All posts by June Bowser

Talking to Yourself

Articles, Practice,

Do you talk to yourself? Sure you do. Everyone does. Maybe not out loud, but with thoughts and assumptions you’ve developed over a lot of years and become comfortable with, because it’s how you perceive yourself and the rest of the world. If you started talking out loud you’d see how silly some of your assumptions are. (“You really are stupid. You can’t do anything right.” “She hates you, of course. They all do.” “I’ll never sing as well as he does.” Or one of my favorites for many years, “I have a small voice.”)Thoughts are very powerful if you don’t recognize them. It’s like subliminal propaganda from an insidious fascist regime. We really say awful things to ourselves, and, incredibly, we believe them. By acknowledging the negative things in your mind, you can start to laugh at them and weaken their effect.

What’s that got to do with singing? Everything. Many times I’ll say to a student, “What
happened there? That note wasn’t quite right.” And the answer is, “I was thinking about the measure before it, where I screwed up.” You were singing along, thinking, “Breathe. One-and-two. Focus.” Then, “Oh! Darn! I missed the C# again! What an idiot. I always do that. I just can’t get that spot. This song is too hard. I hate it.” Notice how unyielding and judgmental this is: always, can’t, too hard, hate. In the meantime, 3 measures have passed and you were not concentrating on what you were doing. In fact, all that negative propaganda made it harder. It robbed your physical, mental and emotional resources. In
addition, singing, especially performing, takes a lot of confidence – even bravado. That was all drained from you the moment you started berating yourself for the mistake.

Obviously, improving your singing means that you must notice and take care of your mistakes. But that’s not the same as being mean to yourself. You can think,
“I need to practice that phrase more,” without putting yourself down. Then you can go on and concentrate on the next phrase.

So when beginning a new piece you should work on what is a manageable goal for you. This help you avoid taking on so much that you really can’t convince yourself it’s do-able. If you have difficulty learning the notes, do rhythms alone until they are working well, then pitches, then add the text. Sometimes you can take a short phrase that is well-learned and start to work on opening for the high note or getting the focus right. The thing is that
you can’t expect correct notes, rhythms, diction, tone, breathing and expression to all come immediately. Plan on small achievable goals so you get less frustrated. Then you are less likely to think those ugly thoughts.

Aside from the unemotional “Practice that spot more,” you can add positive phrases to boost your confidence. Try “I can do this. I enjoy performing. High notes are fun.” Even “I am a great prima donna!”  (Oh, and try to avoid  “I’m better than that guy who just sang.”)
So what if you have to pretend it at first. Say them anyway. Besides, if you stick to small  goals, it’s not hard to believe that you can do it. You may find instructional affirmations  (“Breathe deeply”) most helpful during practice, while the positive and uplifting (“I
am Luciano Pavarotti!”) work well as you get close to performance and are polishing the expression and presentation. You won’t be able to perform without those negative thoughts if you haven’t practiced replacing them.

You can’t afford a single negative thought.

Memorization

Articles, Practice,

Do you have trouble getting pieces memorized? Try these techniques:

  • Write the text many times. After the first time, do not look at the book until you’ve finished the song text as well as you can. Check it, then put it away while you try again. By the time your arm starts to fall off, you will know the words pretty well.
  • Use imagery to create a picture for each phrase. If the visual scene leads from one thing to another, like a movie, it should be helpful in keeping your place in the story. This can be good for your acting, too.
  • Use odd imagery that progresses from one thing to another so that it brings up specific words. Something like four (fore) to golf ball, to world. Only you can decide what association will bring the correct word to mind. Since your mind is not on the song’s actual meaning, this may not be the ideal solution, but it might help with the initial memorization.
  • Read the text out loud and then think it through while doing some other task that doesn’t involve a lot of thought. If you sing through the song while washing dishes, you can’t look at the book every time a word escapes you, so you have to think about it and come up with the word. Go back and check it afterward if you aren’t certain, and next time that word should come more easily.
  • Stage the piece. When acting in a play the words are easier to remember because the memory is linked to a movement and the other person in the conversation. If you work out some moves that suit the text, you will remember it better, even when not doing those gestures or steps.
  • Know the song as well as possible. This includes background research, translations and familiarity with the accompaniment.

