Elizabeth T McKinney Ch. 9

Rewrite in your own words the 5 identifying characteristics of consonants.

1) Speech sounds created by restriction

2) Because of the restriction quality, they are noise elements

3) Less sonorous than vowels

4) They form the beginnings and endings of vowel sounds/syllables

5) They separate vowel sound in recognizable units to communicate meaning

How are consonants divided into two primary groups.

voiced and unvoiced

Describe the 3 movement categories for consonants.

Continuants – sounds that can be sustained as long as the breath lasts

Stops – brings the flow of air to a complete halt, also called plosives or stop-plosives

Glides – vowel sound that functions as a consonant, starts in the position of one vowel but immediately glides towards the subsequent vowel. 

Describe the 2 other systems used for classifying consonants.

1) The way the sound is produced

            fricative – breath stream passing through narrow aperture

            plosive – explosion of compressed air through the mouth

            nasal – any consonant made by passage of air through nasal cavity

            aspirate – breathy consonant

            affricate – compressed air is exploded through the narrow aperture of a fricative

2) The place or articulatory position in which it is formed

            bilabial – closing the lips

            labiodental – lower lip touching the upper teeth

            dental – tip of tongue touching the upper teeth

            alveolar – tongue touching the alveolar ridge

            velar – back of tongue touching soft palate

            glottal – glottis closed or nearly so

Rewrite in your own words the 5 identifying characteristics of vowels.

1) No restriction to the phonation

2) They have duration

3) Require phonation (except when whispering…)

4) Without vowels, there is no tone

5) They are shaped by articulators

Which articulator is of primary importance in the making of vowel sounds?  Why?

Tongue, because it is the primary determinant of the relationship between the oral and pharyngeal cavities. 

Describe how vowels are grouped.

front, back, central à these draw their names from the position of the arch of the tongue.

tense, lax à comparing the tension of muscles of the mouth and throat ([i] and [I])

stressed, unstressed à stress being the relative loudness of a syllable, has to be in a language context.

cardinal, Latin (singer’s)

            cardinal vowels à [i] [a] [u], most extreme versions of a vowel from which other vary.

What are the four levels of stress?

Primary – retains full quality

Seconday – retains full quality

Tertiary – reduced to a shorter form

Weak – reduced to a shorter form

What are the 5 Singer’s Vowels?

[i] [e] [a] [o] [u]

What is a phoneme? The smallest unit of change between vowel or consonant sounds without changing meaning.  If two sounds cannot be interchanged without changing the meaning of the word, they are separate phonemes.    

What is an allophone?  Phonetically distinct articulations which can be substituted for each other without change in meaning. 

Which articulators are under the direct control of the singer.

lips, jaw, and tongue.

Which articulators must be trained indirectly?

soft palate, glottis, epiglottis, and larynx

What are the 2 basic principles which contribute to the effective use of the articulators?

1) All movements of the articulators should be quick, precise, and positive, ending in a position which is free of unnecessary tension.

2) In singing, articulatory movements must be exaggerated, especially with beginning students, if the words are to be consistently understood

What does McKinney suggest imagining as a first step?

Imagine that all your articulatory movements are taking place just in front of your mouth, with everything moving very crisply and precisely. 

What are suggestions that are made for use/position of lips?

Position should assist in pleasant expression.  Feel as if the lips are rubber and bounce apart.  Don’t pull back your lips over your teeth or away from teeth into forced smile.  Have a feeling that your lips are not touching your teeth.    

What suggestions are made for your lower (yikes) jaw?

The ideal position can be achieved easily through the beginning of a yawn position.  Do not tense any of the muscles that attach to this.   The jaw should drop down and swing back.  When you sing, the jaw shouldn’t stay in one place, or lock shut.  Jaw should open wider for higher pitches.  Jaw should feel as if it’s dropping of its weight. 

What suggestions are made for your tongue?

You must locate a resting place for the tongue, which should probably be the gum ridge right below the lower teeth.  Don’t pull the tongue back at all.  Some vowels and consonants need some tongue, but only use minimum.  Tip of tongue on reference point, body lies flat with gentle arch

Why is tongue considered most important articulator?

