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Preface
I am very excited to present the E-Book version of my father David Sorin Collyer’s
book Vocal Communication and Development for Singers, Actors, and Speakers.
My father was an extraordinary performer, who had a vibrant and successful career
in Vaudeville, on Broadway, and as a world renowned vocal coach. He had a glorious
voice and developed this brilliant vocal technique.
I have the great pleasure of carrying on his legacy. I am an actress and singer, and I
use his proprietary technique Controlled Relaxation to coach Performers and
Business Professionals. I work with my students and clients to get the most out of
their vocal potential, so that they can experience Powerful Projection, Resonance,
and Physical Presence. We also have great results with accent reduction. Daily I get
to see my students transform into dynamic, charismatic performers and presenters,
and see the confidence that’s achieved through this innovative and holistic
technique.
My vocal studio is in Midtown Manhattan, I travel internationally and offer Skype
sessions.
Ingrid Saxon (Sorin)
To Contact Ingrid Saxon:
119 West 57th St. Suite 519 New York, NY 10019
212-586-6724
www.ingridsaxon.com
ingrid@ingridsaxon.com
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
3.
Note About the Author
5.
Acknowledgements
6.
Introduction
9.
Theoretical Foundation
17.
Forward to the Basic Exercises
19.
The Basic Exercises
56.
Preparation for Vowel and Consonant Exercises
62.
Optional Exercises
65.
Consonant Articulation and Vowel Enunciation
72.
The Basic Vocal Exercises
73.
Vowel and Consonant Exercises Emphasizing the Open Sound
103.
How to Learn a Song (Much Also Applies to Speaking)
107.
Projection
109.
Microphone Technique
110.
Physical Exercises Before a Performance or Speech
112.
Psychological Ramifications
116.
Vocal Misuses and Malfunctions
119.
Hygiene
122.
Selecting a Voice Teacher
124.
Appendix
125.
List of Diagrams for Vocal Exercises
126.
List of Plate Acknowledgements
127.
Bibliography
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NOTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR
David Sorin Collyer was one of America’s foremost voice teachers, as well as
a singing actor with a bass-baritone voice who appeared in many successful
Broadway shows. His students included many famous singers and actors, as well as
countless everyday speakers and people with speaking disabilities ranging from
cleft palates to nodes on the vocal cords.
Singers: Paul Simon, Liza Minnelli, Barry Manilow, Bette Midler, Ashford &
Simpson, the Manhattan Transfer, Sha-Na-Na, Ben Vereen, Chita Rivera, Steve Van
Zandt, Melissa Manchester, Lucie Arnaz, Beatlemania, Billy Idol, Slade, Meat Loaf,
Melanie, the Ramones, Carole Bayer Sager, Abbey Lincoln, Carol Alt, Michael Bolton,
Orrin Bolton, Brooke Shields, Tina Louise, Gene Bertoncini, Walter Willison, Zina
Bethune, Sheila Mac Rae, Heather Mac Rae, Lesley Gore and Donna Murphy.
Actors: Eileen Fulton, Chita Rivera, Jack Albertson, Rita Moreno, Raquel
Welch, Barry Bostwick, Roy Schuman, Colleen Zenk, Jackie Zeman, Edward Albert,
Melody Anderson, Michael Nouri, Al Corley, Tovah Feldshuh, Lou Jacobi, Glynis
Johns and Patricia Neal.
He studied voice in Berlin and the United States. After the war he continued
his Broadway career in Rodger & Hammerstein’s Allegro, in 1947, and subsequently
spent twenty-five years working steadily in the musical theater.
He appeared in the following Broadway shows: Allegro, Love Life, Miss
Liberty, Kiss Me, Kate, Can Can, Fiorello, Seventh Heaven, Silk Stockings, Happy
Hunting, How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying, Yose Kalb, Oh Captain,
The Liar, and the Ziegfeld Follies.
He had knowledge of many operatic roles and has appeared in drama,
including productions of Shakespeare, stock companies, vaudeville, and night clubs.
He was conversant with Latin, French, Italian, German, Hebrew, English and many
dialects.
In addition to his teaching, he frequently concertized and lectured at such
places as the Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute at Troy, NY, Bucknell University and
the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. He performed distinguished
service in the Cleft Palate Program of New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center and
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gave Master Classes at The New School, New York’s Universal Jazz Coalition, and
Master Classes in voice at New York University.
He was a member of The New York Singing Teachers Association, Actors
Equity Association, The National Association of Teachers of Singing, The American
Guild of Variety Arts, The American Federation of Television & Radio Artists, The
New York Society for Voice and Speech Therapy, and The Screen Actors Guild.
During his extensive professional career, and as a teacher, Mr. Collyer
developed the David Sorin Collyer Technique of Controlled Relaxation.
There are many techniques that teach relaxation, but the David Sorin Collyer
Technique of Controlled Relaxation far surpasses all of them. This technique is
applicable to people in all walks of life.
David Sorin Collyer made his home in New York City.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to express my gratitude to the following people:
Tom Attea, whose editing expertise, advice, friendship, and generosity finally
inspired me to write this book.
Helen Hobbs Jordan, whose faith and insistence were the motivating forces in
my decision to teach voice.
Robert Attea, Photographs.
James Lysaght, Master Organizer.
Dr. Herbert Conway, Professor of Clinical Surgery, Cornell University Medical
College, and attending surgeon in charge of plastic surgery at The New York
Hospital, who was responsible for my appointment as voice and speech therapist on
the reconstructive plastic surgery team, a position I enjoyed for three years.
Dr. Friedrich S. Brodnitz, whose advice and guidance aided me in my
research.
My children: Ingrid Lee Sorin, Gregory Sorin, and Gary Sorin.
Family, students, fellow singers and actors, as well as the composers,
conductors, producers, choreographers, writers, and friends I’ve worked with or
who have been supportive.
Finally, a special thanks to my teachers, coaches, and instructors.
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INTRODUCTION
There is a great need for a book that provides students, performers, public
speakers, and teachers with a comprehensive but concise approach to developing
good singing and speaking technique. The approach presented in this book is, as far
as I know, the fastest and simplest way to learn to sing and speak well. The layman
who will also, I think, find most of the material easy to understand and quite helpful
since the voice is the basic way human beings express themselves, developing it
should be far more important than it is.
While the program presented here is specifically designed for singers, actors,
and speakers, it can be helpful to anyone in a discipline requiring good vocal
communication, such as the following:
Newscasters & Communicators
Talk Show Hosts
Engineers
Lecturers
Students
Politicians
Attorneys
Clergy
Hospital Administrators &
Personnel
Professors
Physicians & Dentists
Executives
It can also augment the personal instruction provided by voice and speech
teachers, voice and speech therapists, and speech pathologists.
My approach has been developed during a lifetime of performance, teaching,
and research. It has attained excellent results with singers of opera, lieder or art
songs, musical comedy, pop, rock and country, as well as with all those who must
speak well, from actors to executives.
With this approach, vocal malfunctioning or abuse can readily be corrected,
too. In many instances, where indicated, nodes or nodules on the vocal cords can be
healed simply by proper use of the cords, thereby eliminating the continuing
traumatic effect of misuse and allowing them to heal themselves.
Singing and speaking well are often purported to be intangible items. I
believe, instead, that the body, mind, and emotions can be trained and refined by a
definite plan of exercises and studies – to develop skills, as well as to create
confidence.
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The goal must always be to help each person realize the full potential of his
or her voice, a concept which includes developing the ability to achieve each vocal
goal with the least amount of effort.
Many confusing terms and imagery used in other methods will be explained
in terms of the vocal anatomy. Once this sort of understanding is grasped, the terms
often fall by the wayside. Some of the terms that fall into this category are to “sing
in the mask,” “place the tone,” “cover the tone,” “throw the tone,” the “white tone,”
and so-called “belting.”
Singers should also keep in mind that good voice production and good
musicianship go hand-in-hand. Your voice is a musical instrument and
understanding musical notation helps you interpret music better.
Speakers should keep in mind that singing is really a heightened or
exaggerated form of speech. The voice is a wind instrument, and the same exercises
and techniques that are used to develop the singing voice are used to develop the
speaking voice. The difference occurs when one moves from vocal development to
vocal communication. At this point, the singer practices songs and the speaker
concentrates on the spoken word. Yet many of the same principles still apply, such
as the need for vowel enunciation, consonant articulation, and the foundations of
interest and expressiveness – rising and falling inflection, soft to loud modulation,
crescendo and diminuendo, and other nuances.
“Bracketing” plays an important role in our approach – to exaggerate and
minimize, in order to discover the relaxed mean.
The student must also practice, think, and experiment privately. The teacher
is best seen as a guide and touchstone.
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THEORETICAL FOUNDATION
Our approach is based on an understanding of the vocal anatomy and its
evolution. (Referring to the sketches will be helpful).
First, the vocal anatomy itself.
PLATE I: THE VOICE ORGAN
The lungs, trachea, larynx, pharynx and mouth constitute the vocal tract. It is
a resonator whose shape determines vocal sounds; that is, they are modified by
changes in the position of the articulators: the lips, the jaw, the tip, back and body of
the tongue, the soft palate, and the larynx. The vocal folds, are open for breathing
and approximate for phonation.
PLATE II: THE MOUTH FROM THE FRONT – YAWNING, SINGING WITH AN OPEN
THROAT, AND TIGHT SINGING
THE OPEN THROAT
We often hear of an open throat, but we are not trained muscularly or
advised as to what is occurring as we attempt to open it.
An open throat is achieved when there is an unimpeded passage of air flowing from
the lungs to the trachea and through the larynx and laryngo-pharynx to the oropharynx/naso-pharynx, to the oral cavity and then through the open lips. To
achieve this, the following must occur:
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1. The soft palate is raised.
2. The back of the tongue and the larynx are lowered in a “yawn” position but
not forced or jammed down.
3. The tip of the tongue is anchored at the lower gumline (gingival crest): Re.
Plate III.
4. The jaw is dropped loosely, not rigidly (or too low).
5. The mouth is open loosely, not spread too wide. Do not show the lower
teeth.
