The technical perfection of Lisa Fischer (Is she the best singer ever?)
Who is Lisa Fischer, you may ask? Only the most technically elite contemporary singer, possibly of all time!
But apart from a one-hit wonder in the early 1990s (for which she won a Grammy), Lisa is mostly unknown. But that’s her own making. She chose to exit the game of fame to focus on a career as a session singer, performing with everyone from Chaka Khan and Luther Vandross to The Rolling Stones and Nine Inch Nails.
Please watch the documentary 20 Feet From Stardom which features Lisa, alongside other incredible session singers.
In this blog, we will journey deep into the technical prowess of her hit single ‘How Can I Ease The Pain’. Pull up the song and study along with me...
Vocal technique analysis of How Can I Ease The Pain by Lisa Fischer
(I will be using some technical lingo, so please refer to the glossary at the end of this article for any terms you may not understand).
0:26 Lisa creeps into the song with a creak onset and a low larynx, and her tone is consistently breathy. Hear how she slightly thickens her tone towards the end of the phrase for emphasis, particularly on the lyric “knees”.
0:42 Lisa continues with her breathy vocals. But again, her tone cleans up intermittently for emotional impact. She does this by tilting her thyroid cartilage and stretching out her vocal folds and adding a tiny spoonful of twang. This combination creates an efficiently produced, elegant sound. It’s also interesting to note that you can successfully add emphasis with breath – hear this in the lyric “fire”.
0:53 The lyric “Then I lose my self-control” elegantly leads up to the chorus, with that combo of tilt and twang. But then she adds a cheeky aspirate offset as a final flourish.
0:57 And here comes the chorus! Lisa is firmly positioned in that tilt/twang sound, which is commonly referred to as ‘mixed voice’ (because it doesn’t quite sound heavy enough to be ‘chest voice’ or light enough to be ‘head voice’). I particularly love the subtle grunt offset from the lyric “pain” and the phrase “when I know you’re coming back again” when she seems to ‘squeeze’ her voice for emphasis. However, novices should be careful of doing these effects as they may induce constriction in the voice.
1:10 Listen to how she softens back into a breath sound during the lyric “In my heart”.
1:19 And listen to the diction during the lyric “When I know you’re coming back again”. She has decreased the size of her lips so that the words resonate around in her mouth that little bit extra. When learning a song, I recommend that you pick out a few words and phrases to emphasise like this as it adds interest without going too loud/high/crazy.
1:22 Ooh, that cheeky high note! Subtle, smooth and impressive. Again, occasional melody changes add interest, show confidence, and prove that you’re locked into the key of the song. To confirm, this high note was performed in mixed voice, not belt.
1:26 I could write an essay just on how Lisa sings the lyric “Heart”. You might jump to conclusions that she has flipped into falsetto here. But I disagree, because you do not hear the classic ‘flip’ sound that often occurs when you transition into and out of falsetto. Instead, you hear a smooth transition, particularly as she thickens her vocal folds up towards the end of the phrase.
1:30 Listen to that cry sound, which is an expert transition between the breathy “heart” phrase and into that beautiful adlib. She adds interest to the adlib with vowel shapes, moving from a thin fold “ooh” to a thicker fold “aah”. And she also plays with rhythm to add interest – try tapping out the rhythm of the adlib and you’ll see it’s similar to a drum fill.
1:38 Right at the end of the phrase on the lyric “Pain”, hear how she drops her larynx into a super low position? And she continues in this position to give us some lovely intimate adlibs. It’s almost imperceptible. But again, it’s a great way to add interest without having to throw everything at it all at once!
1:52 The second verse is similar to verse one. However, she goes back to that low larynx position for the lyric “In”. But this time with thicker vocal folds which adds a bit more oomph. But of course, she gives a little extra with a breathy offset.
2:00 Hear how Lisa travels from low larynx to high larynx with a clean tone during the phrase “You take away something deep within”. Then she drops into that breathy sound again right at the end.