Define/describe consonants in general.  A subordinate sound which is used with a vowel to form a syllable; it does not form the nucleus of a syllable, but can define its borders. 

Why does McKinney suggest firm consonants?

1. consonants are subordinate to vowels in sonority and do not carry as well, especially in a large auditorium.

2. Firm consonants help the singer to establish and maintain good, solid tone production on the vowels.

Define vowels.  Voiced, unrestricted speech sounds which are capable of being sustained and thereby of becoming the basic building material of vocal tone.

What is the function of vowels? To carry the tone

What is the function of consonants? To break up the tone into distinct, comprehensible units.

What is the problem that inexperienced singers have with vowels? An inability to establish and maintain steady states of vowel posture.

How are the concepts of vowel purity and phonemic identity different?  Vowel purity means that vowel are consistent throughout the entire range, but phonemic identity, which is more accurate, indicates that the vowel differs in different pitch ranges, but it has to stay in a certain phonemic range to be identified as the correct vowel.

What are the problems that occur when singers insist on singing “pure” vowels in the upper voice?  They are likely to encounter vocal problems such as loss of quality, tight phonation, elevated larynx, and vocal strain. 

What are the different approaches to vowel migration or vowel modification?

1)    Some feel that you should recognize that vowels do modify in the upper voice and should encourage it by allowing more space, internally and externally, while still thinking of the basic vovwel sound you are trying to produce.

2)    Other think you should encourage migration by thinking the vowel toward which you are modifying. 

3)    Others feel that since the vowels migrate towards the center, all vowels should be colored with “ah” in the upper voice

What is the critical factor in all systems of vowel migration/modification?

Phonemic identity must be maintained enough to understand what is being said.

In studying professional female singers, upon what is jaw opening dependent? Phonation frequency, not the vowel.

Elizabeth T McCoy Ch. 11

What is the location and function of the intrinsic tongue muscles? They are found in the blade of the tongue, the portion that lies in the oral cavity.  They form vowels and consonants

What is the location and function of the extrinsic tongue muscles? They lie below, behind, and above the blade, enabling it to be extended, retracted, elevated, depressed and curled. 

Why does movement of the tongue impact other structures of vocal tract? Because the extrinsic muscles have multiple attachments points from the hyoid bone up to the palate. 

Name and describe the 4 tongue muscles that make up the “muscle sandwich”. The top and bottom layers of this sandwich are comprised of the superior and inferior longitudinal muscles, which have long fibers running from the anterior to posterior of the dorsum.  When contracted simultaneously, the entire dorsum is shortened.  Contraction solely in the superior curls the tip of the dorsum upward; contraction solely in the inferior curls the tip of the dorsum downward.  The filling for the sandwich consists of the horizontal and vertical muscles.  They run through the medial/lateral plane of the dorsum.  Contraction in the horizontal narrow the blade and also curling the sides upward.  Contracting the vertical flattens the tongue.

Name and describe the extrinsic tongue muscles.

palatoglossus – originates in the soft palate and runs within the walls of the pharynx to insert into the underside of the tongue.  It can raise the posterior of the tongue and/or lower the soft palate

styloglossus – begins at the styloid process and inserts into the posterior of the tongue.  Contraction retracts and elevates the back of the tongue and assists with curling the central portion.

Hyoglossus – Links tongue and hyoid bone, tongue depression.

genioglossus – pulls the tongue forward, it fills the interior arch of the mandible, inserts into the underside of the dorsum. 

What is the biological function of the pharynx and palate?

1. Forming an airway, allowing the transport of oxygen to the lungs.

2. Serve as an entrance to the alimentary canal, passing sustenance to the digestive system.

Describe the alveolar ridge. A bony prominence that leads to the hard palate, important for consonant formation.

What are the faucial pillars? arches near the back of the tongue on either side of it. 

What is another name for your soft palate? velum

What is the purpose of your uvula? transporting excess mucus to the digestive system.