THE COVERED TONE
The tone produced with the above position is called a covered tone – a term
often misused. I prefer to call it a full, rich and open sound.
THE WHITE TONE
The opposite of a covered tone is a white tone. It is achieved by raising the
larynx and lowering the soft palate, with the mouth exaggerated in a smiling
position and the tongue retracted. This position is undesirable. With the larynx in a
high position, the vocal cords are vulnerable and are likely to rub together, causing
strident, tight tones. This can also induce nodules, polyps, contact ulcers, and many
traumas, due to malfunctioning.
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ACHIEVING OPEN VOWELS (REFER TO PLATE I)
In order to achieve open vowels, the muscles of the voice-producing
mechanism must be conditioned by means of vowel and consonant combinations,
using the chewing and swallowing muscles, in addition to other vegetative acts.
VOCAL RESONATORS AND RELATED PART (REFER TO PLATES I & II)
Position in both drawings represents ideal vowel “Ah.” Note low larynx,
arched velum, and open mouth.
The second foundation of our approach lies in understanding the
development of the vocal mechanism. According to V.E. Negus, in his book
Mechanism of the Larynx, the singing and speaking voice is based on the primary or
vegetative acts for the body, such as breathing, eating, eructation, regurgitation,
yawning, swallowing, elimination, giving birth, as well as the function of keeping
foreign matter from the lungs and to prevent drowning. Man has superimposed the
acts of speaking and singing on muscles whose original function were vegetative.
To help us work with the vocal mechanism, we employ vegetative acts.
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CHEWING AS AN AID
Chewing is used in voice and speech therapy or improvement, as a result of
the following. Dr. Froeschels heard a recording of a primitive tribe while they were
eating. They were making sounds as though they were speaking or chanting. From
this, he came to the conclusion that the same muscles were used for each act. That
is when he started the chewing method for voice therapy; i.e., drop the jaw on every
syllable, with a relaxed, moronic attitude.1
In chewing, don’t exaggerate the movements of the jaw, tongue, lips and
related musculature. As you chew, you can also close and part the lips (smack your
lips). Note that on closing, the tongue presses against the roof of the mouth.
The ways we use chewing will become clearer soon. (Swallowing should be
used in conjunction with chewing.)
1
Doctors Friedrich Brodnitz, Beebe, De Jure Wise, and Emil Froeschels.
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NATURAL DEVICES TO OPEN THE BACK OF THE THROAT AND TO MAKE THE
MUSCLES FLEXIBLE
There are sounds one can make and exercises one can do to open the back of
the throat. No foreign gadgets are required.
1. Say the guttural “CH,” as in “choresaw” – Russian for “good luck.” Or
L’Chayim” – A Jewish expression meaning “to life.”
These sounds are made with the soft palate (velum) and back of the tongue
(dorsum) and related musculature, as if preparing to spit or clear the throat. The
sound must not be made with the vocal cords, because the cords would rub
together, causing irritation and possible injury.
2. Eructate – Regurgitate (gag reflexes).
This should be used to stretch and relax the muscles.
3. Gargle
This sound is the same as the guttural “CH,” except that now we intone the “ch.”
We can also imitate the purring of a cat, a child gurgling, the sound of a motorboat,
etc. Alternate gargling with and without water.
4. Swallow
The tongue presses against the roof of the mouth and transports food to the back
of the throat and into the esophagus. The larynx raises. The epiglottis closes over
the trachea.
5. Yawn.
The opposite of swallowing. The larynx descends to the lower position in the
throat. The back of the tongue also descends. The tip of the tongue is placed and
anchored behind the lower gumline. Be sure not to press the teeth with the tongue;
the pressure of the tongue can move the teeth out of line, causing orthodontic
problems.
The pharynx stretches, as well as related musculature.
Yawn and
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swallow alternately, while observing ina mirror and watching the action of the oral
cavity. Notice the soft palate uvula raising and that the pharynx can be seen.
Repeat these exercises, not only to open the back of the throat, but to become
more conscious of the vocal mechanism.
Remember: if the vocal organs or articulatory muscles malfunction, we fail
to sing or speak properly, and therefore, we fail to communicate as well as we
can.
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FORWARD TO THE BASIC EXERCISES
I have devised these exercises to be done prior to singing or speaking. They
relax and condition the vocal mechanism and play a key role in getting the most out
of the vocal mechanism with the least amount of effort.
Since the vocal cords are small and sensitive muscles, we approach these
exercises as vocal gymnastics. In addition, we isolate muscles in various parts of the
body and coordinate them in combination that will lead to a good vocal technique;
remember, one sings and speaks with the body.
We employ a unique combination of medical, artistic and philosophical
principles that attain maximum results. Our goal is to learn to sing or speak with,
what I call, controlled relaxation.
Since employment of the vegetative acts is conducive to good vocal projection,
we employ them.
Singing and speaking are physical acts. The overall goal of the exercises is to
condition the vocal mechanism and the entire body as it relates to vocal
communication.
Now, a few notes about specific exercises. The tongue is an essential part of the
vocal anatomy, so a series of exercises are done to isolate and condition the back,
front, middle and side muscles of the tongue. Jaw exercises are done to eliminate
any constriction, because a tight jaw means a tight, noisy, unpleasant voice. Eye
exercises are included because the eyes play an important, and expressive, part in
the upper vocal anatomy, coming into play even when we raise the soft palate and
uvula (the little fleshy “tab” that hangs down at the back of your throat). Also, if the
eye muscles are tight, related muscles will be tight.
Note that muscles above the larynx are called elevator muscles, those below it,
depressor muscles. The two sets work in opposition.
In addition to these exercises, a daily routine of calisthenics is recommended. In
general, avoid exercises that lead to rigidity, such as weight-lifting, leg ups, sit ups,
and rowing. Recommended exercises include pushups, bending, stretching and
running in place.
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GOOD POSTURE IS OUR GOAL
Good posture is not only a matter of standing properly. The body must be
poised to sing. This means that all the muscles of the body must be strong and
flexible, as opposed to being strong and rigid. We must relax the body and the mind;
in fact, the two are inseparable. A rigid body causes a rigid mind and, conversely, a
rigid mind causes a rigid body. (More about good posture in the next chapter.)
RELAX AND LET YORUSELF GO
In order to facilitate relaxing, it is of the utmost importance to enjoy yourself
while doing these exercises. Have fun! Soon, you will find yourself feeling far more
in touch with, and in control of, your vocal mechanism.
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THE BASIC EXERCISES
These exercises will lead to excellent vocal conditioning. Within a short time,
you will even begin to hear a change in the tone of your voice. They should be done
in the order presented, once a day (more often, if possible).
GENERAL NOTE ABOUT PROPER BREATHING
When doing the following exercises, as well as in all speaking and singing,
observe the following:
1. Make sure you inhale and exhale through the nose.
2. When you inhale, push out, or distend, the abdominal muscles.
3. At times, hold or retain the breath and pull your abdominal muscles in as far
as possible, aided by pressure against the abdomen from both your hands. (If
your abdominal muscles do not pull in far enough, move your hips back and
forth to release rigidity; you’ll find that the muscles will then go in much
farther.)
4. Always attack out with your abdominal muscles when you sing, speak, or
make any sound. Practice using resistance with the hands against the
abdomen to get good air pressure control and to condition the muscles.
GOOD POSTURE IS ESSENTIAL
It is essential in all exercises, and at all times, to have good posture – in order
to allow all muscles that pertain to the vocal instrument to attain their full
potential without stress or rigidity. The following are some special exercises
to help you attain good posture:
1. Stand erect with your back against the wall. Your heels and shoulder blades
should touch the wall.
2. Extend your head and chin forward. Now, pull your head and chin in. Repeat
this at least six times and gradually increase the number from session to
session. When you pull your head in, place your hand on the spine in your
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neck (cervical vertebrae). Note that it bulges. When you extend your head
forward, note the indentation in the back of your neck.
3. You must have good muscle flexibility, but no rigidity. To help effect this, roll
your shoulders in a circle forward. Now, in a circle backward. As you do so,
keep your hands along the sides of your body. Next, move your shoulders
forward as you expand your back, making your chest concave. Then move
your shoulders backward, bringing your shoulder blades in close
approximation.
4. Stand in front of a long mirror. Pull your shoulder blades together, with and
without breath. Now, feel your upper back muscles (latissimi Dorsi) with
your hands. Expand and contract them with and without breathing. Expand
your chest, but do not raise it. (Remember to not stand in a rigid militarylike way with your head pulled in too tightly.)
5. Do push-ups. Run in place with your arms in thrust or chest position. Keep
in mind that a daily routine of calisthenics is very helpful. Remember: you
sing and speak with the body.
Finally, a medical examination is suggested before you begin any exercise
program, including this one.
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THE BASIC EXERCISES
1. Panting (Refer to Diagram I.) Place your hands on the midsection of
your abdominal muscles. Inhale and exhale through your nose. On
inhalation, push, or distend, your abdominal muscles out. On exhalation,
pull your abdominal muscles in, aided by pushing in with your hands.
This creates dynamic tension – the force of your hands against the force
of your abdominal muscles. Gradually increase the speed until you are
panting.
Hints:
Do not over-breathe.
Do not raise your chest.
Do not tighten your abdominal muscles.
Keep your head in but not rigid.
Place your hand behind your neck and feel the cervical vertebrae
bulge, as opposed to a slight depression when the head is forward.
Keep your knees bent slightly.
Remember that good posture is essential.
2. Arms Forward Thrust (Refer to Diagram II.) Feet apart, knees bent.
Inhale and hold your breath throughout the exercise. First, extend your
arms forward with closed fists. Then extend your arms to the side slowly.
Return to the original position slowly. Now, repeat three times quickly
and with energy. Collapse, expelling the air.
Hints:
Do not allow your fists to come together.
Keep your head in.
Your knees should be bent slightly.
Your shoulders should be back.
3. Arms to Side Thrust or Chest Position (Refer to Diagram III.) Pull
your arms toward your chest slowly with closed fists, while keeping your
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elbows close to your sides. Extend your arms forward slowly. Now,
repeat the in-and-out movement three times quickly. Collapse, expelling
the air.
