Angela Gossow Screaming

“We rehearsed and rehearsed. Then I lost my voice completely before our first Japan tour. I got diagnosed with nodules. Bad news… All these years of screaming without any technique at all had finally taken its toll on my vocal chords and struck me in the worst possible moment. I had to take 6 months off and re-learn everything. Speaking, breathing and screaming.” – Angela Gossow (Arch Enemy)

What is vocal cord nodule (vocal fold nodule or singer’s nodule)?

A vocal cord nodule is a small, inflammatory or fibrous growth that develops on the vocal cords (vocal folds) of people who constantly strain their voices. Typically it appears on the junction of the anterior and middle 2/3 of the vocal fold, where contact is most forceful. The nodules appear as symmetrical swellings on both sides of the vocal cords. People who use their voices a great deal, such as singers, teachers, auctioneers, lecturers, and politicians are the most susceptible ones.

Why singing death/black metal may give rise to nodules?

Most of the times when we are trying to sing these songs, we are doing it in a wrong way. Growls that are not performed properly may lead to permanent damage of vocal cords. If you persistently feel pain while growling, you must stop it and re-evaluate your technique because it is probably wrong.

The vocal cords in your throat are not originally intended for growling vocals. Too much involvement of throat while screaming and growling puts too much strain on vocal cords leading to nodule formation.

Bert McCracken (vocalist of “The Used”), Angela Gossow (vocalist of “Arch Enemy”), Matthew Sanders or M.Shadows (vocalist of “Avenged sevenfold”), etc. were known to have these nodules.

What is the correct way of singing these songs ?

This powerpoint presentation explains very well about the techniques.

• Hoarseness of speech
• Painful speech production
• Frequent vocal breaks
• Reduced vocal range

Treatment of vocal nodules :

• Vocal training
• Speech therapy
• Vocal rest
• Surgery

Music therapy

Health is the general condition of a person in all aspects. Overall health is achieved through a combination of physical, mental, emotional, and social well-being. Music affects us in ways that are more direct and substantial than just about any other stimuli. It posses a profound effect on our body and psyche. When relating music to health , I always remember a saying by George Eliot:
“There is no feeling, except the extremes of fear and grief, that does not find relief in music.”

Music therapy simply refers to a field of health care that uses music to heal. Music therapy is both an allied health profession and a field of scientific research which studies correlations between the process of clinical therapy and biomusicology, musical acoustics, music theory, psychoacoustics and comparative musicology. It is an interpersonal process in which a trained music therapist uses music and all of its facets—physical, emotional, mental, social, aesthetic, and spiritual—to help clients to improve or maintain their health. Music therapy is often practised to help cancer patients, children with Attention Deficit Disorder,etc. Hospitals have opted this method to help with pain management, ward off depression, to promote movement, to calm patients, to ease muscle tension.

Recent studies, researches and evidence suggests that the music therapy is beneficial from various aspects of health (medical, social, etc). Some of them are listed below:

1. Lowers cortisol as much as 25 %
2. Boosts endorphins
3. Pain reduction after surgery and quicker recover after surgery
5. Raises blood levels of Immunoglobin A
6. Eases labor without drugs
7. Stimulates neural connections in the brain and promote spatial ability and memory in children
8. Lowers blood pressure , reduces heart rate, improves cardiac output, relaxes muscle tension
9. Improves mood and mobility of people with Parkinson’s disease
10. Decreases nausea during chemotherapy
11. Helps patients participate in medical treatment and decreases length of hospital stay
12. Relieves anxiety, reduces stress and eases depression
13. Enhances concentration and creativity
14. Brings positive changes in mood and emotional states
15. Provides an outlet for expressions of feelings
16. Improves memory recall

Recent studies show that this method is not effective for dislexics and also pretty expensive. These few disadvantages are shadowed by huge benefits of music therapy.

How Music Therapy Works ?
Music with a strong beat can stimulate brainwaves to resonate in sync with the beat, with faster beats bringing sharper concentration and more alert thinking, and a slower tempo promoting a calm, meditative state. Music can bring lasting benefits to your state of mind, even after you’ve stopped listening. With alterations in brainwaves comes changes in other bodily functions. Those governed by the autonomic nervous system, such as breathing and heart rate can also be altered by the changes music can bring. This can mean slower breathing, slower heart rate, and an activation of the relaxation response, among other things. This is why music and music therapy can help counteract or prevent the damaging effects of chronic stress, greatly promoting not only relaxation, but health.

In conclusion, music can be used to achieve medical and other health benefits and it can be used as a stress reliever on our own.

Jason Becker is an American (Richmond, California) neo-classical metal guitarist and a composer as well. When he was just 16, he became part of the Cacophony with his friend Marty Friedman. After Cacophony broke up in 1989, Jason released his first solo album Perpetual Burn in 1988. Other solo albums from him includes Perspective (1995), The Raspberry Jams (1999), The Blackberry Jams (2003), Collection (2008). He was on his way to success. However, it was hampered by his then diagnosed amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and was given three to five years to live. Becker eventually lost the ability to speak and now communicates with his eyes via a system developed by his father. Even the disease couldn’t keep him away from something he is so passionate about. “The End Of The Beginning” a symphonic instrumental song that he composed after his disability is a masterpiece.

About the Disease:
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects motor neurons in the brain and the spinal cord. Motor neurons carry messages about movement from the brain to the muscles, but in ALS the motor neurons degenerate and die. Hence, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle movement is lost. When muscles aren’t used for a long time, they atrophy & fasciculate. Eventually, all the voluntary muscles get affected. People with ALS lose the ability to move their arms, legs, mouth, and body. It may also affect the muscles used for breathing and the person might need a ventilator to breathe. People with ALS can generally live 3 to 10 years after diagnosis. The disease can also cause personality and behavior changes.

Kinds:

1. Sporadic : It si the most common form of ALS in the United States.
2. Familial : It is the one occurring more than once in a family lineage (genetic dominant inheritance) accounts for a very small number of cases in the US.
3. Guamanian : A kind which was observed extremely high in Guam and the Trust Territories of the Pacific in the 1950′s.

Sufferers:

1. Commonly between the ages of 40 and 70, but younger people may also develop it.
2. Men are affected more often than women.
3. About 90-95% of ALS cases appear at random (no one in the person’s family has the disorder)

Causes:

The exact cause of ALS is unidentified. Researchers identified a link between ALS and Chromosome 21. Two years later, a particular gene, SOD1, was identified as being associated with about 20% of the inherited cases in families. SOD1 controls an enzyme that breaks down free radicals, harmful particles that attacks cells from the inside and cause their death. Since not all inherited cases are connected to this gene, and some people are the only ones in their families with ALS, other genetic causes must exist.

Symptoms:

Early Symptoms:

1. twitching and cramping of the muscles, especially those in the hands and feet
2. muscle weakness in the arms or legs
3. loss of motor control in the arms or legs
4. general weakness and fatigue
5. tripping and falling
6. dropping things
7. slurred or thick speech
8. difficulty chewing or swallowing
9. uncontrollable periods of laughing or crying

Progressive Symptoms:

1. shortness of breath
2. difficulty breathing
3. difficulty swallowing
4. difficulty chewing
5. tight and stiff muscles
6. complete paralysis

Treatment:
Present there is no treatment for this disease but medication includes a drug called riluzole which is aimed at symptomatic relief, prevention of complications and maintenance of maximum optimal function and optimal quality of life.