Describe the muscles of the pharynx.  There are three: the inferior, middle, and superior pharyngeal constrictors.  They are mostly for assisting in getting food down the esophagus, but release of them creates open throat singing.  Also, there is the palatoglossus, which connects the tongue to the palate via the pharynx; it raises the tongue, narrows the pharynx, and lowers the palate.  Palatopharyngeus is another one; originates in the soft palate and courses downward through the pharynx to insert in the thyroid cartilage; it lowers the soft palate, tenses and narrows the pharynx, and elevates the larynx.  The stylopharyngeal muscle is also a thing; runs downward between the middle and superior pharyngeal constrictors.  The only muscle capable of opening the pharynx, but it also elevates the larynx… Last muscle: salpingopharyngeus, forms a narrow band running from the auditory tube downward to merge with the palatopharyngeus. 

Describe the muscles of the soft palate.

levator palatini – forms the bulk of the palate, originates from the temporal bone and the auditory tube to forma  sling like structure drawing the palate upward and backward at an oblique angle to close agains the pharynx

musculus uvulae – retracts the uvula upward into the soft palate

tensor palatini – palate is tensed and flattened.

How do we lower the soft palate? Either passively or actively.  Passively by the levator and the tensor muscles relaxing, or actively

Describe the jaw.  What is its anatomical name? The mandible is a single unpaired bone that resembles a V when viewed from above. 

How does the strength of the muscles that close the jaw compare with the muscles of those that open the jaw? The muscles that raise the jaw are really strong, but the ones that lower the jaw are very weak.

Describe the primary muscles responsible for jaw elevation (closing)?

masseter – powerful muscle originates in z

internal pterygoid

temporalis

What is the advantage besides size that the jaw closing muscles have over the jaw opening muscles?

- the closing muscles are attached to the skull, which is very stable.  The jaw opening muscles are smaller and not used much, and attached to the hyoid bone.

- if you use the jaw opening muscles without stabilizing the hyoid bone, the larynx will be pulled up while opening the jaw.

How does opening the mouth for everyday life differ from opening the mouth for singing?

Describe the muscles that can be used to actively open the jaw.

Digastric – has two bellies, as you know. 

mylohyoid – thinnest and least significant jaw opener; fan shaped muscle from inside of mandible to hyoid bone.

geniohyoid  - thin band of muscle connecting the mandible and hyoid. 

Why is muscular antagonism such a bad problem in jaw movement for singing?

If resistive tension is present in the jaw closers, the openers, which are dual function muscles, will induce their secondary action: laryngeal elevation. 

What is the solution to this problem?

Minimize all jaw tension during phonation.

Describe the final two jaw-depressing muscles that do not have a connection to the hyoid.

platysma – a wide, thin muscle of the face that is primarily responsible for producing a grimace

external pterygoid – originating at the pterygoid plate, this muscle travels laterally to insert into the top of the ramus.  Induces a small dropping of the jaw.

What is sublaxation of the jaw?  Opening you jaw so far that you move it out of the TMJ.

Elizabeth T Philip C Lesson Plan 4.18.14

LAST LESSON PLAN!!
So our last lesson went so well, that I want to try some of the things we did last week again, to see if he's still got them.
I want to especially get to the 1 5 3 1 exercise, making sure he's preparing for the top note on the bottom note, and then changing vowels to keep things unified. 
I also want to work a lot more on his songs, because I think that we don't work on tunes enough in our lessons.

Go team go

Elizabeth T Philip C Supervised Lesson Record 4.11.14

 Supervised Lesson Record 4.11.14

We started with talking about the 6 points of balance in the body, because we hadn’t talked it about it thus far.  The most important point that I made for him personally was that his front ribs needed to be a bit in front of his hips (his hips tend to jut forward)

            Then we started our warm up with a descending 54321 exercise on the start of a yawn.  I told him he needed to go straight from the start of a yawn into singing, with no pause in between.  That seemed to help his sound a bit.  We got to a higher pitch level, and he said that he started to feel that he was reaching for the notes, and he didn’t like that.  I pointed out to him that the yawn feeling would really help with that, because it causes the larynx to go down.  So we continued, and I reminded him to keep up the yawn and to keep his ribs forward from his hips. 