Hints:
Keep your head in.
Your knees should be bent slightly.
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4. Bending and Bouncing (Refer to Diagram IV.) Inhale and clasp your hands
behind your head. Bend forward. While remaining bent forward with
your torso parallel to the floor, bounce from your waist several times.
Finally collapse and expel the air.
Hints:
Keep your elbows extended.
Do this exercise slowly. If done violently or rigidly, the back can be
injured.
Make sure you feel the pull from your head to your leg muscles. This is
also a neck stretching exercise.
Keep your head down and in and feel the blood rush to your head.
Keep your feet apart, knees bent.
5. Rib Cage Collapse and Expand (Refer to Diagrams V.1 thru V.4) Place the
palms of your hands firmly on the sides of your rib cage. Collapse your rib
cage and rush the ribs in with the palms of your hands. Now, inhale and
expand your rib cage, while you create resistance with your hands. Raise
your shoulders up and back and roll your head in a complete circle. Now roll
your head back the other way. Then collapse and expel the air (through your
nose – always through your nose), as you push your ribs in with your hands.
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Hints:
Keep your head down and in.
Keep your knees bent slightly.
Keep your feet apart.
6. Base of the Ribs (Refer to Diagram VI.) Place your palms on your rib cage,
with your fingers under the lowest rib. Now, push your abdominal muscles
in and up with your fingers and push your fingers out and down with your
abdominal muscles. Always use resistance – abdominal muscles against
fingers. Repeat several times. Do the exercise slowly. Do not breathe with
this exercise.
Hints:
Keep your feet apart, your knees bent slightly, and your head down
and in.
7. Dynamic Tension with Sound (Refer to Diagram VII.) Clasp your hands in
front of your upper abdominal muscles, with one palm up and one palm
down, fingers locked over each other. Inhale through your nose. As your
abdominal muscles go out, keep up the resistance with your hands. Without
exhaling, pull your abdominal muscle in, aided by pressure from your hands.
Pull way in. Now, push your abdominal muscles out three times, against the
resistance of your hands, repeating the syllable “GAH”
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each time. Next, repeat three times the syllables “GEE, GAH, GEE.” Voice
up for the first syllable, down for the second, and very high for the third.
The “GEE” sound in the falsetto register brings out your upper voice, or
falsetto, while the “GAH” sound in the lower register exercises your lower
voice.
Hints:
In order to perform the exercise properly, attack with the abdominal
muscles on each syllable as if you were pushing a heavy object.
Roll your tongue slightly.
Keep your feet apart, knees bent slightly, head down and in.
8. Dynamic Tension Continued (Refer to Diagram VIII.) Same as above,
except clasp your fingers in front of your lower abdominal muscles.
Hints:
Aspirate all the sounds strongly.
Keep the tip of your tongue against the gingival crest.
Your mouth should be in a slight “yawn” position.
Your chin should be in and your larynx down (but not rigid).
The back of your tongue should be down.
The floor of your mouth, or digastric muscles, should “belly out.”
Knees bent slightly, head down and in.
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9. Right Knee, Left Knee (Refer to Diagram IX.) Make sounds as in the above,
but in the following positions. Turn your right foot out, bend your right knee,
lean to the side and place your right hand on the knee. Keep your left hand
on your abdominal muscles. Repeat the sounds, with resistance, as in
exercise eight. Next, turn your left foot out, bend the knee, lean to the left
side and place your left hand on your knee. Right hand is on your abdominal
muscles. Repeat what you did on the right side.
10. Bellowing Exercises – Abdominal (Refer to Diagram X.) Inhale and push
your abdominal muscles out. Then pull your abdominal muscles in, aided by
your hands, without exhaling. Now, place your right fist to your mouth (not
too tightly) and push your abdominal muscles out slowly, while you make the
sound of escaping steam. Remember to bellow your cheeks.
Bellowing Exercise – Rib Cage (Refer to Diagrams X.A and X.B) Same
as above, except place your hands on your abdominal muscles; as you
inhale, push your abdomen out. Then pull it in while you hold your air.
As you exhale, resist the expansion of your rib cage with the palms of
your hands and pull your shoulder blades together slowly. Remember to
make the sound of escaping steam and to bellow your cheeks.
Hints:
Knees bent slightly, head down and in.
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CAUTION!
Your physical condition must, of course, be considered in all
exercise programs. Consult your physician if you have any doubts
about your health before you begin.
11. Blowing – Abdominal (Refer to Diagram XI.) Inhale quickly through your
nose, pushing your abdominal muscles out, using resistance with your hands.
Raise your right hand, extend your index finger and hold it about six inches in
front of your mouth. Now, pull your abdominal muscles in quickly, aided by
your other hand, simultaneously blowing against your raised finger. Make
the breath short and quick, expelling very little air. Repeat “Gah” three
times, attacking out with your abdominal muscles. Alternate with “Gah”
three times, attacking out with your abdominal muscles. Alternate with
“Gee, Gah, Gee.”
Blowing – Rib Cage (Refer to Diagram XI.B) Now, inhale quickly
through your nose, push your abdominal muscles out, using resistance
with your hands. Raise your right hand and extend your index finger six
inches in front of your lips. Then pull your abdominal muscles in quickly,
aided by your other hand, as you blow against your finger. Make the
breath short and quick; expel very little air. Repeat “Gah” three times,
attacking out with your rib cage. Alternate with “Gee, Gah, Gee.” Resist
the expansion of the rib cage with the palms of your hands and pull
shoulder blades together.
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12. Jaw Exercises (Refer to Diagrams XII. And XII.B)
a. Hold your fingers in front of your ears at the point where your jaw
bone meets your skull. Feel the depression on each side when you
open and close your jaw. As you do, say “YAH, YAH, YAH.”
b. Yawn. Relax. Close your mouth. Repeat several times.
c. Chew, opening and closing your mouth, with your tongue on the floor
of your mouth and the anterior tip against your lower gum line. Also,
do the same exercise as you wag your tongue.
d. Wag your jaw from side to side. Movie it in a circular motion,
clockwise and counterclockwise. Then stick it way out and pull it way
in.
e. Make the following sounds, dropping your jaw on every syllable:
“DAH, DAH, DAH – TAH, TAH, TAH – BAH, BAH, BAH.”
f. Yawn (mouth open wide); swallow (mouth closed).
g. Regurgitate (mouth open); relax (mouth closed).
h. Say “GULP “ and “GALP” as you swallow.
i.
Make a frog sound, gulping with your lips closed.
j.
Purse your lips and place your fingertips in front of your ears. Drop
your jaw in an exaggerated manner while you say, “FGAH, FGEH,
FGIH, FGOH, FGOOH.”
The jaw should be lowered and raised as it would be during the
chewing process.
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The tongue should not be rigid or pulled back. The tip should be
touching the lower gum line.
The lips part and close.
The exercise should be done in a relaxed manner and executed
slowly as though chewing.
When all is done properly and relaxed, the saliva flow increases.
13. Tongue Exercises (Refer to Diagrams XIII. 1 thru XIII.4)
a. Place your index finger on your lowered larynx and smile slightly.
Extend your tongue out of your mouth; then widen and narrow it.
Wag your tongue from side to side. Extend your tongue in and out on
either side. Now, with the tip of your tongue behind your lower gum
line, slowly roll your tongue forward, until the center of your tongue
comes out of your mouth. Then return your tongue to the original
position. When your tongue comes out, rest your upper lip on it.
Don’t let your lower lip show. Now, roll your tongue to the left side
and then the right side in the same manner.
b. Stick your tongue out of your mouth, making it as narrow and straight
as possible. Then move it completely left and right very slowly.
c. Extend your tongue as far out as possible. Now, retract it to the rest
position.
d. Say “ELLAH, ELLEH, ELLIH, ELLOH, ELLOOH,” with a prolonged
“ELL.” Then snap the tongue back.
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e. Precede “D” and “T” with vowels and prolong, as above. For example,
“ATTAH, ATTEH, ATTIH, ATTOH, ATTOOH.”
f. Rest the tip of the tongue on the inner, lower gum line and keep your
mouth open. Bring the soft palate and the back of your tongue
together. Then spring them apart, as you intone the following: “ GAH,
GEH, GIH, GOH, GOOH; KAH, KEH, KIH, KOH, KOOH; NGAH, NGEH,
NGIH, NGOH, NGOOH; MINGAH, MINGEH, MINGIH, MINGOH,
MINGOOH.” (Your jaw and lips should move slightly for “M”.)
HUNGAH, HUNGEH, HUNGIH, HUNGOH, HUNGOOH; GOINKAH,
GOINKEH, GOINKIH, GOINKOH, GOINKOOH; INGAH, INGEH, INGIH,
INGOH, INGOOH.
g. Belch, to simulate esophageal speech.
h. Imitate a crow – “KAW, KAW.”
i.
Sob like a baby. Then whimper like a dog. Now, yodel. And “HEEHAW” like a donkey (first syllable in your falsetto and last syllable in
your normal voice).
j.
Open your mouth and do a falsetto tone and then a normal tone.
k. Pant with your mouth open. Place your tongue on your lower lip.
Move your tongue forward and then back. Keep panting.
l.
Place your tongue against your lower gum line. Roll your tongue
forward and then retract it slowly, as you say the following vowel
sounds (for the correct formation of the tongue in vowel enunciation):
“AH, AYE, EE, AYE, AH, OH, OOH.”
NOTE: Never press the tongue against the teeth with abnormally
strong pressure.
14. Chin exercises
There is a closer relationship between chin and lip action. Use a mirror
and touch your chin to feel the action of your lips. Now, do the following:
a. Pucker your lips. Note that your chin wrinkles. Relax your lips.
Notice that your chin becomes smooth.
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b. Smile. Press your lower lip against your upper lip. Your chin
wrinkles. Relax.
c. Swallow with your lips closed and open. Keep your fingers on your
chin.
d. Push your lower lip out and press it against your upper lip. Relax.
e. Use these exercises with vowel and consonant combination (see page
53).