Communicating the Song’s Meaning

Articles, Performing
Here are some questions to ask when preparing a song. They will help you act or just put the right kind of energy and emotion behind your singing. You should be able to answer the first three for any song you sing, and the other two are good to think about, too. If the song does not come from a show or an opera, you get to use your imagination and
make up your answers.

Who am I? This will involve time period, place, station
(in life), age and outlook.

Who am I singing to? This may not be the most obvious
person. Go with whoever generates the strongest emotional response from you. You may be addressing yourself, but perhaps a side of yourself that does not normally show.

What do I want from him/her? A tender reply? Understanding? Someone to listen while you pour out your heart?

What will I do to get it? What are you planning, and how much further would you be willing to go?

What is in the way of getting it? His stubbornness?
Tradition? Your timidity?

It may seem like these do not fit your song, and possibly there is no answer for some of them. But don’t give up too quickly. Even if you do not know who is singing, think up a character (good for classical songs) or sing it as yourself (works in pop songs, but your stage persona does not have to be the same as the real you). The more detail you have in
your answers, the better your performance will be.

Here is an example. Let’s assume there is no background information on the character or story, so the lyrics are all you have to go on.

Why asks my fair one if I love?
Those eyes so piercing bright
Can ev’ry doubt of that remove
And need no other light.
Those eyes fullwell do know my heart
And all its workings see
E’r since they played the conq’rors part
And I no more was free.

Who am I? A 20-year-old man in England, about 1860. I was confident and cynical until I saw Sylvia. Now I have surrendered all my pride and humbled myself before her.

Who am I singing to? The beautiful red-haired Sylvia, who calls me a fool and enjoys testing me to see if I will stay faithful, even when she is cruel.

What do I want? I want Sylvia to acknowledge that I love her as no one else. Then she would smile and speak to me and see me as worthy of her. How can she think I will be untrue? I can’t stand the thought that I might lose her.

What will I do to get it? I will profess my love as strongly as I know how, but I would be willing to die for her, or do anything she asks, to prove my fidelity.

What gets in the way? Her cold and proud demeanor. She wants to see
me grovel, and I’ll grovel all she wants, just to win her.

Your answers might differ quite a bit from mine. The important thing is to think them through and decide on one solution for your performance. Change it later if you want.

Resonators

The Vocal Instrument,
Resonator refers to the part of an instrument that amplifies the tone and gives it its own unique characteristics. Resonators make a French horn sound like other French horns and unlike a trumpet, because all French horns are pretty much the same shape, while the trumpet is a little different. The shape of each individual singer’s resonators cause my voice to differ from yours, and your voice to sound different when you change the shape inside your mouth.The sound created by the vocal cords is very small and unimpressive. The pharynx (the area above the larynx, where you usually feel a sore throat) and mouth are used to amplify it and make it beautiful. (There may be other resonators, too, but larynx to lips includes most of the resonating space.) The vibration of the air in that space is initiated by the buzzing of vocal folds. By altering the shape of the mouth and throat, you alter the resulting sound, or timbre. (Pronounced tam-ber.)
You also enunciate using these same changes of tongue, palate, jaw, etc., which means that diction is a function of resonance. You are limited in how much you can change the shape inside your mouth and throat, which is why you will always sound like you, but hopefully always improving, and finding more and more beautiful ways to use your own unique voice. 

Lungs and Diaphragm

The Vocal Instrument
The lungs are the source of the air that moves through the glottis, creating the pitch. If the muscles in the throat are to avoid over-tensing, the airflow must be just right – neither too much nor too little. Then the vocal folds and the entire mechanism above the shoulders can relax andwork efficiently.Singing means sustaining the sound much longer than the average speaker is accustomed to. The sound must also be intense and cover a wide range of pitches. To do this the breath for singing must fill more of the lungs than we generally make use of. The area that doesn’t get filled in everyday breathing is the lowest region of the lungs. That’s the reason
teachers talk about the diaphragm. It is a large muscle that makes a horizontal dome underneath the lungs, at about the level of the lowest ribs on the outside of the body, curving upward in the center. The dome flattens out when you take a deep breath. Deep breaths are not the “suck in the tummy” type, but expanding low in the body. Release the muscles that pull in against the stomach so that it can squish outward and the diaphragm can descend. A rigid abdomen will not allow the diaphragm to descend and the lungs will only fill partway. Remember the lungs fill downward, and filled halfway means the air is in the top half. That will cause a lot of tension in the shoulder region, which affects the voice
adversely.In addition, the lowest ribs on both sides can expand outward. This may be hard to feel, at first. What’s even harder is getting the ribs to stay in that outward position to avoid pulling in as you sing.