            I stopped because I noticed his yawn was sort of jaw jutting downward, instead of up and back.  I pointed out that when I yawn, my top two teeth sort of show.  That was supposed to help him get that bottom back instead of just down.  I described it as top teeth coming out to attack.

            We kept going with “ba” on a descending 54321.  I had him change to “boo”, I then had him switch to “bee”, because I like the sound he gets on that vowel and had him try to get that sound on “boo.”  I had him switch back and forth between those vowels.  I asked him what he was thinking about in that switch, and he said he was figuring out his mouth shape.  I suggested that he try to maintain the tongue position for both vowels, with just more lip rounding for “boo.”  In listening back, I don’t think he was really keeping his tongue position the same.

            I reminded him to keep his ribs in front of hips, head balanced, and mushroom cloud breath.  I had to remind as we kept going on “boo” to have a silent breath/mushroom cloud, which helped his sound a lot.  I tried to be really insistent with my reminders, more than I am normally.

            The next exercise we did was “ba” on 1___ 5___ 31.  After a couple of tries, I told him to sing the low note in preparation for the high note (using the fingering on piano analogy).  He really seemed to connect with that.  I had to remind him to keep using his silent breath and keep his ribs in front of hips. 

            He stopped and told me that he was trying to think about what he wanted his high note to be before he got there, but it’s really difficult.  I thought that was awesome!!  Cindy suggested that I give him more time between each exercise so he could think.  She also suggested that I play 531 before he even sings. 

            In continuing with the exercise, I noticed he was getting lighter and lighter to achieve the goal, which I thought was a good result.  I liked that as we continued, the tone was consistent from top to bottom, which hasn’t happened before.  He said that he felt that he switched into falsetto for the last one, which I didn’t think was a bad thing. 

            We then switched to “kee” for the same exercise, and I challenged him to have the same jaw on “kee” as he did on “ba.”  Instead, I changed my mind to baa then eee on 1531531.  I thought he did a pretty good job on keeping his jaw the same on some attempts, but not all.  I challenged him to try keeping both vowels more similar in timbre.  We switched to having “bee” first, so I he could get the timbre of the ee in the aa. 

            Then our lesson was interrupted by Brad Summers! The end. 

Reaction:

I thought this was the most successful lesson yet!  Each lesson gets better and better with Philip.  I feel that my ears are opening up and hearing things a bit better, and it really helped to have Cindy there, so I know I wasn’t missing anything obvious.                

Elizabeth T Lesson Summary 4.7.14

I just realized now that I hadn't recorded my lesson this week!  So, I'm going to have to remember what I can from Monday.  Jake and I worked on our duet for opera and the advice she gave us was to lean on each others sound.  This requires listening to each other for times when the other person needs more support.  She pointed out that I often check out aurally, and that lack of listening leads to further musical problems.  This was especially prevalent in matching dipthongs with Jake; I wasn't doing it. 

I have always thought myself to be a good listener, but I'm realizing, because of this lesson, that my vocal technique has progressed much farther than my listening skills.  I cannot accomplish the musical feats I want to with my voice unless I improve my listening skills to match.  This includes blend in choir, harmonic understanding in any situation, and vowel matching in a duet or ensemble situation as a solo singer. 
In this lesson, I felt that I really accomplish a lot of open back space, and that gave me a good bookmark to remember throughout the week.

I've been a bit undermotivated because of my recital being done, but now, it's time to shape up again and keep improving!

Elizabeth Tait McKinney Ch. 8

What is McKinney’s definition of Resonance?  (First sentence of chapter) The process by which the basic product of phonation is enhanced in timbre and/or intensity by the air-filled cavities through which it passes on its way to the outside air.    

What is the end point (the purpose) of resonation?  To make a better sound

Define the 2 basic kinds of resonance.  Sympathetic and Conductive

Describe how conductive resonance works in singing. Most of the resonance you feel when singing is conductive, vibrations from vocal folds traveling to the bones, cartilages, and muscles.  But these resonances contribute little to the external sound

Describe how sympathetic resonance works in singing.   This comprises the large majority of the external sound.  It’s the vocal folds vibrating the column of air that travels out of the oral cavity.

