voice, and it teaches the cords to close efficiently without you pushing any air at them.

Even better is a straw. Sing a quiet “ooh” through a drinking straw, using as little air as you can, almost as if you're barely exhaling. The straw does the work for you. It's also the kindest thing you can do for a tired or hoarse voice: a couple of minutes of “ooh” through a straw can bring a worn-out voice back, because the cords are muscles and this is their gentle physiotherapy.

And if that rasp or hoarseness keeps coming back every time you sing, it's worth treating on its own — here's my full guide on how to fix a raspy singing voice.

Once that feels easy, move on to the exercises below.

5:03 in the video. This makes the closing mechanism active and conscious. Breathe out, breathe in, then exhale a tiny bit and STOP. Make a small sound like ‘he.’ Don't give me a big HUH, keep it small, we don't want to pressure the cords. Then, without taking another breath, start talking while pretending you're not breathing out. Of course a little air comes through to make sound, but pretend it doesn't. Pro tip: you can swap the talking for any vocal exercise. In the video I do the five Italian vowels.

11:35 in the above video. A nice way to practice the vocal cords closing real fast and 'small', is the 'uh-oh' sound. We will then say 'uh-oh' on the note: 'uh-oh' 'uh-oh' 'uh-oh' (3-2-1). Don't try to sing, really say it. If you feel a big pushy HUUGH, then think about a smaller sound. Thinking of a naive child helps: uh-oh...

14:53 in the above video. I really like this one for closing the vocal cords. I use it in every warm-up. Every time I need more volume, more range, it's just good overall.

We will do the magic ngya. So the NG and then the YA, but short after one another. Really simple, on the notes: 5-4-3-2-1. Put on your bad-ass-face: cheeks up, jaw down. Higher notes will feel much easier when you do them on the NGYA.

18:22 in the above video. The first step of the robot voice exercise is about closing the vocal cords immediately after starting each syllable. You're barely letting any air out in this staccato, 1980's robot way of speaking. See 20.03 in the above video. Say a phrase from a song you want to sing in the robot way. The next step is to do it on the notes, and pretend that you are not using extra air (even if you are!).