2:09 The lyric “A fool for love” pops due to the added twang. I would also suggest that she has decreases her lip size again, which is easy considering the “ooh” and “oh” vowel shapes. By tightening the lips, you are in a sense ‘spring loading’ the sound waves, so that when they do eventually exit the mouth, they are stronger. Think of the various sounds you can make out of air escaping from a balloon depending on how tight you hold it. Oh, and we can’t move on before recognising that lovely creak offset on the lyric “Love”.
2:13 Back to breathy once again, but this time accompanied by a backing vocal which tracks the melody a third above. Writing and recording backing vocals is my absolute favourite thing to do – I recommend that you always try to think outside of the box and consider which lyrics deserve extra attention. Also, adding this in the second verse is a great way to maintain interest.
2:17 Back to that twangy mixed voice. But listen to that cry offset on the lyric “Again”. It demonstrates lust, desperation, yearning. It’s performed by quickly moving the larynx high and then opening the vocal folds to allow a gush of breath through.
2:44 Is that falsetto or not? Yes, I believe so...Falsetto is different to just a thin fold breathy voice. Falsetto is a very specific posture that stiffens the vocal folds, not allowing them to vibrate together AT ALL, creating a unique hooty sound. However, it’s unusual to hear it an “eeh” vowel, as falsetto is suited mostly to the “ooh” vowel.
2:53 The first of many money notes in this song. Lisa remains in that twangy mixed voice position. Her vocal fold closure is very strong, and she starts the phrase on an open “aah” vowel. This vowel shortens the vocal tract, and along with her high larynx, creates a very similar sound to belt. But notice how she morphs through a few other vowel shapes too which adds sweetness to her tone. Also notice the natural vibrato, which only occurs when the larynx and pharynx are active and taut (a bit like a tight drum skin).
3:03 The ‘middle eight’ or bridge of any song is where the fireworks happen. And Lisa is no exception. The lyric “If it's not love you've come here for” is high impact, with a high larynx and lots of twang. Plus, “If” and “It’s” are both tricky vowel shapes – they are both very forward and closed, creating even more impact. Also notice the small cry onset on the lyric “Come”.
3:11 She ups the impact even more with slight false vocal fold constriction on the lyric “Why”, “Knock, Knock, Knocking”, and “No more, no more, no more”. I would not recommend this technique for novices. I personally have found that distortion develops over time and is something that – like true vibrato – emerges naturally once everything else is in order.
3:25 Another beautiful cry offset on the lyric “Baby”. This one is more exaggerated. At this point, Lisa is just having fun!
3:28 Get ready for a mega money note! She smoothly transitions into a crystal-clear high note (G6 for those with a piano.) This note is likely out of the working range of most singers. Don’t be mistaken into thinking it’s ‘whistle’ as heard in Mariah and Ariana’s voices. Lisa’s high note here has clarity and body. It’s simply her default twangy thin fold voice, just taken really, really high. And notice again how she begins the phrase in a brassy open “aah” vowel shape and morphs into a sweet “ooh” vowel shape.
3:38 The phrase “And I know you’re coming back again” contains a lot of goodness – with gritty distortion and great diction.
3:42 & 3:52 Hear how brassy Lisa’s voice is during the lyrics “How Can I”. This is helped by the open vowels which shorten her vocal tract.
3:53 A cheeky swoop up into a breathy thin fold position (because, why not?) Followed by a falsetto flip offset on the lyric “Pain”.
4:03 Lisa soars on an open “aah” vowel for the lyric “Heart”. But even though it sounds like belt, I’m not sure it is. I think she just adds body anchoring to add oomph to her default mixed voice sound. Feel free to debate me on this one! 😉 Quick shout out to that creaky offset at the end of the phrase.
4:12 Lisa teases us by beginning in a low larynx position followed by a falsetto flip (hear the obvious ‘flip’ or ‘break’ sound here?). Not only that, she does a tweeny cry offset out of the falsetto flip – whaaaatttt?!
4:17 Are we ready for money note number three? She begins with plenty of twang, but with a mid to low positioned larynx (influenced by the vowel shape “ow”). It sounds like this position serves as a springboard into that crystal-clear “eeh” vowel shape, this time slightly lower, on the note E6 (but still probably way too high for us mere mortals).