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PREPARATION FOR VOWEL AND CONSONANT EXERCISES
Soon, you will be doing a program of vowel and consonant exercises – to help
you with consonant articulation and vowel enunciation. The exercises in this
section will help prepare you for them.
1. Place your finger on your Adam’s Apple or larynx. Imitate the sound of a
frog. Swallow with your mouth closed and then yawn.
2. Open your mouth slightly and repeat the above. Yawn and swallow until
your soft palate and the back of your tongue and larynx begin to coordinate.
3. Open your eyes wide, using your scalp muscles.
LARYNX EXERCISES
Larynx exercises are extremely important, because when all is said and done,
your larynx is the center of your effort, since the vocal cords are located there. A
tight larynx causes hoarseness, noise, unpleasant sounds, and eventually
deterioration of the vocal organ, with such things as nodes, polyps, and laryngitis.
Use a mirror and place your finger on the larynx.
1. Alternately yawn and swallow, as you open and close your mouth.
2. Do the frog: “GUH, GUH, GUH”
3. Gulp four times. Chew. If you find this difficult, you may break the word
“gulp” into parts. “G”: Note that the soft palate and the posterior tongue
occlude, but the mouth remains open and the larynx raises. “U”: The soft
palate and the posterior tongue part and the larynx descends. “LP”: The
tongue is at the alveolar ridge, the lips occlude, and the tongue returns to the
gingival crest, as the lips part explosively.
4. Move your head to the left and right. Now, move your head up and down in a
nodding motion to release tension.
5. Do your vowel and consonant combinations. The tip of the tongue rests at
and always returns to the gingival crest. Raise and lower your jaw rapidly
between each sound. Inhale through your nose with your mouth closed.
Make falsetto sound (“HUH, HUH”) between each combination. Make the
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Tarzan sound. Also, raise your shoulders on each attack and jiggle up and
down between combinations.
By sustaining tones or sound, you can exaggerate the exercises. After
all, singing is exaggerated speech. The result will be better speech
articulation and a well-modulated voice that is pleasant to hear.
Start each sound by gently blowing and/or sighing. The abdominal
muscles alternately attack out. Attack with the rib cage expanding on each
sound.
NOTE: You may combine lowering and raising the larynx with
tongue exercises.
ADJACENT SOUNDS
All sounds are influenced by the sounds preceding and following.
Movements are altered in accordance with the requirements of adjacent sounds.2
15. Eye Exercise (Refer to Diagrams XIV.1 Thru XIV.4)
Raise the index finger of your right hand and concentrate both eyes on it,
while you keep your other hand on your abdomen. Inhale, hold your breath, and
follow the finger as you move it in and out. Now, move your finger right and left.
Then move it in a diamond shape—top, side, bottom, side, top and return. In each
position, your eyes should go in the opposite direction of your finger and then
return to your finger. For best results, go slowly. Keep your finger about six inches
in front of your eyes and one hand on your abdomen. Hold breath throughout
exercise.
2
Functional Voice Disorders, Prentice-Hall, Albert J. Murphy, Professor of Speech
Pathology and Diction Speech and Center, Boston University, p. 59.
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OPTIONAL EXERCISES
1. Cheeks
a. Raise your cheeks by using an exaggerated smile. Then relax your
cheeks. Repeat several times. While you do it, place your fingers
on your cheeks and use a mirror.
b. Fill your cheeks with air, looking like the North Wind. Do not
release air. Relax your cheeks, still not releasing air. Force the air
against your cheeks as you do this.
c. The same as above, except alternate with the bellow exercise,
releasing air. Make a popping sound with your lips when you do.
d. Spread your nostrils and raise your cheeks. Relax your nostrils
and lower your cheeks. Alternate- a “rabbit” exercise.
e. Exaggerate vowel and consonant combinations with emphasis on
your cheeks, bellowing and deflating on the sound.
f. Bellow your cheeks and let air burst through your lips causing
them to vibrate.
g. Combine with the lip exercises, putting the emphasis on your
cheeks.
h. Use musical and wind instruments – horns, or balloons.
2. Chewing Exercises
a. Chew, exaggerating with your mouth open.
b. Chew, exaggerating with your mouth closed.
3. Breathing Exercises
a. Blow before and after syllables, words, phrases, and sentences.
b. Sigh “H,” aspirating.
c. Using blowing and sighing with musical phrases, single tones,
triads, scales. Also, with syllables, words, phrases, and sentences.
d. Blow and sigh before and after each syllable, word, and phrase in
songs and speeches.
e. Using the above technique, swell and diminish on tones.
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f. Alternate rib-cage and abdominal attacks.
g. Lie on your back with a book or books on your abdomen. Raise
the books on inhalation and lower the books on exhalation. This
should be done very slowly and with great control. Then gradually
increase the speed until you are panting. Always breathe through
your nose.
h. Raise your hands overhead, stretch arms, palms facing. Inhale
slowly. Lower your hands to your side as you exhale slowly.
Repeat several times. Now, extend your hands and arms forward,
palms facing each other. Extend your arms to the side slowly,
while inhaling. Return the arms to the original position, exhaling
slowly.
i.
Run in place, arms forward, panting through your nose.
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CONSONANT ARTICULATION AND VOWEL ENUNCIATION
In pleasing singing and speech, one sustains the vowels and uses the
consonants, dipthongs, and tripthongs as bridges or springboards from vowel to
vowel. To achieve your best, you must learn to articulate your consonants and
enunciate your vowels.
ARTICULATION OF CONSONANTS
One must be very definite about the articulation of consonants. It is safe to
say that one should exaggerate the articulation of them, being especially mindful of
final consonants.
One simple overall piece of advice is what I call “chewing” the words. Speak
as if you were chewing. The exaggerated movement of the jaw will lend clarity to
your speech, because it will help you articulate your consonants.
Be especially mindful of all final consonants. Take a word like “mind.” Make
sure you say the “d.”
Another overall piece of advice: at all times, speak as if you were spelling the
words. This technique will help you see – and say – each syllable clearly. That is,
speak syllabically.
Now, let’s take a look at the various consonants and how they are
pronounced.
1. Billiable. (sound made with two lips) – These consonants are articulated
properly by using the chewing muscles, which control the lower jaw, or
mandible. In practice, the lower teeth will almost touch the upper teeth.
[P] (voiceless, an unvoiced surd) – The two lips are closed. The mouth builds
up air pressure. Now, the lips come apart, making an explosive sound. The
soft palate raises and closes off the nasal ports.
[B] (sounded, voiced consonant) – The two lips are closed. The mouth builds
up air pressure. Now the lips after lingering, come apart, making an
explosive sound. The soft palate raises and closes off the nasal ports.
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[M] (sound –sonant, nasal) – The nasal ports are opened slightly, but the lips
are not pressed as tightly together as in “P” and “B”. The tip of the tongue
should be anchored at the lower gum line, or gingival crest.
[W] (sound Sonant) – As in “wall.” The lips are pursed. The jaw raises. The
lips part. The jaw drops slightly.
[WH] (voiceless) – As in “what.” The lips are pursed. The jaw raises. The
lips part. The jaw drops slightly. (start the sound with by blowing or sighing,
that is, aspirating).
2. Labio-Dental (lip-teeth)
[f], [v], [F] and [V] – These sounds are made by contacting and pressing the
inner surface of the upper teeth with the lower lip. Make good closure. Build
up air pressure in the oral cavity. Then part the lip-and-teeth contact with an
explosive sound.
[F] – unvoiced – surd
[V]—voiced – sonant
3. Linguo-Dental (tongue-teeth)
TH
voiceless, surd and
voiced, sonant
The tip of the tongue extends between the upper and lower teeth. The
tongue is then retracted as the air is expelled. The lips are slightly parted.
4. Linguo- Alveolar
[T] Unvoiced, surd and [D] voiced, sonant
The tip of the tongue contacts the upper gum line. The middle of the tongue
(dorsum) makes contact with the hard palate. The mouth and lips are
slightly opened. Build air pressure and then flip the tip of the tongue down to
rest behind the gingival crest.
[n] [N] (voiced nasal, sonant) – Same as above, with the soft palate slightly
relaxed to allow a little nasality.
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[s] (unvoiced, surd) – The air is hissed through occluded teeth. This is a
centralized emission.
[z] (voiced, sonant) – Same as above, but this consonant is sounded.
(Buzzing sound.)
[l] (voiced, sonant) [L] – Sometimes called a semi-vowel or con-vowel. The
tip of the tongue is pressed firmly at the alveolar ridge and then flipped down
to the lower gum line.
5. Linguo Palatal
(unvoiced, surd) – “CH” as in “Chum.”
[dz] (voiced, sonant) – “J” as in “Azure.” The tongue contacts the hard palate.
The body of dorsum of the tongue is pressed against the palate or roof of the mouth.
The teeth come together (occlude) and then part explosively to make the sound.
The lips are parted.
[
] (unvoiced, surd) “SH” as in “issue”
[d3] (voiced, sonant) Soft “J” as in “Jury”
[r] and [R] – also sometimes called a semi-vowel and con-vowel. The tip of
the tongue is anchored to the lower gum. The middle of the tongue contacts the
upper teeth and palate. The lips are parted. The jaw closes slightly and then drops
on expulsion of air.
Note: Italian “R” is formed by trilling or fluttering the front of the tongue.
The German or French “R” is formed by trilling or fluttering the back of the
tongue against the soft palate, similar to a growl or gargle.
[J] [Y] (voiced, sounded sonant) – As in “Yes.” This is a semi-vowel or
convowel. It starts with “ee-yeh-s.”
6. Linguo-Velar
[K] (unvoiced, surd) and [g] (voiced, sonant) – The back of the tongue
(dorsum) raises and presses against the soft palate. The tip of the tongue is
anchored at the gingival crest. These are the muscles that are used in
swallowing. For “K (g)” make a tight occlusion.
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[Ng] (voiced sonant, nasal) – Make with a light emission through the nasal
ports.
7. Glottal
[h] [H] – this sound is made by closure of the vocal cords, similar to a cough.
