Emily C.: DYV, Ch. 18

Discover Your Voice: Chapter 18

Emily Cottam

Chapter Summary: The threshold of hearing is at 0 dB, and the threshold of pain (safety) is 120 dB. Lowest sound that can be heard as pitch is from 16-20 Hz, and highest is 16,000-20,000 Hz. It takes more energy to create an audible low than high note. Hearing once lost is never recovered. There is a muscle in your ear that protects your ears from the sound of your own voice; that’s why you should strain to make louder sounds. Train yourself to be aware of the sensation of singing, not the sound. If exposed to a higher volume of sound over a long period of time, you can become “accustomed” to that sound, and in order to perceive something as loud, it must become even louder than before. When singing, try bringing intensity of consonants to the level of the vowels. “It’s better to change muscular adjustments than to use more energy to sing higher notes.” Start pitches from the top, don’t push up to them. Let the listeners “come to you.” Diplacusis is when the two ears of an individual register the same pitch differently, and can be connected to allergies and Meniere’s syndome. It really goes without saying--take care of your hearing. 

Key Concepts: Understanding how hearing works for both the singer and audience can help make a performance even more successful; being sensitive to how we naturally perceive our own sound and how an audience reacts to our singing can result in a balanced performance. Take care of your hearing. 

Key Terms: tensor tympani, auditory fatigue, overamplification, diplacusis

Making Connections: One thing that I struggle with in practicing is that I tend to focus a lot on what I sound like. Recently, I’ve been trying to focus on how it feels when I’m singing rather than what I sound like, and as a result, I leave practice with a less tired voice than before. 

Emily C.: DYV, Ch. 17

Discover Your Voice: Chapter 17

Emily Cottam

Chapter Summary: Our nervous system is extremely complex; it carries messages from the brain to the rest of our body through chemical or stimulatory response. There is the voluntary and involuntary nervous system. The medulla oblongata, connected to the spinal cord, is used for natural processes (breathing, blood pressure, heart rate, etc.). The hypothalamus is the emotional center. Axons send messages, dendrites receive. The afferent nerve fiber sends messages to the brain, and efferent nerve fibers send them out from the brain. If an action is performed enough, it becomes a conditioned reflex, or automatic. The point of saturation is when you achieve your greatest efficiency with nerve stimulation. “Proprioceptive nerve fibers conduct afferent sensations from muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joints the brain.” Superior branch: CT muscles. Inferior portion: PCA, LCA, TA, and IA, and it has branches to the stomach/heart. Recurrent laryngeal nerve: into the chest area. Glossopharyngeal nerve: links to vagus nerve and medulla. Mucous membrane of pharynx, pillars of fauces, back part of tongue, and stylopharyngeus muscles. Facial nerve: from medulla/stylohyoid, the face, lower lip, chin. Vth: teeth, tongue, chewing muscles, pons. XIth: from medulla/cervical part of spine, works with trapezeus and sternocleidomastoid muscles, neck/shoulders. XIIth: work with extrinsic muscles, tongue motions in articulation. Every muscle action is opposed by an antagonistic action. 

Key Concepts: Everything we do is controlled by our brain. Our nerves are all interconnected, so it’s important to understand that if one nerve is activated/stimulated/damaged, it has an effect on several other nerves. 

Key Terms: medulla oblongata, hypothalamus, axons, dendrites, afferent nerve fiber, efferent nerve fiber, reflex arc/conditioned reflex, point of saturation, proprioception, synapse, pre-phonatory inspiration, kinesthetic senses, biofeedback, hormones, endocrine system, Vagus (aka laryngeal nerve), superior branch, inferior portion, recurrent laryngeal nerve, glossopharyngeal nerve, facial nerve, slow twitch, fast twitch, sympathetic and empathetic nervous systems

Making Connections: When I read this chapter, I realized exactly how interconnected our entire body is, especially when we sing. Now, when my teacher asks me to do something unusual to get a different result, I’ll know exactly why. 

