How to Manage Your Voice for a Healthy Sound and Compelling Message with Alana McKenzie.

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Richard Strauss said, "The human voice is the most beautiful instrument of all, but it's the most difficult to play." He was so right. Think about the numerous aspects of the human voice you can manipulate — pitch, rate, tone, and volume. Add to that, just like any fine instrument, you need to know how to care for it. With so much to know and do, it's no wonder so many speakers pay little attention to their voices and using them well.

In this episode, Alana McKenzie helps you treat your voice as an instrument, prevent vocal pain or exhaustion, and create authentic and compelling emotion in your speaking. Alana first appeared on the professional stage at the age of eight, beginning her lifelong devotion to the study of the human voice. She now divides her time between creating original music, vocal coaching, and working as a creative potential coach.

The Voice as a Trained Instrument

Alana helps people access the voice they want to use — because, as she explains, the voice is not fixed. Both the speaking voice and the singing voice are trained, largely by culture, upbringing, and native language. The same patterns that shaped how you speak can be shifted with the right awareness and technique. What she discovered through years of classical training is that it's possible to change your voice, speak in many different ways, and use the various anatomical components of your vocal tract — the larynx, the resonant chamber, the jaw, the tongue, the breath — with real intention.

Why Your Voice Drops on Stage

Many speakers unconsciously drop their larynx when they pick up the phone or step onto a stage — a very common pattern, particularly in America. The reason: we've culturally associated a lower voice with authority. But Alana points out that this connection is more psychological than physical. When you speak at a slightly higher pitch, the result is often more resonant — which actually comes across as more powerful than a forced larynx drop. It's a learned habit, not a law of nature, and it can be unlearned.

What Professional Speakers Need to Know

The voice is so much more than mechanics. There's enormous emotional content that creates a compelling speaker and a healthy sound. It begins with connection — to your body, your breath, and the message you're trying to convey. Nervousness creates tension in the tiny muscles of the throat, which squeezes the voice and strips it of expressiveness. Understanding how to use the full instrument — starting with the breath — is what keeps that tension from taking over.

Protecting Your Voice: Hydration and Technique

Hydrate consistently — at least 30 minutes before speaking, and ideally throughout the day and up to 24 hours in advance. Water doesn't reach the vocal tract directly (the vocal tract is part of the respiratory system — air only), but systemic hydration creates a healthy layer of moisture that benefits your voice throughout your body.

When you need to project in a loud room, Alana recommends adding a subtle "twang" quality to the voice — a slight narrowing at the top of the larynx that makes the sound significantly bigger without additional strain. It's similar to the first sound humans make as babies: a cry. Babies can cry for hours without going hoarse, because that natural sound uses the anatomy efficiently. You're not talking like a baby or quacking like a duck — it's a quality you can entrain into your voice that protects the instrument while amplifying your presence.

What Captivates an Audience

In general, it is the emotional component of speech that holds people. A catch in the voice, a sigh, a well-placed pause, a moment where something personal surfaces — these are what audiences pick up on, often unconsciously. Alana suggests mapping out the emotional arc of a speech the way a musician might map dynamics: this section builds excitement, this one holds something painful, here tension gathers before release. Let that emotional layout live in your voice. It carries the audience rather than leaving them checking their watches.

A Practical Breathing Technique

To open up your breathing before speaking, try this: lift your arms above your head. You'll feel your rib cage rise. Lower your arms — but keep your rib cage up. Then allow your breath to come from your belly as well. What you've done is enlarge your rib cage so your lungs can fill more fully. That fuller breath naturally calms the nervous system. Practice this before you go on stage, and pair it with intentional emotional preparation — know what you're trying to convey, and trust that your voice can carry it.

One final practical note: avoid tight pants or a restricting belt when you're speaking. Your clothing shouldn't prevent you from breathing the way you should be breathing. You can learn more about Alana McKenzie and book a free vocal discovery session at alanamckenzie.com.

Thank you for listening to another episode of Public Speaking with Peter George. Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen. Are you ready to be calm, confident, and credible every time you speak in public? Then visit petergeorgepublicspeaking.com and let's make it happen. I'll see you next time.