We try to avoid these so-called glottal stops (grunts), because the violent
contact can injure the vocal cords.
VOWEL ENUNCIATION (See Plate V)
The proper enunciation of the vowels is one of the most controversial subjects. It
will help greatly to understand that the core of all vowels is the “AH” position. The
other vowels are superimposed on it, which is formed by opening the mouth in a
yawn position and then relaxing it slightly. The jaw hangs loosely on its hinge. Do
not show the lower teeth. The soft palate is raised and touches the back of the wall
of the throat, or the pharynx. The tip of the tongue is anchored at the gingival crest.
The back of the tongue is lowered and so is the larynx, making it possible to see the
pharynx or back wall of the throat. The digastric muscles at the floor of the mouth
belly out behind the chin. The tongue lies flat in the mouth for the “AH” vowel.
The other vowels – “EH,” “IH,” are formed by rolling the tongue forward. “O”
and “U” are formed by flattening the tongue. The vowels in the closed position are
“A-E-I-O-U.” The vowels in the open position, sometimes called “long,” are “AH, EH,
IH, OH, OO.”
Here is an appropriate sequence. For “AH” the tongue lies flat in the mouth.
For “EH” the tongue rolls slightly forward. For “IH” it rolls forward a little more.
Caution: Do not raise the back of the tongue. The tip of the tongue remains at
the lower gum line.
For “OH” the tongue flattens out and is slightly grooved.
“Oo” same as “O” but the tongue is grooved a bit more.
The extent of the movement of the tongue and the mouth and the lips will
vary with the individual, according to the shape of the mouth, as well as the size of
the mouth and tongue in relation to each other.
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In some, the palate may not reach the back wall and rise enough to close off
the nasal ports or holes, allowing air to escape through the nose, a condition that
causes excessive nasality and a “twang.”
There are, in fact, many anatomical differences and variations in the
construction of the vocal anatomy. Thankfully, most of them can be corrected with
various exercises such as vowel and consonant exercises and vegetative acts.
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Here are a few:
1. Breathing properly.
2. Yawning.
3. Swallowing.
4. Burping, or eructation.
5. Gagging, guttural “CH.” This stimulates the soft palate and dorsum.
6. Frog sound (swallowing), with hard “G” or “K” sound.
7. Gargle, an intoned guttural “CH.”
8. Growl, motorboat sound, or purr.
These devices should be used throughout the speaking and singing exercises and
then transferred or superimposed on singing habits and speech patterns
In all cases, the reflexes will be conditioned to the extent that one uses the devices
without seeming to be affected. All sounds will be “natural”.
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THE BASIC VOCAL EXERCISES AND DEVICES
The vowel and consonant combination exercises presented here are the basic
vocal gymnastics that will condition and train your vocal mechanism – to stimulate
and keep the articulatory mechanism flexible. Do them faithfully each day, and you
will soon begin to hear a difference in your singing and speaking voice.
Some general instructons before you begin, to be used as you choose to
employ them:
1. Blow air before and after each vowel and consonant combination.
2. Aspirate an “H” before and after each vowel and consonant combination.
3. Sigh before each one.
4. Pant before each one.
5. Precede each sound with the frog sound (ventrioloquist).
6. Use guttural “CH”.
7. Gargle. Imitate a motorboat, purring, growl.
8. Sob. Whimper. Alternate upper and lower voice with mouth closed.
9. Yodel. Mouth open. Alternate upper and lower vowel.
10. Tarzan call. Repeat syllables “HEE, AW, HEE.”
11. Donkey call (Braying).
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VOWEL AND CONSONANT EXERCISE EMPHASIZING THE OPEN VOWEL
SOUND
The tip of the tongue is at the alveolar ridge. Open position: “AH, EH,
IH, OH, U.”
ILLUSTRATION: TONGUE MOVEMENT IN VOWEL PRONUNCIATION
A. DAH DEH DIH DOH DOOH
B. TAH TEH TIH TOH TOOH
C. LAH LEH LIH LOH LOOH
D. RAH REH RIH ROH ROOH. (Trilled, with the tip of the tongue at the
anterior palate. Make the sound of a racing car, “RRR” by a rapid trill).
VOWEL AND CONSONANT COMBINATIONS (See the next 16 pages)
These exercises are done in open position, using various physical
exercises to help you relax.
The up arrow indicates that you use the upper voice, or falsetto. The
lower arrow indicates that you use your normal, or lower, voice. These
exercises will also help you learn to blend the voice.
For the first exercises, run in place as you do them, with your hands in
the thrust position and breathe through your nose (to warm and clean cold
air or to cool and clean warm air before it strikes your vocal cords, as well as
to keep foreign matter from entering the vocal tract).
Notice the logic of the sounds. Each consonant is paired with each
open vowel. Do them loudly and with confidence. It might help you to know
that Laurence Olivier used to go out in a field and shout his lines. Ralph
Richardson said that when his falsetto was all right, he knew his voice would
be good.
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HOW TO WORK WITH SCALES AND ARPEGGIOS
Before discussing vocal ways to work with the scales and arpeggios, a few
words should be said for those not as familiar as they might be with them.
(Obviously, this section is of more importance to singers, but those who wish to
speak better can gain a certain agility by working as described below.)
CLASSIFICATION OF OCTAVES
1111111
Middle C and its octave are referred to as C D E F G A B
2222222
The next octave above is:
CDEFGAB
3333333
The next above: C D E F G A B
44444444
The next: C D E F G A B
The octave below middle C is referred to as the small octave.
Descending: B A G F E D C.
The next octave below is the Great Octave.
Descending: B A G F E D C.
The next below, the counter Octave.
Descending: B A F G F E D C.
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REGISTERS
The word register means a series of succeeding sounds of equal quality on a
scale from low to high, produced by the application of the same mechanical
principles, the nature of which differs basically from another series of succeeding
sounds of equal quality, produced by another mechanical principle.3
Here are the range and registers of the six main classifications of voices.
These ranges and registers are somewhat arbitrary and can vary. As you can see,
the registers are as follows (see accompanying chart):
Soprano: Octave above tenor
Mezzo Soprano: Octave above baritone
Contralto: Octave above bass
Tenor
Baritone
Bass
1) The low or chest register
2) The middle register
3) The head register or falsetto
4) The whistle register, in high female voices
3
Manuel Gracia, “Traite Complet De L’art Du Chant,” 1841.
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TRIADS
The triads on the following pages can help you attain agility, flexibility, and
control. They will help you do your singing and speaking exercises better, too.
They should be done chromatically; that is, moving up and down in half
steps. You can go higher or lower than what is indicated, as long as you feel
comfortable and don’t strain or force your voice.
Basses and baritones start on the “G” in the Small octave
Tenors start on “B” in the Great octave.
Contraltos start on “G” in the Small octave
Mezzo-Sopranos start on “B” in the Small octave.
Sopranos start on “C” or middle C.
SUGGESTED SOUNDS
Various sound combinations will help. The ones to use vary with the
individual. Experiment, but take the following suggestions as general guidelines.
Lower register:
GAH GAH GAH GAH
GAW GAW GAW GAW
GALP GALP GALP GALP
GO GO GO GO
GOO GOO GOO GOO
HA HA HA HA
HO HO HO HO
HOO HOO HOO HOO
When descending, gradually change the vowel from OH to AH to OOH.
Upper register:
FGOH FGOH FGOH FGOH
FGOO FGOO FGOO FGOO
KAH KAH KAH KAH
YOI YOI YOI YOI
HA HA HA HA (LAUGH IT)
Then ascending, gradually change the vowel from AH to AW to OH to UH.
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TIPS
At times, don’t move the front of your mouth. Instead, try to isolate the back
muscles of your oral cavity.
Aspirate, sigh, pant, bow, bellow your cheeks, and kick or attack by pushing
your abdominal muscles out, aided by resistance from your hands.
In addition to the above sounds, use the guttural “CH”, gargle, make the frog
sound (yes, in pitch), yawn, swallow, makes puffs of air, heave, sound like a siren,
do a glissando, a drone, bark and, of course, do straight tones.
Elongate the oral cavity with a loose jaw. Do an exaggerated yawn. This
should provide a lower larynx, a high soft palate, with the tip of your tongue
against your lower gum line. Now, make the sounds.
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Use of the gag reflex is suggested, too, but you must be especially careful not
to allow the vocal cords to rub together.
The gradual expansion and attack of the back muscles – Latissimi Dorsi,
Trapezius, and Deltoids – also helps to maintain control of the vocal organ.
A word of caution:
If a tone is too spread, elongate the back of your throat and the front of
your mouth. If a tone is too elongated, spread your oral cavity by smiling
and showing your upper teeth. (not your lower)
An ideal tone is one that is smiled and elongated, without being forced.
Remember that these exercises and devices are used to train the voice
and exaggeration must be avoided when you actually sing or speak.
Don’t be concerned. If you do the exercises properly, in time your
conditioned reflexes will take over.
TRIADS FOR EXERCISES
In working with triads, after you have gone as high as you wish, execute them
by descending chromatically.
The following books are suggested for additional training with scales,
arpeggios, etc.
Masterpieces of Vocalization, Max Spiker, G. Schirmer.
Fifty Lessons for the Voice, Giuseppe Concone, G. Schirmer.
Theoretical and Practical Vocal Method (Vocalise), Elementary Progressive
Exercises, Mathilde Marchesi, G. Schirmer.
Practical Italian Methods, Niccolo Vaccai, G. Schirmer.
Variazion Cadenze, Traditional Per Canto, Vol. 1, 2, and 3, Luigi Ricci, Ricordi.
Gorgheggi e Solfiggi Per Rendere La Voce Agile e Imperare il Bel Canto,
Gioacchino Antonio Rossini, Ricordi.
Hints on Singing, Manuel Patriccio Rodriguez Garcia, Summit Publico Canoga
Park, Calif.
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In addition, you can use arpeggios from songs by Handel, Hayden,
Rachmaninoff, Villa Lobos; Vocalise by Rachmaninoff and Brazilianos by Villa
Lobos.