Emily C.: DYV, Ch. 16

Discover Your Voice: Chapter 16

Emily Cottam

Chapter Summary: The vocal folds, according to Jackson and Jackson, have nine basic functions: respiratory, valvular (control affecting positive/negative pressure in lungs), fixative (stabilize thorax for arm movement), protective (prevents foreign things to enter lungs), diglutitory (no food/water enter lungs), tussive (cough to repels foreign bodies from larynx), expectorative (clearing throat), emotional (creative/reflexive sounds), phonatory (communication). The larynx has four basic structures: cricoid cartilage, arytenoid cartilages, thyroid cartilage, and the hyoid bone. (There is also the epiglottis, two connuculate and two cuneiform cartilages.) The intrinsic laryngeal muscles are as follows: TA muscles (vocal folds) with the epithelium (mucous lining). They shorten and thicken and can be stretched. The PCA separates the vocal folds. The LCA adduct the vocal folds, and in extreme action can carry entire arytenoids forward for whispers. The IA close the posterior opening between the arytenoids. The CT muscles have pars recta (draws thyroid and cricoid cartilages together) and pars obliqua (pulls on inferior horns of thyroid cartilage in a gliding motion). The CT, according to Brown, are the “singer’s muscles.” The extrinsic laryngeal muscles are: the sternohyoid muscles (lowers hyoid bone/stabilizes larynx in loud singing); sternothyroid muscles (draw larynx down on inspiration/stabilize larynx); omohyoid muscles (lower/draw back hyoid bone/larynx); thyrohyoid muscles (decreases distance between the thyroid cartilage/hyoid bone. It contributes to unnecessary tension); digastric (raises hyoid bone or lower the jaw; it can pull your larynx up); stylohyoid (draw hyoid bone up/back); geniohyoid (elevates hyoid bone/draw it forward); genioglossus (draw hyoid bone forward/protrude tongue, tongue tension); hyglossus (can cause tension in larynx positioning); mylohyoid (stiff jaw). 

Key Concepts: “Freedom of motion is key to free phonation.” Extrinsic muscles must be in a state of release for free singing. Each voice is unique, and the environments that we are raised in can also influence our sound. Understanding the different parts of the voice can help us to understand the limits and potential of our voice. The structures involved in singing is supremely complex, and because of this, we cannot make sound happen, but we must trust and let. 

Key Terms: Vocal fold functions, Larynx anatomy, intrinsic and extrinsic laryngeal muscles

Making Connections: First off, I’m proud of myself for knowing almost all of the structures he listed in this chapter, excluding the extrinsic laryngeal muscles. I have found that learning the anatomy of the voice has been helping me to understand what happens exactly during good singing. 

Emily C.: DYV, Ch. 15

Discover Your Voice: Chapter 15

Emily Cottam

Chapter Summary: Higher notes are naturally louder, so in singing, high notes don’t need amplification. The Bernoulli Effect states that the movement of air (between the vocal folds) creates a natural suction effect; moving air has less pressure than stationary air. Intensity is also known as volume/loudness, measured in decibels. “When two equal tone sources are added together, the intensity level is only increased by three dBs.” The Venturi Effect states that pressure (in a singer’s case, subglottic pressure) automatically increases when the opening becomes smaller when something is flowing through it. The higher the mass of the resonator, the amount of resonance increases. Frequencies of pitch are altered by the shapes of the containers they pass through. Pitches have fundamental frequencies and overtones (excluding sine waves, or pure tones). Resonance is “the intensification/enriching of a musical tone by supplementary vibration.” The beat phenomenon is when two frequencies are only just slightly different, creating a small “wobble” when sound waves clash. 

Key Concepts: Becoming familiar with the physics involved in singing can be beneficial;  if the voice isn’t generating sound in a way that’s healthy, you can return to basic science concepts to find the source of the problem. It also helps with understanding what you can do to be a more efficient singer. 

Key Terms: frequency/pitch, condensations, rarifactions, noise, “natural” vs. “habitual” levels, Bernoulli Effect, “threshold of pain,” Venturi Effect, sine wave, “beat phenomenon.” 

Making Connections: I personally found this chapter fascinating because it made me realize that there are so many things that I could be doing to sing more efficiently--something about knowing exactly what’s going on when you’re singing correctly gives me the idea that I can decide when I use better technique (that was confusing, but it made sense in my head). 

Sarah Brenay - OB - Ch. 11

Summary: The way we practice is as important as how much we practice. Phonating daily is very important in maintaining vocal prowess. Practicing involves relaxing the mind and body, establishing alignment, thinking and allowing the air to create pitch, warming up, doing vocalizes, and learning repertoire. Practice should be divided into several short periods throughout the day rather than lumped into one session. Brown gives details about more efficient approaches to learning pieces. They should be learned before they are sung, and special attention should be paid to the text. Brown also states that in performance you should "never break concentration by listening to yourself or thinking back about what you just did."
Key Concepts: Practice is essential and can be done more efficiently. The whole body is involved with singing and so the whole body must be conditioned and released just like the voice.
Making Connections: I liked OB's tips for practice. Much of it is similar to what Cindy has already told us all. I really like the idea of paying more attention to the text of a piece. I think that I could improve in this area! I plan on speaking it more than I sing it this week. I also like the line that says "Trust your inner sense no matter what anyone tells you." Although I think that it should have its limits. No matter how much you sense internally that bangs are your thing, it doesn't make bangs your thing.

