vocal mistructions - presented by nats at acda - handout
TRANSCRIPT
Vocal Mistruc-ons -‐ Presented by NATS at ACDA 3/8/11
March 2011 1
Choral Directors are from Mars and
Voice Teachers are from Venus:
• Sharon Hansen • Allen Henderson • Sco: McCoy • Donald Simonson • Brenda Smith
“Sing from the Diaphragm” and other Vocal MistrucAons
The Successful Voice Teaching Team
• Voice Teacher • Choral Director • Vocal Coach • Medical Professionals • Choreographers/Directors • Diet/Nutrition Experts • Exercise Physiologist/Trainer • Movement Coaches • Drama Coach
Who is on your team?
Don’t have a complete team
together?
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Developing a Successful Team
How can middle and high school and college choral conductors interact with independent and academic voice teachers in their area to develop a successful team?
• Local NATS Chapter • Voice Foundation Activities • Local voice teacher in your classroom • Take a voice lesson yourself • Vocal health professionals • World Voice Day – April 16th
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What specific knowledge is important when teaching beginning singers? What about a voice
pedagogy class required for all
music education majors?
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Vocal Mistruc-ons -‐ Presented by NATS at ACDA 3/8/11
March 2011 2
Survey of Voice Pedagogy Requirements*
*Conducted at Sixty-‐One American Universities
Voice Pedagogy Requirement 0 sem 1 sem 2 sem Vocal
Tech Ch. Ped
# of Universities 37 20 1 2 1
% of Total 61% 33% 1.63% 3.27% 1.63%
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The Voice Teacher – Choral Conductor Conflict in Higher Education
• Fantasy or fact?
• Who cares?
• Why worry about this?
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Mistructions
What are some common “mistructions” we hear in both the choral rehearsal and voice studio?
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Support Issues
• “The trouble with young professional singers today is that their teachers are no longer teaching them how to use their diaphragms.” (NY Times music critic)
• The diaphragm is exclusively a muscle of inspiration.
• Diaphragmatic pulse produces a hiccup—probably not the best way to articulate rapid pitches in melismatic passages.
“Sing from the Diaphragm”
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Vocal Mistruc-ons -‐ Presented by NATS at ACDA 3/8/11
March 2011 3
“More support is better”
BETTER support!
MORE support?
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Support Issues
How about: “Breathe low” “Breathe easily”
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Body Alignment Issues
“Stand up straight.” “Stand like a soldier.”
“Come to your balance point.” “Quickly check your alignment.”
“Tuck that chin in.” “Are your eyes looking out into the
world?” “Can you sense your neck longer in the back and shorter in the front?”
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Body Alignment Issues “Suck in your gut.”
“Can you sense your breath when it is deep and full?”
“Do you sense an expansive, stretching feeling all around the middle of the
body?” “Lift your sternum.”
“Do you sense a gentle lifting sensation under your upper chest? Not forced, but
buoyant . . .” “Are your shoulders released and free?”
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Vocal Mistruc-ons -‐ Presented by NATS at ACDA 3/8/11
March 2011 4
Textual Issues
“Enunciate! I want to hear all those consonants!”
EVERY consonant? Final consonants? Initial consonants?
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Clear Choral Diction
Clear choral diction involves a corporate understanding of the
symbols and their use in a concise rhythmic context.
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International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)
• THE internationally recognized standard. • Valuable for high school students to be
exposed to it prior to college diction courses.
• Works in both the choral AND studio settings. It even works with my church choir.
• Works with various languages and students are able to see the correlations between the use of a particular sound in various languages.
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Diction Issues
How about: “Make sure your final consonants are clearly articulated and rhythmically energized.”
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Vocal Mistruc-ons -‐ Presented by NATS at ACDA 3/8/11
March 2011 5
“Everyone sing a pure [i] vowel.”
One size does NOT fit all.
Vowel modification requires SPECIFIC solutions for each
section.
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Formant/Resonance Issues
“I want absolutely no vibrato throughout this entire piece.”
“Raise your eyebrows so you will sing in tune.”
“Drop your jaw.” “Keep your tongue down.”
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Formant/Resonance Issues
How about: “Tune your vowels to optimize clarity and resonance.”
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Stamina of the Voice
“We are going to spend the entire lesson/rehearsal today singing everything on [du].” ([di], or [da]/ Pick one!)
Imagine spending an entire one-‐hour workout at the gym
performing only squats!
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Vocal Mistruc-ons -‐ Presented by NATS at ACDA 3/8/11
March 2011 6
Stamina of the Voice
“We will have a rehearsal Friday evening from 7-‐9, Saturday from 10-‐12 and then a dress rehearsal with orchestra from 1-‐3 and our concert will start at 4.”
• Not uncommon in all-‐state, honor choir, workshops, etc.
• Even under ideal circumstances too much can be harmful.
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What is optimal for the voice?
• Opinions vary
• All voices are unique • Overuse is abuse
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Stamina of the Voice
“You’re a trained singer. Can’t you sing for 1.5 hours and then sing a concert?”
Can a Major League Pitcher throw batting practice for two hours and
then pitch a full game?
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Warm Ups/Cool Downs
“Warm ups take too much rehearsal time. The choir should come ready to sing.”
“Singing the hymns for Sunday is a good way to warm up. Once everyone has arrived, we can cut right to the anthems.”
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Vocal Mistruc-ons -‐ Presented by NATS at ACDA 3/8/11
March 2011 7
Warm Ups/Cool Downs
• As necessary to singers as to athletes
• Best done a cappella • Warm ups adjust posture of the voice
• Cool downs assist in returning to a speech posture
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Warm Ups
• 5-‐7 minutes • Cover 4 basic steps toward singing—Relaxation/Posture/Breathing/Resonance
• Clear goals • Address technical problems in literature
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Cool Down
• Brief • Descending glides • Return choir to speaking range
• Sustained tone or chord
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Questions?
This presentation and a handout version can be downloaded at http://acda.nats.org
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