EVT – Estill Voice Training ™ (known in some countries also as “Estill voicecraft”) is a system of voice training that focuses on control of voice, separating it from the study of the musical and artistic aspects of the performance, in order to work more effectively on each of these two aspects with no confusion.

Designed by Jo Estill, a singer, teacher, scientist and researcher, EVT – Estill Voice Training ™ is the result of decades of research on voice.  Many methods and systems still benefit from the genius of its creator and her discoveries. EVT is complementary to any kind of singing or acting style, and in some cases it’s used as voice therapy.

EVT individuates the structures within the larynx and the vocal tract that contribute to voice production, quality, and resonance.  It also identifies their physiological function, explores their possibilities, and teaches their control in isolation and independently on the movements of other structures.  Additionally, assigning to each of their positions, or condition a predictable acoustic result, decreasing the possibility of interferences to develop a more detailed control. This provides the performers with specific tools to quickly fix problems or obtain the desired result, increasing the artistic possibilities.  This is similar to a painter who can increase his expressive potential by exploring different drawing and painting techniques.

Different options trained in isolation can be combined in order to produce different voice qualities. Although the possibilities of voice are nearly infinite, thanks to Jo Estill’s genius we are able to individuate 6 points of references (4 simple voice qualities, Speech, Falsetto, Sob and Twang and 2 complex voice qualities, Belting and Opera) to identify all the voice qualities as a variation or a version of them or a mix of two or more of them, like primary colours in painting.

What is peculiar in EVT is that it not only gives a perceptual or acoustic description of voice qualities but also a detailed explanation of their physiology.  This assists in identifying the different positions that the structures contribute to during voice production when producing a specific voice quality.  Each quality is presented in its safest and most recognizable version, with a specific figure to train it. This is best to when utilizing exercises to vary and mix it without incurring risks for vocal health.

Control and awareness give the voice professional greater security and the ability to work on crucial aspects of voice such as extending range, varying dynamics, resonance, projection, timbres, and more.            An accurate knowledge of the physiology and a greater awareness of the muscular movements guarantee the safety of vocal health in all the practical applications of the different exercises and their transposition in the vocal performance.