Sarah Brenay - OB - Ch. 10

Summary: An understanding of the physiological and sensational aspects of articulation help singers create un-entangled, expressive, speech like singing. What we perceive as vowels are actually the suppression or enhancement of particular overtones caused by the resonant space created by the pharynx, mouth, and tongue. There are close vowels, which Brown refers to as "tongue vowels" and open vowels which he calls "lip vowels. Brown includes a series of exercises to help singers attain free, natural vowel formation. He describes the formation of correct dipthongs using the anology of a pig and its tail, the pig being the initial vowel and the tail being the second vowel. Consonants require extensive study as well. Consonant create back pressure which lowers pitch, and singers must be aware of this effect to create legato line uninterrupted by pitch deviation. Vowel sounds must fall on the beat, and therefore initial consonants must come before the beat. As pitch goes up, vowels sometimes need to be modified. To open the mouth properly involves the motion of the jaw and head.
Key Concepts: Proper articulation for singing is not the same as for speech. Vowels must be formed with the primal sound in order to resonate properly. Consonants must be articulated with more vigor. Achieving proper articulation takes a great deal of practice, but allows us to convey meaning and intent to our audience.
Key Terms:
Voiced Consonants - incorporate a simultaneous sound from the larynx and can be sustained
Unvoiced Consonants - do not have the sustaining properties of vowels
Vowel Formant - the composite of concentrations of energy at particular frequencies
Phonemes - single units of language represented by IPA symbols
Making Connections: This chapter cleared up a lot of questions I had about articulation and vowel formation. I found it very helpful. I have always loved the pig and tail analogy, it makes so much sense! Connecting my singing to speech has helped me free my articulators A LOT! Thank you Cindy!

Elizabeth Tait OB Ch.12 Summary

Summary: Once a singer has a solid foundation of technique, it's time to create true art.  The characteristics that create an artist-level performance are: time, tempo, dynamics, pitch, line, diction, tone color, emotion, and meaning.  If your technique is up to snuff, you can have the ability to alter these characteristics to your liking.  In addition to these technical aspects, you must emotionally connect with your piece.  "If the song or the character you are to portray is foreign to you, you will have difficulty giving an interpretation."  In opera, acting is as important as singing.  In infusing your performance with emotion and character, your voice will take on the appropriate colors.  While creating this artistic performance, always be true to yourself.  That can mean changing keys when necessary, choosing your program according to your current vocal ability, and not imitating other artists.   
Key Terms:
color
Key Concepts: Bring the music to life with your own experiences and personality.  Make music, damn it.
Making Connections: I wish that I had the time and flexibility to choose my program as the artists in this chapter did.  That would be so nice. 

 

Elizabeth Tait OB Ch. 11 Summary

Summary: A daily routine of vocalization is essential to making progress and keeping a healthy voice throughout your life.  Since your body is different everyday, your voice will feel differently everday.  Therefore it is important to start afresh with vocalization every morning, don't rely on what happened the night before.  There are certain principles that should be a part of every day's practice:

loosening the body

body alignment

think sound, and let sound happen

gently warm the voice with automatic pitch

split up practice into small segments

focus on filling in weak areas, not practicing strengths

Oren then gives his step-by-step process to learn music:
1. Study Rhythm
2. Study Intervals
3. Sing on neutral syllable like "la"
4. Read as a poem
5. Words in rhythm
6. Sing words on pitches, no dynamics
7. Study expression markings
8. Make it a work of art!
Mental preparation is the key to prepared singing.
Key Terms:
Key Concepts: The practice that seems to yield greater end results is practice that involves more mental activity than vocal activity.
Making Connections: I have been wanting a good reference for practice habits and ideas for a while, and this is it!  Sometimes I get stuck in the practice room, and referring to this chapter will be very helpful.  

Shalayna G. DYV 14

Chapter Summary: Choral directors need to learn and understand the voice.

There is much preparation that needs to go into selecting voices for a choir and how they should be used. In addition vocal care is imperative to rehearsals such as, proper warm ups and breaks in between singing. Knowing the level of your singers takes time. Directors need to know their singers capabilities and work accordingly.

Key Concept: Beautiful choral singer takes sincere patience and care.

Key terms: none

Connection: These chapters made me reflect on the choral directors I have worked with over my very few years. I can now differentiate the ones that actually care about their singer and what they do.

Shalayna G. DYV 13

Chapter Summary: Having talent will only take you so far in a professional career. Not only do we need to have technique, but we must also be workable. Your talent will get you there but your character will keep you there. Because this field takes time to develop and grow, we must always possess inner drive. Some strives for getting and keeping success include, keeping up on repertoire, always being prepared, and reliability and dependability.  We should never avoid where we are at as learners so that we do not throw ourselves beyond our capabilities.

Key Concept: Integrity, humility, and character supersede talent.

Key Terms: Hyperfuction

Connection: I always try to remember why I am singer. Almost every semester I’ve been at Utah State I said I was going to change my major but I am in love with singing and it is my purpose in life. At the same time, I continue to grow. I understand that my love for singing must match up to the work I put into it. How I carry myself as an individual will always reflect on my sound.