Now I’ll let you enjoy the outro in peace. But there’s plenty to listen out for: breath, distortion, twang, super high flips, various vowel shapes. What excites your ear? And what can you take away from this to add to your own artistry?
And if you’re already obsessed with Lisa, check out some live versions – an original from the 90s and one from just a few years ago:
I’ll end with this: I saw Lisa Fischer live in London a few years ago and it’s the only concert I’ve seen where the singer got a standing ovation before she even sang a note. She is dearly loved and respected, and she is an absolute God-gifted artist of the highest calibre.
Do yourself a big fat favour and check out Lisa Fischer’s YouTube channel.
GLOSSARy
Adlib: Otherwise known as a riff, run or melisma. Those spontaneous bursts of vocal improvisation. Commonly heard in soul, RnB and Gospel.
Anchoring: Activating specific sets of muscles to support the voice. These are in the back and the neck, NOT in the abdominal wall.
Aspirate: Breathy
Belt: A very specific vocal posture to achieve those big, brassy high notes. To an untrained ear, belt sounds similar to loud mixed voice, but is physiologically very different and much more demanding.
Chest voice: An old-fashioned but common term for singing with thick vocal folds.
Constriction: Tightening or closing. As in ‘False vocal fold constriction’. Not usually a good thing.
Cry: A way of starting or ending a phrase that sounds like a cry, created with a very quick combination of a breathy onset, high larynx and twang. Commonly heard in country music.
Distortion: A messy sound wave, created by something in the larynx or pharynx that flaps around chaotically in the flow of your exhale.
False vocal folds: Two lumps of flesh that sit above the ‘true’ vocal folds. They close when we swallow, cough and do things like lift heavy things or give birth. They are good for helping us survive, but not so good when we’re trying to sing. You’ll know when they are constricting when you get a tickle in your throat when you sing.
Falsetto: A specific vocal fold posture that stiffens and opens the vocal folds so they cannot vibrate together. Instead, it creates a flute-like hooty sound. Both men and women can do this.
Harmony: Two or more notes played together, commonly heard in backing vocals, horn or string sections, strummed guitar or keyboard parts.
Head voice: An old-fashioned but common term for singing with thin vocal folds.
Larynx: Your entire ‘voice box’ that lives inside your neck.
Melody: The main tune of the song that the lead singer performs.
Mixed voice: A modern term for that sweet spot between chest and head voice.
Onset: the way you start a note.
Offset: the way you end a note.
Pharynx: Your throat, which includes your tonsils, your soft palate, and the dangly bit called the uvula.
Third: the third note of a chord. The most common backing vocal harmonies involve the first, the third, and the fifth note of the chord.
Thyroid cartilage: The front shield of your larynx. The vocal folds attach to the inside of it. So when the thyroid tilts, the vocal folds stretch.
Twang: A highly resonant and quite annoying sound created by lowering the epiglottis in the pharynx.
Vibrato: A quick and shallow change in pitch that you hear often at the end of phrases. Vibrato can be made by various methods, but true vibrato is created when the larynx and pharynx are active and taut (only achieved through consistent practice).
Vocal folds: AKA vocal cords (but never chords). You have a pair of vocal folds that vibrate to create sound.
Vocal tract: Your entire instrument, from your vocal folds to your lips. Think of it like a tube. Long tubes will be deeper, short tubes will be higher. Your larynx height and mouth position can both lengthen and shorten your vocal tract.
This blog was written by Freya Astrella, an expert vocal coach in East Sussex, UK.
Freya is a bonafide vocal technique expert and is one of the only teachers in the region to have gained Estill Voice certification. Freya holds a First Class BA(hons) in Professional Musicianship, a VocalTech Diploma, and a Master’s Degree in Vocal Performance. She is currently undertaking the Vocal Process teacher training course.
Freya has taught all ages and abilities at BIMM, Access To Music, The Academy of Music And Sound, TheatreTrain, Stagecoach, and The Rock Project. She currently coaches at Rhapsody Artist Development in Seaford. Furthermore, Freya was a lead writer for VoiceCouncil.com, which was the biggest online resource for singers.
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