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HOW TO LEARN A SONG (MUCH ALSO APPLIES TO SPEAKING)
The basic principle of pleasing singing is to sing with the back of the throat open
and articulate with the soft palate and back of your tongue. Good anterior
articulation with your lips, tongue, teeth, and palate is superimposed on your
open throat. Together, one can produce his or her best tone – and still be
understood clearly.
In addition, good anterior articulation creates an implosion which helps to
keep the back of the throat open and the back of the tongue down, so the sound
can come out in an unimpeded manner.
Remember: anterior or frontal articulation is superimposed on posterior
articulation.
You have learned various vegetative acts, such as yawning and chewing.
They can be used when practicing. All can help to make the back muscles
flexible, rather than rigid, and train them to articulate. You will become more
aware of them. In doing so, you will move toward getting the most out of your
vocal potential with the least amount of effort.
First, learn the song as a poem. If you can speak the words well, you’re far
along to singing them well. Now, speak them in rhythm. Speak them in pitch.
Now, you are ready to sing them. It’s time to memorize the melody.
As you sing, keep good musicianship in mind. Be aware of the accented and
unaccented beats. To add interest and artistry, use rising and falling inflection.
Attack all notes softly and then swell to a crescendo. Sing as if your voice were
the bowing of a musical instrument – think of the rise and fall in volume. Swell,
retreat. Swell, retreat. (Crescendo, Diminuendo.)
Sigh, or sob at all times, to keep the back of your throat open and flexible you
may also laugh the words “HA-HA” – a device that will achieve the same effect.
Sigh or laugh on every syllable. Feel how the back of your throat opens.
Articulate with a loose jaw. If you run into trouble, move your jaw up and down
in a moronic manner. At first, your articulation will feel awkward. But you will
soon learn to articulate with a loose jaw.
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Speak the song clearly, without pitch, before you sing it. If you can speak it
well you can sing it well simply by raising the intensity of your speaking.
Articulate the consonants and enunciate the vowels in an exaggerated manner.
Prolong or sustain the open vowels and connect them with the consonants
(dipthongs and tripthongs as well), as if each were a little bridge or stepping
stone from one vowel to the next. Do not linger on consonants, dipthongs, or
tripthongs.
Aspirating and sighing will also help ensure that there is an uninterrupted
passage of air throughout the song.
Remember to draw your abdominal muscles in well after you inhale and kick
or attack out with your abdominal muscles.
Sobbing will also keep the back muscles of your throat flexible – including the
soft palate, tongue, pharynx, larynx, and related musculature.
Remember to keep the tip of your tongue behind your lower gum line and
keep the back of your tongue down (not pressing the tip against the lower teeth).
In addition, you may place the tip of your tongue on your lower lip loosely, not
tightly.
Your larynx should be in the low position at all times, but not forced. This
can occur when your chin is too far back and rigid. When your chin is out,
everything tightens up. That is, your larynx, jaw, and related muscles are
restricted.
LOOSEN UP AND SING!
Singing is especially vulnerable to tension. Here are lots of ways to relax.
1. Move your head from side to side, gently and slowly.
2. Roll your head in small circles.
3. Keep your head in, but not rigid.
4. Retain good posture.
5. Aspirate, blow, or sigh before and after each syllable, word, phrase and
sentence. (Every sound should emanate from an uninterrupted flow of air
from the sigh to the tone.)
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6. Sobbing and yodeling helps to make the sounds clearer, healthier.
7. Touch your larynx with your finger to feel it as it descends in the yawn
position and rises in the swallowing position. Get in touch with your vocal
mechanism!
8. Make the siren sound. It’s made on the vowel “AH” while you rise and fall in
pitch. Make it smooth, with no vibrato.
9. Don’t sing in keys or on pitches that are too high or too low for you. Sing in
an easy and comfortable part of your voice.
10. Try to work in terms of superimposing melody on the same combinations of
muscles that are used in speaking. A mirror can help you.
11. Sing or speak while you run in place – or run around the room.
12. Wave your arms in circles above your head and below, with full extension.
13. Dance in rhythm or with ballet movements. Remember: body movement
augments and enhances the vocal sound.
14. Jiggle your tongue in and out of your mouth.
15. Jiggle your shoulders, as well as your abdominal muscles, arms, and your
entire body.
16. Sing with a flexible soft palate.
17. Yawn – to elongate your mouth and pharynx.
18. Smile to show only your upper teeth.
19. Sustain tones, with a steady and gradual pushing out of your abdominal
muscles or a steady and gradual expansion of your back muscles.
20. If a tone or your mouth is too spread, elongate your mouth. If too elongated,
spread your mouth. You must use a combination of wide and elongated, but
never rigid.
21. Attack each sound softly, with a sob, a sigh, or an aspiration – a small blow or
even a bellow --- preceding the sound. Then swell and diminish.
Admittedly, this is a lot to keep in mind. But as you work, you will find that the
techniques will seep into you. You will condition yourself, so that all these
devices will become an inseparable and natural part of the way you sing.
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Learn them well, and the expressiveness and beauty of your voice will be at
its maximum.
You will also begin to hear how few people know how to sing this way, from
pop to opera. You will hear the harshness that comes from anterior articulation
without an open throat and all manner of growling and snarling that comes from
having to make an effort to make sounds that should be relatively effortless to
produce. But do give yourself time.
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PROJECTION
Actors and speakers often become so involved with feeling a role or being
convincing that they do not project enough to communicate with the audience.
One must learn that even exaggeration in articulation, enunciation, and in
gesturing can be executed without looking or sounding strange. Instead,
exaggeration can enhance the communication and look perfectly normal. Watch
yourself in a mirror and see how much more you can articulate, enunciate and
gesture without appearing false or bizarre.
To make your speech more interesting, remember the following:
1. Use rising and falling inflection. A monotone produces monotony. Vary the
volume: loud to soft, soft to loud.
2. Make tempo changes where appropriate.
3. Use pauses or beats, not only to heighten interest, but to prevent running
words, phrases, and sentences together. Do not rush. Speak slowly. Then
what you say will have more importance.
4. Plan your breaths so that you don’t run out of air in the middle of phrases
that communicate a unified thought. Don’t breathe noisily or gasp. Breathe
through your nose as much as possible.
5. Don’t attack with your vocal cords (the glottic stroke, or cough). Aspirate,
sigh, even pant.
6. Find the normal pitch for your voice – the pitch where you are perfectly
relaxed. Also, find the middle to lower part of your voice.
7. Don’t be apologetic.
8. Use pauses to let your message sink in.
9. In large auditoriums, speak even slower, to compensate for the time lag,
which has to do with acoustics.
10. Don’t listen to your own voice. Go by sensation.
11. Avoid “er” and “uh” as well as any other interjection. Make your language
flow, simply and definitely from goal to goal.
12. Don’t smoke, chew gum, eat lozenges, look at the floor, hold notes in front of
your face, or bury your head in notes. Also, don’t fidget.
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13. Don’t depend on the sound system. Check it in advance. The same goes for
an audio-visual aid.
14. Lighting should be dimmed. A spotlight should be on the performer or
speaker.
Naturally, try to avoid mumbling, garbling, stridency, nasality, monotony, or
lisping (often easily remedied by proper vocal therapy).
Body movement, or gestures, augment the vocal sound. One must, in fact,
speak and sing “with the body.”
Even a speaker should intone words as though singing – that is, he or she
should sustain the open vowels. (But do not make your speech “sing-songy.”)
Pick spots in the far reaches of the auditorium and project the voice so that it
can be heard there. Also, pick out individuals close to you and relate to them.
When playing or relating to other people on the stage or podium, “cheat”
your body position toward the audience. Your sound should be direct toward
those you intend to hear it.
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MICROPHONE TECHNIQUE
1.
Keep your hands at your side or make only pertinent gestures. Don’t
put your hands in front of your face or in your pockets.
2.
Stand straight, with good posture. Don’t lean against the lectern or
slouch.
3.
Keep your head in. When you put your head up or forward, you make
your throat muscles tight and inhibit your vocal mechanism.
4.
Lower the mike. Don’t let it hide your face. And don’t walk away from
the mike.
5.
Talk over or directly into the mike. Don’t turn your head away from it.
6.
Find the appropriate distance from the mike. Don’t get too close to it
because of the danger of popping and hissing sounds.
7.
Swallow or drink water to clear your throat. Don’t cough to clear it.
8.
If you must expectorate or blow your nose, use tissue and turn from the
audience.
9.
The electronic speakers should be placed in front of the mike to
prevent feedback. The volume should not be too loud.
10.
In using a body microphone, when you move your head, move your
body with it, or the sound will get lost or distorted. The same will
happen if you raise your head too high. Beware of rattling papers or
props because of the noise they can make. Practice before the speech
or performance.
11.
Audio-visual aids should not interfere with your ability to face the
audience or talk into the mike.
12.
Singers: learn to sing softly, with rising and falling inflection – softly
but with great intensity.
13.
Be aware of audience attitude. Try to speak or sing before the audience
has eaten a big meal or imbibed too much. Singing and speaking after
your audience has had a hard day is difficult enough!
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PHYSICAL EXERCISES BEFORE A PERFORMANCE OR SPEECH
Relax. To loosen up, run in place. Or try the following:
Arm exercises, head movements, shoulder movements, rib and back
expansion and contraction, abdominal muscle movements, push ups, breathing
exercises, tongue, jaw and eye movements, yawn, swallow, do larynx exercises, the
frog sound, gutteral “ch.” Have a warm drink. Make sure you have water on the
podium. Meditate on a philosophy that might help you relax your mind. Think
positively. If you get nervous, create an imaginary life for yourself where you’ve
done what you’re about to do hundreds of times before and with great success. In
your mind, turn yourself into an old pro.