What are the factors that determine the resonance characteristics of a resonator?

size

shape

type of opening

composition and thickness of the walls

surface

combine resonators

If a resonator is larger, in general, what will happen to its resonant frequency? The lower the frequency it will respond to.

Which pitches does a conical shaped resonator amplify?  Tends to amplify all pitches indiscriminately

In a cylindrical resonator, which parameter is the primary pitch determiner? The length of the tube

In what ways can the opening of a spherical resonator affect resonant pitch?  The amount of opening it has, and whether that opening has a lip.

What 3 factors relating to the walls of a resonator will affect how it functions? 

the material it is made of

the thickness of its walls

the type of surface it has

How does the hardness/softness of the surface of a resonator affect how it functions?  The harder the surface, the more selective it will be

What happens to the resonant frequency of a resonator when it is combined with another? In general, it may be said that the effect will be to lower the resonant frequency of each in different proportions according to their capacities, orifices, and so forth. 

What are the 7 POSSIBLE vocal resonators?

Chest

tracheal tree

larynx

pharynx

oral cavity

nasal cavity

sinuses

Why does McKinney consider the pharynx the most important resonator?  Due to its position, size, and degree of adjustability

Why does McKinney consider the oral cavity the 2^nd most important resonator?  It is well suited by location, size, and adjustability.  The oral cavity creates vowels and consonants as well. 

Vibrations in the nasal cavity are the ­­­­­____result_____________ not the ________cause____________

of the sound you are producing.

What are the 3 primary resonators? Pharynx, oral cavity, and nasal cavity. 

What are the optimal conditions in the vocal resonators for classical singing? The prime position for the larynx is low, but it stays stable during phonation.  Open throat (whatever that means) is another one. Raise the soft palate.  Lip position is important too.

What are the favorable conditions for creating the Singer’s Formant (Sundberg)

1. Lowering the larynx

2. Widening of the laryngeal ventricle

3. Widening of the pyriform sinuses

Describe the 2 categories of faults related to nasal resonance.

1. Excessive nasal resonance (hypernasality)

2. insufficient nasl resonanace (hypo nasality)

What is postnasality?  What is another name for it? hypernasality

What is forced nasality?  What is another name for it? hyponasality

What is denasality?

What are some causes of a sound that is too bright?

What are some causes of a sound that is too dark?

Elizabeth T Philip C Supervised Lesson Plan 4.11.14

Supervised Lesson Plan 4.11.14

I’m sort of nervous for this lesson with Cindy watching, but Philip’s last lesson was so fun, I think this one will be too!  I think that I want to talk to him about the 6 points of balance on the body, because I notice that he lets his hips jut forward quite a bit.  So I’ll start out with that.  Then we’ll do some descending 5 note scales on [bup], just not any words with [a], because I don’t think that’s going to help his tongue.  I’ll try to get him to remember that released floating jaw, the released breath, and the big the back small in the front feeling.  Once he’s gotten that, I want to try some ascending leaps, to see if he can get the high notes to feel just like the low notes, which sound so good. 

            And we’ll go from there!     

Elizabeth T Philip C Lesson Record 3.7.14

Lesson Record 3.7.14

I asked if he had done any of the exercises that we discussed last week, and he said he hadn’t.  He said that most of his singing was just in the car, and I asked a question related to that:  “How come I feel more comfortable singing in my car to Michael Bublé than when I‘m singing a song I’ve practiced in voice lessons?”  The first thing I thought of that his normal habits of singing feel comfortable to him, but voice lessons require him to feel a bit uncomfortable in his voice for a bit in order to gain some new skills.  That’s the first answer I thought of.  I told him that sometimes when you take voice lessons, you start to sound a bit worse for a while, and that is because there is a learning curve in order to become even better.  He seemed to really relate to that idea.

