Emily F. Tali P. lesson record/reactions for 1/20

Emily F. Tali P. lesson record/reactions for 1/20:
E: So how has your practicing been going?
T: It was good. I could definitely tell a difference from when I sang cold and when I would warm up. It was easier to sing when I warmed up first. And I really like the lip trill. It brings everything into focus.
E: Good!
T: But, the more I practice, the more I realize I'm not a good singer! So I'm like, "ah!" But maybe if I just keep practicing...
E: It's just like piano. How long have you played?
T: Four years.
E: Yeah, you know how it's hard to get better, and it just takes practice. You'll get better at singing!
T: Good!
E: Another thing is that you start to notice problems and you think that you're so bad, but it's just that you're seeing things you haven't seen before. It can be discouraging, but it's really a good thing because you're becoming aware. [Tali pulled out her notebook and started taking notes. She's such a gem! She really wants to learn.] K. Here's something that you can work on for just a few minutes at a time. Let's try a high "u". [I modeled, then she did downward sighs on "u" on random pitches] Great! Sounds good. How did it feel? Was is tight or easy?
T: Yeah, it felt ok. I don't think I could do higher, though.
E: No, that's fine. Let's do more of that, just on pitch. [We did descending 5 note scales on u, starting at C5, B5, Bb5, then C#5, D5, Eb5.] Good! [I asked Tali to do a gentle downward slide on "ni". She was worried about pitch matching but I reassured her that she could just vocalize and practice moving the voice around.]
E: Ok, let's try speaking "ni-ne-na-no-nu". [Tali was trying to concentrate really hard on doing it just right.] Yeah, just really speak it. [I modeled]
T: Ha, I'm totally making it harder than it needs to be!
E: Yes! That is the story of singing, seriously. ni-ne-na-no-nu! [We had a "conversation" on these syllables, using natural inflection for surprise, excitement, question, etc. I raised the pitch to get more into register 3 and Tali followed.] Good. Now we'll sing it on pitch. [She tried, all syllables on G4. She suddenly got careful and airy.] Ok. This time, think speak, but sing it. Just keep it the same as talking, but on pitch. [Better. We moved down by half-step till F4. I noticed her jaw being really stiff so I asked her to tilt her head back a little and let her jaw hang. I asked her to sing the syllables. That was difficult, so we took out the "n". It was still difficult, so I had her just sing "i". She just did some speech-like "i"  sounds, descending, still with head tipped back and relaxed jaw.] I want you to just have a "stupid" jaw and say "buh".
T: Oh, that makes me want to yawn.
E: I'm glad you said that! Let's yawn! You can fake yawn and if it turns into a real one, just let it happen.
T: What does that do? [She continued yawning as I talked.]
E: Well, it helps you keep your larynx nice and low, and it helps loosen up your jaw too. That's a great exercise you can practice. Anything you can do to let your jaw just hang instead of setting it in a position, is great.
T: So you want a relaxed jaw for singing?
E: Yep. I'd like you to try this: "bup, bup..." [I gave her A5 and asked her to imagine that her sound is continuing, but that her lips were just stopping the air. She had a hard time landing right on the pitch and got frustrated, said, "aah!" and tried again. It was better after because she had more energy.] So, basically what I'm hoping to do is help you mix that animated, fun speaking voice you have with your quieter, more airy high voice.
T: Yeah, that's what I want. How do we do that?
E: We'll try some exercises that bring those two "voices" closer together. We want to engage your body when you sing. Let's try this a little higher. [We moved to Bb and she continued the "bup" exercise.] Great. Let's do some lip buzz. [Tali just moved around her range, quite adept at the lip trill. It was easy for her.]
T: I like that one. [She wrote down the vocalizes we did.]
E: Let's look at a song. [She started singing a song for church. It was airy and weak, so I asked her to lip trill, we switched back to singing, and she changed pitch. I asked her to sing it on staccato "pip". This helped her pitch accuracy.] What was the difference between those different ways?
T: Um, with words it's more complicated, with lip buzz I have to be thinking ahead, and on "pip" I have to be right on because I don't have time to slide or change anything.
E: Good. Speak through it, but feel like everything's connected. Actually, I want you to push against the table and sing through it. [She scooped still, but the sound was more connected.] How did you feel about that?
T: It was good, it felt more intense, like I was really saying something.
E: If I had something for you to pull, I'd have you do that.
T: I have exercise bands.
E: Yes! Bring that next time. That is something you can do at home. Stand on your bands and just pull a little bit with your arms. Not a lot, but enough that you're engaging your core. A lot of times we forget to sing from our bodies and then we get tight and tired from the neck up.
T: Yeah, how do I sing from my body?
E: That's what we're working on. The lip trill is great because you have to be energized to do it. We want to feel like we're working down here, but if you feel like you're working here [larynx], that's not what we want. We're looking for engagement in the core that's minimal, but if you do it for a long time, your body will start to feel tired. Here's something else you can do: let's have you try singing while you stand on one foot. You have to balance your body. [She sang the first two phrases.] Ok.
T: That was better!
E: Did you feel some energy down there?
T: Yeah, there was lots of energy in my body. Way more than what I can do here. [larynx]
E: Yeah, that's where you want it to come from. [She took more notes.]
T: What other things should I practice?
E: Anything going from high to low, but start with high first. And you don't need to do this for very long each day. Just practice a little at a time. In fact, let's try that now. [We tried a high to low glissando and back, dumping and floating. I didn't know if she'd be able to do it but after a couple times, she got the idea of the light top and did it pretty well. She thought it was bad, but I told her that it didn't have to sound good, just be easy and floaty.] Oh, here's another good thing you can try: just a low, soft "uh" groan. You can practice the chorus to that song playing the notes while you just sing a low "uh". This'll help you practice keeping your larynx low while you learn those high notes. I've given you a lot to practice, so don't feel like you need to do everything.
T: No, this is great. I'd rather have lots to do than not enough.
Reactions: Man, she's a gem! It's really nice to have someone so enthusiastic. I noticed improvement from the last lesson to this one. I know she's been practicing every day. Tali has a real desire to learn everything she can. I can see that this might cause some problems for her later on when she's waiting for her body to catch up with what she understands, but if she remains diligent in her practice, she'll improve. I feel like this was an effective lesson, but mainly because of Tali, not because I'm doing anything great. In fact, I'm frustrated with myself some because of my lack of piano skills. I know I could move much quicker and be more efficient and effective if I played. This is highly motivating to me to be better at piano, because I know what I want to do, but the missed notes or the complete lack of my playing an exercise keeps me from doing it and slows everything down. Anyway.The energizing and speaking exercises seem to be particularly good for Tali. When she stood on one foot or just "spoke" her singing, she accessed more power and evenness of timbre. I'm not sure what to do to help her with her jaw tension yet.