Finally, mull over Hamlet’s advice to the players:
“Speak the speech, I pray you, as I pronounced it to you, trippingly on the
tongue: but if you mouth it, as many of your players do, I had as life the towncrier spoke my lines. Nor do not saw the air too much with your hands, thus: but
use all gently: for in the very torrent, tempest and, as I may say, the whirlwind of
your passion, you must acquire and beget a temperance that may give it
smoothness. O, it offends me to the soul to hear a robustious periwig-pated
fellow tear a passion to tatters, to very rags, to split the ears of the groundlings,
who, for the most part, are capable of nothing but inexplicable dumb-shows and
noise: I could have such a fellow whipped for o’erdoing Termagant; it outherods Herod: pray you, avoid it, I warrant your honor. Be not too tame neither,
but let your own discretion be your tutor: suite the action to the word, the word
to the action; with this special observance, that you o’erstep not the modesty of
nature; for anything so overdone is from the purpose of playing, whose end,
both at first and now, was and is, to hold, as’t were, the mirror up to nature; to
show her virtue her own feature, scorn her own image, and the very age and
body of the time his form and pressure. Now, this overdone, or come tardy off,
though it make the unskillful laugh, cannot but make the judicious grieve; the
censure of which one must, in your allowance, o’erweigh a whole theater of
others.
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Another speech to enhance your oratory possibilities is, of course, Lincoln’s
famous Gettysburg Address:
FOUR SCORE AND SEVEN YEARS AGO our fathers brought forth on the
continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition
that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or
any nation so conceived and so dedicated can long endure. We are met on a
great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as
a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might
live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate – we cannot consecrate – we
cannot hallow – this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled
here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world
will little note nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget
what they did here. It is for us, the living, rather, to be dedicated here so the
unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced.
It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before
us – that from these honored head we take increased devotion to that cause for
which they gave the last full measure of devotion, that we here highly resolve
that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation, under God, shall
have a new birth of freedom; and that government of the people, by the people,
for the people shall not perish from the earth.
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PSYCHOLOGICAL RAMIFICATIONS
Good mental health is essential to vocal achievement. Stress, whether
physical or mental, inhibits vocal communication. Your vocal cords are the first to
be affected by it and to “tighten up.” Frustration and anger can impede the vocal act.
Thinking becomes confusion when the following conditions occur:
a) Fear
b) Uncertainty
c) Lack of confidence
d) Anger
e) Frustration
f) Fatigue
g) Harassment
h) Duress
i) Emotional instability
j) Lack of concentration
k) Animosity
l) Feeling of inadequacy
m) Antagonism
Some other emotions that diminish your potential are insecurity, a lack of
sufficient ego, hate, agitation, hostility, belligerence, animosity, self-chastisement,
jealousy, career reversals, and, of course, bereavement. Also, beware of emotions
caused by lack of acceptance by friends or colleagues, fear of rejection at auditions,
criticism by peers and others, and the pressures of everyday living. Trying too hard
and trying to speed up the learning process or any kind of impatience, and the
unhappiness it usually brings, can also be detrimental. So can simply blaming
others for your own shortcomings in vocal technique, musicianship, or sightreading
abilities.
Levity is very important. Make the learning process a game. Have fun! Doing so
helps you relax – and get the most out of your potential. It helps you relax your
mind, so you can function and receive information more readily.
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Remember: a tight or rigid mind produces a tight or rigid body, which in turn
inhibits good vocal projection.
Physical exercises help you achieve mental relaxation. Philosophical studies can
help achieve controlled relaxation, too.
The illustration, plate VII, shows the muscles in the head that are affected by
stress – and inhibit the vocal mechanism.
And remember that even rigidity in the abdominal area causes your laryngeal
area to be rigid. In fact, rigidity in any part of the body inhibits the laryngeal area
and the vocal act.
NOTE FOR JINGLE AND ROCK SINGERS
You may be under constant pressure to read music at sight or sing by rote
without music or to sing beyond your range and make sounds that are injurious to
your vocal cords. Forcing the voice, making raspy sounds, screaming, belting
improperly and a variety of other sounds are not conducive to good vocal health.
Try to take it easy on your voice.
There are so many things that can interfere with good vocal communication,
that I can only mention a few of them.
The studios are often inadequately ventilated. A lack of proper moisture in the
air can be harmful; use a humidifier in winter in your living quarters. Try to avoid
extremes of temperature or drafts. Avoid smoking and drugs. Don’t eat junk food.
Eat properly. Sleep enough. Don’t wear tight clothing or shoes, which can bind your
throat or abdomen.
During the buildup to the menstrual cycle, there is edema, or swelling in the
abdomen and breasts and vocal cords. The voice may be strident and one can get all
the symptoms of a cold. (In Europe, opera singers get a week off for this
contingency; it’s written into their contracts.)
PHONASTHENIA OR LOSS OF VOICE
One often hears of a famous singer who has “lost his (or her) voice.” There
can be psychological traumas that are very affecting, but more often than not I feel
that such catastrophes are due to forcing the voice, bad vocal technique, improper
rest, emotional traumas, singing too much, traveling too often, jet lag, drastic
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changes in climate and altitude. Trying to listen to your own voice, which you can’t
hear as others hear it, instead of relying on sensations, can also cause all kinds of
trouble.
The litany could go on to include contention with other artists and
management, poor dressing rooms and hotels, etc. The important thing to
understand is that all things that cause stress and damage to your mind and body
affect your voice.
It is essential to prepare one’s mental attitude in order to withstand the
above onslaughts. Admittedly, this is a Herculean job. I urge you to think deeply
about this simple idea: “Singing is the greatest philosophy in the world, especially
when it is done properly. You cannot do it and do it well without controlled
relaxation.” Also, remember that confidence built through knowledge breeds
success.
Use yourself. Don’t abuse yourself. Or let anyone else abuse you.
Be dedicated.
Sing and speak your best. Be your best.
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VOCAL MISUSES AND MALFUNCTIONS
We often hear that a career has been shortened or ruined by vocal problems.
Yet a properly functioning voice can be utilized as long as one is healthy physically
and mentally. There are, however, many reasons that a voice can deteriorate, even
to the point of aphonia, or loss of voice.
The voice is a great barometer of condition of body. Everything affects it –
the food we eat, illness, smoking, drugs, allergies, tension, colds. So we recommend
good hygiene and good physical conditioning.
After all, the vocal cords are muscles. But they are minute, with a blood and
nerve supply, and quite delicate. They can stand a lot of abuse, but then they
develop problems, which can be caused by such thing as:
a. Forcing the voice. Trying to sing out of one’s range or above other singers
and instruments in order to hear oneself and be heard. Learn, instead, to
guide yourself by sensation. Sing softly but with intensity; we call this
“marking.” (Especially important when rehearsing.)
b. Fatigue, due to too many performances, jet lag, improper rest, etc.
c. Excessive mental harassment, from people and things in your personal and
professional life.
d. Singing or speaking without good technique.
There are, in addition, many vocal malfunctions and bad speech patterns- noting
some may help you remedy or avoid them:
1.
Nasality – This vocal condition arises when excessive nasal emission
prevents good projection. The voice is based on oral pressure, which is
obtained by the soft palate rising and closing off of the nasal ports. Yet a
certain amount of nasal resonance is desirable. The degree is actually
determined by the language one is using. French requires the most, and
the amount decreases in the following order: Spanish, English, German,
and Slavic Russian.
2.
Adenoidal Speech and Singing – This condition is the opposite of nasality and
arises when the soft palate closes off the nasal ports to an undue extent. It
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can also be due to swollen adenoids closing off the nasal ports. In either
case, the loss of nasal resonance results in a dull, muted sound.
3.
Lisping – There are ten different types of lisping. It is defined as the defective
production of sibilant sounds, caused by improper tongue placement and
indentation, dental malocclusions, bad bite, a jutting or a receding jaw. An
improper dental prosthesis can also contribute to lisping. A few types of
lisping are:
a. Centralized lisping, which can be a carryover from childhood. It begins
when the baby teeth are lost, as in “All I want for Kwithmath ith my two
front teeth.”
b. Lisp plus a whistle, associated with feminine coquetry.
c. Unilateral, or bilateral. It occurs at one side of the other or both and
results in a slushy sound.
d. High palate, low palate, short palate, long palate. These, in conjunction
with different types of tongues, must be taken into consideration.
e. Ankyloglossia, or being tongue-tied, is very rare and must be corrected by
a specialist.
f. Snorting and snoring.
g. Lingual protrusion. The tongue is out of the mouth during speech.
h. Interdental. The teeth clench while air escapes.
Sometimes, entertainers use these problems as devices. For example, Boris
Karloff and Humphry Bogart lisped. Peter Lorre cultivated a nasal sound.
The tongue is the most crucial element in speech articulation. A simple loss
of moisture can cause it to lose flexibility. There are many bad tongue habits, such
as rolling the anterior tip backward, abnormal grooving, thrusting, reverse,
perverse, swallowing, raising the back of the tongue, or pulling the tongue back.
Each of them impedes the open flow of air and sound.
There are also tongue abnormalities such as macro-glossia or micro-glossia
(an enlarged or abnormally small tongue), but we must most of all try to avoid bad
tongue habits and employ good ones.
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The list of undesirable speech habits is daunting but helpful to be familiar
with:
a. Monotony, which often results for a lack of rising and falling inflection
b. No soft and loud modulation, needed for contrast.
c. Useless interjections such as er, uh, um, well-er-us, mum-mum, clearing
the throat, coughing, stuttering, snorting.
d. Tight jaw, clenched teeth.
To conclude, on the bad side a voice may also be: hollow, hooty, heady,
clangy, chesty, beefy, breathy, blanched, coarse, crude, heavy cool, pinched, pointy,
pingy, shallow, buzzy, needy, whiney, toothy, light, metallic, dead, cutting,
constricted, shrill, blatant, poor, faulty, whispery, thin, harp, piercing, hollow, raspy,
guttural, twangy, tight, white or dark, hard, nasal, hoarse, harsh, or strident. On the
good side, it might be mellow, rich, clear, bright, ringing, smooth, harmonious,
velvety, pleasing, covered or open, golden, warm, round, brilliant.
The list is so long one soon learns that a piecemeal approach to good singing
and speech can be quite difficult, while an overall approach to good vocal
production can clear up many of the problems. And lead to a lifetime of unforced,
excellent singing and speaking.