We talked about his guitar lessons for a little bit, and then we moved on to a breathing exercise.  I had him lean over in a chair again and feel his lower back.  I told him that when I’m doing it well, I barely feel like air came in my mouth at all, it just appeared in my system.  He said he could feel that feeling, but he has trouble incorporating that into singing.  I told him this exercise is a good bookmark he can look back to while he’s singing (“Remember, like that!”).  He said at that point he had awesome “aha” moment, realizing that perfecting technique on the guitar is just like perfecting your body’s technique for singing.  Dude, if that helps him, right on!  I shared the analogy of the mushroom cloud breath that Gavin and I came up with, and Philip seemed to like that.  I also made sure it was clear that he knows that the lower back won’t expand as much while standing as it did when he was leaning over.  He told me that he frequently feels problems with running out of breath at the ends of phrases.  I told him that this kind of low and released breath doesn’t feel as full as a gaspy breath, but the released breath air will work more efficiently more singing.  So trust the released breath!  I told him what Cindy told me “You have to spend air to receive air.”

Then we finally started singing.  But before we started he had a question: He had a hard time going from breathing to singing, making it fluid, in his words.  I told him to try the exercise first and see how he feels.  It was a 5 note descending scale on “baa”, trying to make sure he released in all directions on each breath.  I used hand gestures to remind of the breath sensation.  After a couple of attempts, I suggested that he use that great released breath to rest the voice on top, instead of using it all.  We continued, and it seemed to bring a bit more core to the sound.  I said, “Imagine you are floating on top of the breath.”  I noticed that the first attempts were more successful than the rest, but that is probably because I’m not giving enough reminders to keep the breath good.  I asked him how he felt, and he said that he felt that when he tried to rest his voice on the breath, it was sinking and falling, which was bad to him.  He said that he really liked the instruction to float the voice instead of resting the voice.  He said he felt that the voice was sinking into his throat.  I told him that sinking isn’t so good, but resting is.  So we added something to the exercise.  (By the way, I just love that Philip is so open to describing his feelings in his voice; it gives me so much information.)

We now did baaa ee, descending 5 note scale with ee at the tonic.  This time around I tried to play less quickly in between attempts, like was suggested to me in class.  I reminded him to keep his jaw the same on ee as aa.  It was a bit hard for him, but he had an awesome focus on it.  I tried to point out the attempts I liked, and I also reminded him of his mushroom cloud breath.  At this point, I went and grabbed Tootsie rolls from Cindy’s office, because I wanted to see how they worked on him for this jaw release thing.  With the Tootsie rolls in, his sound was immediately more full and resonant! He said that he felt the difference too, and he said he sounded like an opera singer!  Woohoo!  He wanted to try it again without Tootsie rolls, so we did, but on [baip] (rhymes with pipe).  His upper range is still quite different than his lower range, but not cracking or anything.  I think I need to try some leaping ascending exercises with him next time, so he can feel the register shift… I don’t know.

This is when Philip said something AWESOME.  He said that when he had Tootsie rolls in his mouth, he felt that he had a large space in the back and a small space in the front.  Booyah!  I told him that was a huge discovery.  I told him that when he releases his jaw, he doesn’t have to hold it there, he just has to continuously drop it over and over again.  A reiteration of sorts.  I tried to show him the dumb jaw and tongue voice that Cindy always does.  He said that he was having a hard time feeling relaxed in releasing the jaw that far; I told him that you don’t drop the jaw straight down, but back and up almost.

            We tried [baip] descending 5 note scale again.  When I gave him the instruction “let it drop” immediately before he sang, the tone was clearer.              

Reaction:

I thought this lesson was really fun, because Philip was really open with expressing exactly how his voice was feeling, and he was really creative in coming up with ways to express it.  I’m glad he feels comfortable to do that.  I think I can just keep reiterating the concept we did in this lesson, and I next lesson I want to start with descending exercises and then switch to ascending exercises.  This will hopefully help him keep space and release in high notes, which I think will make an awesome clarity in the tone up there.  But really fun lesson, and I think successful lesson.   