When asked to take a deep breath, many people lift their shoulders and clavicle. This type of breathing will get the runner a little more air, but involves a lot of work from the muscles of the neck and shoulders, which a singer cannot afford. It’s also not a breath that can be controlled very well.

When it comes to breathing, there are many different schools of thought, and each one seems to work for certain people. Also, the sensations may differ from one person to another, so my explanation may not work for you. However, the majority of voice teachers seem to agree that the general feeling on inhalation ought to be fullness just above the waist. Then sing with a slight pressure inward at a point just above the belly but above the belly button, without collapsing. The ribs want to pull back to their old lazy position, but should be kept wide, while the abdomen area resists squeezing too much toward the
backbone. It should feel like you’re keeping the expansion that you achieved when you took the air in.

To see an animated picture of the breathing process,
click here.

Emotion and Subtext

Articles, Performing, Practice, ,
In everyday conversation, a huge percentage of the message someone receives from you is not in your words, but in your facial expression, posture, voice inflection, speed of delivery and an infinite number of other unidentifiable factors. Anything that makes up your personality or that expresses emotion could be included. If your words were written down and read by a third person, he or she would have only a fraction of the clues to your
personality. (The transcript of most everyday conversations would be very dry and uninteresting, even though the participants may be fun people.) Behind those elements of personality is your particular way of seeing things and the thought patterns that are unique to you.When you sing a song, the audience wants to see and hear a three-dimensional character with personality, emotions, concerns and goals. If you the performer do not explore the character’s thoughts, your rendition will be no more interesting than if the audience read the text. (Perhaps less interesting, since they have turned off their imaginations in order to see what you will do with the song.)An excellent way to build your character’s personality is to write subtext in your music, along with the translation, if necessary. Subtext is what’s going on in his mind – his train of thought. If someone says, “I don’t want to,” there are many things he could be thinking, such as “No way! Not with you,” or “I’m really tired,” or “She’s trying to get her way
again, just like always.” By writing phrases like these underneath the song text and keeping them in mind as you sing, you will be helping flesh out the character.Note that there usually is no “right” subtext. There are generally several choices available. One person may see the character as spiteful, while another would rather play hurt. If it fits the text and story and works well for you, then it’s right – for now. You may decide to
change you mind later. There’s nothing wrong with that.

If acting is still new and uncomfortable to you, keep each song rather uncomplicated. Limit the subtext to things associated with only one mood, or progress from one to a second during the song. Later you can add a lot of depth to the character by employing subtext that includes thoughts and emotions unlike the surface meaning of the lyric, or even opposed to it, as in sarcasm.

Changes are also very exciting dramatically. Use changes in subtext during interludes and wherever the music seems to change. Put the new subtext before the new phrase so the audience sees the thought in your eyes first, just as people think or feel things before speaking.

Always choose an active or dynamic feeling. “I’m sad,” is hardly ever a good choice, but despair, as in, “I will kill myself since she rejected me,” is much more interesting. Rage, madness, hatred and ecstasy are emotions that will make an impression. You will probably need to use something stronger than the effect you want, at least until your acting skills develop.

Larynx

The Vocal Instrument, ,
The larynx, or voice box, is the cartilage “box” in your throat that houses the vocal cords, which in turn cause a sound. Picture the windpipe as the hose on a vacuum cleaner – rings of somewhat flexible composition stacked on top of each other to form a tube. At the top of this tube is a compartment a little wider and harder, which you can feel if you touch the outside of your throat at the Adam’s apple. That’s the larynx. (“Lă-rinks”) Inside are the vocal cords, which are a pair of small muscles which stick out from the inner wall of the larynx like shelves. “Vocal folds” is actually the preferred term anymore, because they look nothing like strings.
When the vocal folds come together they close off the windpipe. When you are breathing quietly they relax to the sides and leave an opening for the air to pass through. During speech or singing, the cords tense and flutter in the breeze, so that the airstream comes through in little puffs as the cords open and close. Like the onion skin fluttering in a kazoo, this creates the basic sound, a sort of buzz that vibrates the air above. The speed of the flutter determines the pitch.The vocal cords cross the windpipe in the throat (opening horizontally) just as the lips cut across it at the front of the mouth. When you make a lip buzz (“raspberries”), your lips are doing the exact same thing that the vocal cords do in creating a pitch. There’s a little tension from the lips – not too much – and a lot of air to force them apart repeatedly.