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HYGIENE
The singer, actor or speaker can be affected by things in the environment,
activities, and whatever we take into ourselves in ways that others need have little
concern about. You should be aware of them.
Also, the manner in which we eat, sleep, think, as well as our overall lifestyle,
has an impact on the voice.
Regarding eating, try to avoid junk food. Before singing or speaking, don’t
eat dairy products, such as cheese, milk, yogurt, etc. And avoid gaseous foods:
cabbage, broccoli, brussel sprouts, nuts, chocolate, hot spices, salt, extremely cold or
hot drinks, carbonated liquids, coffee, tea, alcoholic beverages, nitrites, MSG, food
preservatives or dyes.
Do not eat a large meal before singing or speaking. It will interfere with
proper breathing, as well as make you drowsy. Have fruit, fruit drinks, herb teaslight things for energy. Save your appetite for later.
Avoid fatigue and over-exertion whenever possible.
Avoid fad diets.
Vitamins only under the supervision of a doctor or nutritionist.
Take medication only on the advice of a physician. All medication has side
effects; some can affect the voice.
If you are ill, it’s better not to sing or speak until you can do your best again.
You can do irreparable harm to your vocal mechanism.
Drugs and alcohol can cause disastrous effects to the body and therefore to
the vocal mechanism.
Many drugs, as well as alcoholic beverages, can cause swelling of the vocal
tract.
Cocaine burns holes in the nasal septum and irritates the rest of the vocal
tract, not to mention its effect on the mind.
Smoking and chewing tobacco decreases the vocal range and irritates the
vocal tract.
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Beware of all forms of pollution, especially air. Is your heating system dustfree? Glitter and all forms of metallic make-up can be harmful if breathed in or
ingested.
Humidifiers should be kept at the proper level so that ones throat does not
dry out.
Some people are allergic to down pillows and comforters, which can cause
nasal and vocal problems.
Too much sun has disastrous effects on the vocal tract. It dries out.
Swimming pools treated with chemicals and polluted ocean water can cause
vocal problems.
Bicycling is excellent exercise but be careful not to breathe through your
mouth, or your vocal mechanism will get dry.
Running can cause rigidity, as well as over-exertion.
Skiing can expose your vocal mechanism to too much cold air.
Any contact sport could result in injury of the larynx.
Jet lag can upset your whole metabolism and cause you to feel tired – and
uninspired.
Noise pollution can, of course, cause hearing loss – from loud machinery to
loudspeakers.
All clothing should be loose-fitting to allow for physical freedom and proper
vocal projection.
Last, when you get a cold or have laryngitis, follow this regimen:
1. Rest
2. Have warm drinks, broth, the proverbial chicken soup
3. Have lemon juice and honey in warm water
4. Honey drops or lemon drops
5. Decongestants where indicated
6. Inhale steam through your nose or mouth
7. Use a humidifier
8. Gargle with a saline solution – warm, mild salt water. Not hot. Perhaps
take some vitamins.
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9. Don’t blow your nose too hard. You can force phlegm into your ear by
way of the Eustachian tube.
10. Rest your voice until you’re well.
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SELECTING A VOICE TEACHER
The voice teacher you select should be, first of all, a specialist – a voice
teacher. A pianist or conductor may have a good ear but is unlikely to understand
how to work with the voice. He or she should also be a vocal artist who can sing
and/or speak well and a clinician who has a thorough knowledge of the vocal
anatomy and understands the influence of the entire body and the mind on the vocal
act. He should, of course, have a good background and accomplished students.
Your instructor must have insight and an analytical mind. He must be able to
teach by lecture, demonstration, and participation. He should be able to describe
and communicate the actions and sensations of the vocal anatomy. He should be
able to isolate the parts – tongue, jaw, lips, soft palate, larynx, abdominal muscles,
intercostal muscles – and condition them to perform properly: that is, to produce an
unimpeded flow of air from the lungs, to the larynx, to the oral cavity, and out past
the lips.
Avoid teachers who merely tell you that you should sing and speak naturally.
What is “naturally”? Teachers who use mechanical devices; the human body is
capable of producing the required sounds, and these aids are an impairment.
Teachers who use “imagery” without a specific knowledge of the action of the vocal
mechanism in producing each sound. Teachers who tell you it takes years to learn
to blend all the registers; a proper technique can accomplish this quite readily.
Teachers who mention tone deafness; it only exists if there is brain damage, and
singing off-key is due to a lack of musical training or malfunction of the vocal
instrument. Teachers who suggest that developing laryngitis is a way of
strengthening your vocal cords, or who suggest a tape across the mouth to rest the
voice when one does have a sore throat; muscles atrophy when they’re not used.
Teachers who merely suggest that you sing arpeggios and scales over and over in a
haphazard manner, without developing your vocal mechanism. Teachers who
employ foreign gadgets of any kind, tight belts on the abdomen to tongue
depressors.
At the first lesson, the instructor should clearly outline his or her approach,
as well as his ultimate goal. You should notice an improvement in each lesson. If
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you do not notice a definite improvement in three to six months, it’s time for you to
move on.
Finally, you should choose a teacher you have a good rapport with. This will
help you relax, and, when you’re relaxed, so are your vocal cords. During the early
lessons you may be especially nervous and emotional and need a teacher who can
provide caring guidance and advice.
Aristotle: “Education is the best provision for old age.”
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APPENDIX: MUSCLES AND THEIR FUNCTION
Platysma Myoides: depresses the mouth and lower lip.
Plterygoid, External and Internal: raise lower jaw and draw it forward.
Micro-Glossia: small tongue.
Macro-Glossia: large tongue.
Mentalis: raises the lower lip and wrinkles the skin of the chin.
Musculus Uvulae: raises and shrivels the uvula.
Orbicularis Oris: the sphincter muscle that closes the mouth and wrinkles the lip (lip
muscles).
Palato Pharyngeus: moves the soft palate to the posterior thyroid and pharynx.
Pharyngo Palatinus: narrows fauces and closes the naso-pharyns.
Pharyngeal Constrictors (inferior, middle, and superior): the swallowing muscles.
Risorius: angles the mouth out and compresses the cheeks (the smiling muscles).
Masseter: for chewing.
Digastric: lowers the muscles at the floor of the mouth.
Genio Glossus: expands from the inner surface of the chin and draws the tongue
forward and backward.
Styloglossus: extends from the Hyoid Bone and blends with the fibers of the
hyloglossus and inferior longitudional muscles. It draws the tongue back.
Mimic Muscles:
1. Buccinatorius: the buccal or trumpet muscles, for chewing.
2. Orbicularis Oris: controls both lips.
3. Palato Glossus: This pair of muscles draws the root of the tongue upward
or the palate down.
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LIST OF DIAGRAMS FOR VOCAL EXERCISES
Diagram
Page
I
Panting
22
II
Arms Forward Thrust
23
III
Arms to Side Thrust or Chest Position
25
IV
Bending and Bouncing
27
V
Rib Cage Stretching and Contracting
28-31
VI
Base of the Ribs
33
VII
Dynamic Tension with Sound
34
VIII
Dynamic Tension Continued
36
IX
Right Knee, Left Knee
38-39
X
Bellowing Exercises – Abdominal
40
X
Bellowing Exercises – Rib Cage
41-42
XI
Blowing – Abdominal
44
XI.B
Blowing – Rib Cage
45
XII
Jaw Exercises
47-48
XIII
Tongue Exercises
50-53
XIV
Eye Exercises
58-61
Vowel and Consonant Combinations – See pages 74-89
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LIST OF PLATE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Plate
Page
I
Vocal Organ – Scientific American – Johan Sundberg
8
II
The Mouth from the Front – Singing, the Mechanism
10
and the Technic – William Vennard
III
Vocal Anatomy - Singing, the Mechanism
12
and the Technic – William Vennard
IV
Phonetic Symbols used in this book – Foreign Dialects –
64
Lewis and Marguerite Herm
V
Phonetic Symbols - Singing, the Mechanism
70
and the Technic – William Vennard
VI
Classification of the octave – Pitches, The Modern
91
Musicianship Series – Helen Hobbs Jordan
VII
Muscles in the Stress Triange – New York Times
113
Magazine 8/24/88
127
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Negus, V.E. – Mechanism of Larynx – Hafner Publishing Company,
NY
2. Marshal, Madeleine – The Singers Manual of Book in the World –
G. Schirmer, Inc., NY
3. Brodnitz, Dr. Friedrich – Psychological Considerations in Vocal
Rehabilitation – J.S.H.D
4. Brodnitz, Dr. Friedrich – Keep Your Voice Healthy – Chas C.
Thomas Springfield, II
5. Field, Schoold – Better Speech and Better Reading – Expression Co.
6. Shakespeare, William – Hamlet
7. Lincoln, Abraham – The Gettysburg Address
8. Luchsinger, Dr. Richard and Dr. Godfrey Arnold – Voice, Speech,
Language: Clinical Communicology; its Physiology and Pathology –
Wadsworth Pub. Co., Belmont CA
9. Moss, Dr. Paul J. – The Voice of Neurosis – Grune & Stratton
10. Jacobson, Dr. – Progressive Relaxation
11. L.F., Don and Alcon Pace Nilsen – Pronunciation Contrasts in
English –Regents, NY
12. West, Robert and Lou Kennedy and Anna Carr – The Rehabilitation
of Speech – Harper Bros.
13. Herman, Lewis, & Marguerite – Foreign Dialects – Theatre Arts
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14. DeJure Weiss, Dr. and Helen H. Beebe and Emil Froeschels – The
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15. Shalett Herman, Lewis and Marguerite – American Dialects –
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16. Vennard, William – Singing, the Mechanism and the Technic –
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128
18. Brodnitz, Dr. Friedrich – Vocal Rehabilitation- American Academy
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19. Durant, Will – The Story of Philosophy – The Pocket Library
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22. Gray, Henry – Grays Anatomy – Lea & Ferber
23. Travis, et al – Handbook of Speech Pathology – Appleton Century
and Croft, NY
24. Jordan, Helen Hobbs – The Modern Musicianship Series – NY
25. Wedge, George – Ear Training & Sight Singing - NY
129