Elizabeth T Malde Ch. 5 part 2

 The muscle of the lips extends all the way up to the __nose____ and all the way down to the ____indentation above the chin________.  

Describe the buccinators: include location, attachments, and function and resonance effect. 

They form the muscles inside the cheeks.  They connect the lips in the front and they connect to the upper pharyngeal constrictor in the back.  Contraction of the buccinators have a chain reaction to constrict the oropharynx, pull up the base of the tongue, and pull up the larynx, and pull down on the soft palate.  The resulting resonance is called spread, and should be avoided in classical singing.

What is the tongue’s survival function? To move food around and start the push down the stomach. 

What is the function of the tongue for singing? Form vowels and consonants.

How many intrinsic tongue muscles are there?  What is their function? 4 intrinsic muscles that are responsible for fine motor movement.

How many extrinsic tongue muscles are there?  What is their function? 5 extrinsic muscles are for moving the tongue forward, up, back, or down.

Where does the tongue have attachements? To the hyoid bone and to the mandible at the back of the chin. 

What is the septum of the tongue?  What is its function?  a thin fibrous thing that extends vertically from the center of the hyoid bone to serve as an attachment for the intrinsic muscles.

What are ways that singers use their tongues inappropriately? Singers recruit the tongue to do the work of other muscles.

- pushing down on the larynx with the back of the tongue

- pull it back in an attempt to increase pharyngeal resonance.

What is the only healthy way to lower the larynx?  To use the muscles that connect to it from below.

Which four muscles in the neck are the only muscles that can play a positive role in vocal resonance?  Sternohyoid, omohyoid, sternothyroid, and stylopharyngeus.

What is the function of the rest of the next muscles?  Important tasks such as such as turning the head, and lifting the arms. 

What are the strongest muscles that pull up on the larynx?  Hyoglossus muscles

Describe the aryepiglottic sphincter (location and function)  Right above the vocal folds, defined by the muscles surrounding the epiglottis.  Helps belters gain the singers formant without lowering the larynx.

What causes the Singer’s Formant?  an extra resonance in the overtone series that is independent of the pitch and the volume of the tone.

What is vowel modification? Opening the jaw more as you ascend in pitch.

How can we be singing the correct pitch and still be off in terms of intonation?  If high overtones are emphasized by resonance, the pitch may sound sharp, and vice versa.  This is especially true if the resonance is not consistent. 

Elizabeth Tait Malde Ch. 5 Part 1

What is the key to success in resonance? Awareness

What are the 9 moveable structures that affect the shape of your resonator?

balance of the head over the spine

pharyngeal constrictors

velum

mandible

tongue

lips

buccinators muscles (inside of cheek)

larynx

arypiglottic sphincter

Describe the vocal tract at rest.

- lips slightly open or closed, but not pressed closed

- jaw slightly open

- tongue touches bottom teeth all the way around

- cheeks are free and long

- soft palate allows free breath out of nose or mouth

- pharyngeal rest easy on neck

- larynx is midway between highest and lowest point

Which movements of the vocal tract are essential to all styles of good singing?

- free jaw

- free tongue

- released pharyngeal muscles

- balanced AO joint

Which movements are specific to classical style?

- lips released and forward

- cheeks long and free

- lower larynx

- soft palate higher

Which movements do non-classical singers make?

- wider lateral opening of the mouth allowing the cheeks to pull back on the lips.

- larynx, jaw, and soft palate are closer to speech

- speech like vowels 

Keeping the head in balance does not mean keeping it ___immobile_______.

What are the two effects of resonance by the balance of the head?

It can move the larynx and change the curve of the throat.

What happens if you allow the back of the head to pull back and down (Chin up)?

The larynx will be pulled by it’s connection to the hyoid bone.

Describe the pharyngeal constrictors, as a whole.

These are three thin sheets of muscle that nestle against the front of the spine at the back of the throat and curve forward, sloping down at the sides.

Describe the location of the SPC. Connected to the base of the skull right behind the opening to the nose, just in front of the AO joint.  Its sides connect to the muscles of the inner cheek, which in turn connect to the lips.

