According to Jonathon Goldman, "Toning is the use of the voice to express sounds for the purpose of release and relief. It is nonverbal sound relying primarily on vowels, though it may incorporate the use of consonants to create syllables as long as they are not utilized to create inherent meaning. Sighing, moaning and humming may also be recognized as forms of toning." Steven Halpern defined toning as "an activity that releases and allows the natural flow of energy to move through one's body." That is literally what you do feel. You feel these tones go through every cell in your body. Don Campbell said, "tone is simply an audible sound prolonged for long enough to be identified. Toning is the conscious elongation of the sound using the breath and the voice." While the practices of toning vary to some extent, all involve the use of pure nonverbal sound to increase the flow of breath, balance energy flow, release emotion, resolve past trauma and restore harmony to the body, mind and spirit.

Toning through the use of bells, bowls, tuning forks, or as done by a person who tones into the chakras or other parts of the body (using their voice, they may get very close to the body and make sounds, often something like, Ahhhhhm, or Ohmmm), are all wonderful forms of vibrational sound healing. These sounds can cut through blocks and stagnant energy and open the way for a more balanced and healed state of being. Most people who do vocal toning work intuitively. You can tone even if if you cannot hold a tune at all. This is about vibration rather than about musical perfection. You can tone for yourself even if you have no interest in doing it for others. You can simply and spontaneously create and allow whatever sound wants to come out to come out or choose mantra, sets of sounds or words.