Jared D. Masterclass 9/10

Jared D. Masterclass 9/10

Hannah Lovato-
The very first breath seemed to catch you by surprise, but then throughout the rest of the piece your breathing was more consistent. There was an airy quality in the lower register. Vibrant, clear upper register notes. Diction wasn't super clear. In general just needed crisper consonants to understand the words. Pleasant face, seemed calm, there was some ocassional side to side movement. Release tension internally not externally. Cindy's suggestion was to have the same open space that she has in the top and keep in the bottom. That is what gives it the airy quality. She talked a lot about having the "teeth apart" handicap. Suggested tootsie rolls to keep space open. There was a dramatic difference when she tried the teeth apart. Gorgeous sound came out. Overall she seemed calm, but had a tight tongue. Her upper register has improved a lot.

Taylee Beckstead-
Bucket breathing throughout, but i felt like she was trying to have better breaths throughout. seems tense in the shoulders. In tune in the middle and lower register. Occasional slides into leaps. I like the warmer tone she has in her lower notes. She has a bright tone in the upper register, but seems tense. Consonants seem to be a problem for nearly everyone. Could have used more beginning consonants from Taylee. Face was expressive, but there was a bit of movement here and there that could possibly been a tension release. Cindy pulled on her arms so it was more obvious to see and feel movement in upper back when she breathed. She talked a lot about the Gorilla stance.It helped her become free from all the tension that builds in her shoulders. I think it helped a lot. She seemed to grasp the concept. Overall when she releases she had a pleasant sound, just tense shoulders.

LaeKin Burgess-
She took really big breaths, but they were bucket breaths. There was a nasal quality in her middle register that sometimes fell to the back of the throat. I can't remember a specific vowel, it could have been on some of the umlauts. Lower register was more open and rich. I could see a little bit of jaw tension and a little bit in the shoulders. I could understand most of the words in German, but diction can always be exaggerated. German needs crisper consonants. Very expressive I could feel what she was feeling. There was some constant side to side movement. Cindy focused a lot on breathing. The idea of just letting breath happen instead of forcing it to happen. Breathing is no big deal. It seemed hard to fully put herself into it at first, but i think by then end she was loosening up and her sound did improve when she was free and not focused on breathing. Overall her performance was enjoyable, there was just noticable tension in her jaw and shoulders.