Describe the location of the MPC. At the level of the corner of the jaw, the sides connect to the hyoid bone at the base of the tongue.

Describe the location of the IPC.  Continuous with the esophagus on the bottom and connects to the cricoid cartilage at the sides.

What is the survival function of the pharyngeal constrictors? Assists in swallowing and regurgitation.

What is the job of the pharyngeal muscles for singing? STAY OUT OF THE WAY!

What is the one muscles that can open the throat slightly? How does it do this? Where is it located? The stylopharyngeus can help stretch the middle of the pharynx

What should we avoid doing to try to get louder?  Why?   Some singers think that tensing the sides of the vocal tract will result in more volume because sound waves bounce off harder surfaces with more strength.  It is true that sound waves reflect better off of hard surfaces.  However, this is not desirable in singing as the function of the resonator is to emphasize some parts of the sound wave and deemphasize others. 

What are our choices if we want more volume?

1. faster air flow

2. change the shape of the resonator

3. a combination of both

Describe the velum (location and function) A valve that opens and closes the passages to the nose, located at the top of the throat above the opening of the pharynx into the mouth

Describe the movements of the soft palate.  When the soft palate is in neutral position, it allows air to flow freely through the mouth and nose.  When it is at its highest, it closes off the nasal cavity so that air can only move through the mouth.  When it is at its lowest, it closes off the mouth so that air can only move through the nose.

How many muscle pairs control the movement of the soft palate?  To what are they all attached? There are 4 muscle pairs that control the movement of the soft palate, two that lift and stretch it and two that pull it down.  All four muscle pairs attach to the uvular muscle, which forms the body of the soft palate.

What are the muscles called that lift the soft palate?  Describe their location. Levator veli palatini muscles, they are on the sides of the soft palate.

Which muscles stretch the soft palate from side to side?  Describe their location. Tensor veli palatini, same as above.

What is the secondary effect of tensing the two muscles listed above? Engaging these muscles will also increase the vertical space of the pharynx.

What are the muscles that lower the soft palate? What is the effect of engaging these muscles? palatopharyngeus and the palatoglossus muscles.  They make the tone nasal.

Describe the location of these muscles. Connect the sides of the uvular muscle to the lower pharyngeal constrictor.

Describe the mandible. a single horseshoe shaped bone, taller at the back than the front.  Each side has two rounded condyles which connect the jaw to the rest of the skull with joints just in front of the ears.

Describe the location of the temporal mandibular joint.  The joint where the jaw connects to the skull, which is a half inch in front of the ear holes.

What are the three most important muscles that move the jaw? What are their functions?

masseter – close the jaw, bringing the teeth together for chewing, they are not engaged in singing except for the formation of a few consonants. 

temporalis muscle – same as masseter

digastric muscle – opens the jaw,   

Describe the location of the masseter muscles. Originates on the underside of the cheekbones, and inserts into the sides of the jaw along the back

Describe the location of the temporalis muscles. originates in a fan shape from the sides of the skull above the ears, run obliquely inside the cheekbones, and insert into the coronoid processes of the jaw.

Describe the location and function of the muscles that open the jaw.  The muscles that open the jaw are below the jaw.  The digastric muscle runs from the mastoid process to the chin via the hyoid bone, so it’s on the side.  the geniohyoid and mylohyoid connect from chin to hyoid in the front.  The  mylohyoid form the floor of the mouth. 

How do these three pairs of muscles move the jaw? They lower the jaw by pulling the chin back and down toward the hyoid bone. 

Which are the consonants that require the masseter and temporalis to contract slightly?  [s] [z] [f] [v]

Do any consonants require the teeth to be closed? No!

What is the jaw position for most consonants? The natural elasticity of the master and temporalis muscles will close the jaw sufficiently so that most consonants may be formed.

Which muscles moves the jaw forward and from side to side? Describe their location & function.  Lateral and medial pterygoids, they arise on the base of the skull behind the nose, the lateral attaches to the condyles of the mandible, while the medial attaches to the inside of the mandible at the lower back corner.