An important thing to keep in mind when you are singing, however, is that any feeling of effort in the throat is coming from the outer muscles surrounding and supporting the larynx. This kind of muscle tension only interferes with the efficient functioning of the
vocal folds. When the folds are working freely, the most you should feel from the throat is vibration.

Knocking Knees Syndrome

Articles, Performing,

Stage fright is a bewildering affliction that makes it difficult to perform your best. When the adrenaline is pumping through your system your breath is short, the brain won’t concentrate and you are no longer at ease to express the character and the music.

Most of you have probably heard of some cures for stage fright. I say go with anything that works. One old favorite is imagining the audience naked. I think it would be even more effective to see them all in their pajamas. That way they look ridiculous. This reminds you that they are not superior or all-powerful, no matter who they are. Instead,
you are in the position of power. You are, after all, the expert in the room, as far as your songs are concerned. If you were a teacher or a world-renowned expert, you would feel comfortable talking about your subject and no one could intimidate you. That’s the frame of mind you want.

Some other things to try:

Before you actually get up in front of the audience, breathe slowly and deeply. This is very relaxing and gets you off to a good start for deep breaths, which tend to desert you when you’re nervous.

Larger-than-life characters will give you something to concentrate on and a vehicle for getting your energy out of you and aimed at the audience. Or try working out a lot of big gestures for your next performance. Most of them will be left in the practice room, but if you’re used to being physically free and moving around, you’re less likely to freeze up
when performing.

And if the nerves are just making you shake, let your knees shake as much as they want. Fighting it (stiffening up) will only make it continue and even get worse. If you do this just before the performance, you can generally get rid of f some of the jitters.

Fretting over every little slip will make the performance go downhill, whereas concentrating on what is happening now (rather than what you did two phrases ago) will keep things going smoothly.

Finally, preparation is key to feeling good when you’re in the spotlight. Know your music and know what it is that you want to put across.

 

Preparing for a Singing Career (Classical)

Articles, Performing,

  1. See the article, “Do I Have What It Takes?”
  2. Study languages, particularly Italian, German and French. Other
    languages, such as Spanish and Russian, can also be an asset.
  3. Read all you can about composers, singers and styles. Get a feel
    for what a “heavy” role is, and why you should wait to do them. How
    does French song style differ from German? What sort of voice fits
    Baroque chamber music best? Who was Maria Callas?
  4. Attend as many concerts as you can, watching and listening –
    absorbing as much as possible. You thought “Vedrai, carino” was too
    simple to program on a recital, but it worked for that soprano, and
    the audience loved it. Was it her acting? Don’t forget that you can
    learn from instrumentalists, too.
  5. See some music theater.
  6. Take acting lessons. Even better, get on stage as much as
    possible, in musicals, operas, straight shows and concerts.
  7. Read the stories of the most familiar operas. (Do you know which
    ones those are?) Then read the stories of the unfamiliar.
  8. Stay in shape physically.
  9. Practice daily. Do allow yourself a break, once in a while,
    though.
  10. Keep taking voice lessons, even if you have to scrimp to do it.
    Don’t hop from one teacher to another, but you should be convinced
    that your teacher is doing you some good.
  11. Learn entire operatic roles, not just the big arias. Concentrate
    on the ones you think are too simple or not very showy. Those will
    be your bread-and-butter for a few years.
  12. Learn all you can ababout competitions and d auditions. Read
    magazines, search websites, attend some as an audience member and
    talk to people who have done them.
  13. Do every audition you can get into. The experience helps, even
    if they don’t accept you.
  14. Research apprenticeship programs. Try to get into a small one.
    It may not pay, but it goes on your resume and gets you contacts.
  15. When you have a singing engagement (paid or unpaid), be
    professional – prompt, polite and prepared. Never talk badly of a
    fellow singer, a conductor or an accompanist.
  16. Make your own opportunities: Set up a performance for up a performance for a nursing
    home. Sing at church. Rent the sanctuary and do a recital. Get
    together with some friends for a chamber music concert. Send out
    business cards to organists and church music directors (who can get
    you Easter services, weddings and funerals to sing).
  17. Spend a little on some good “head shots”, the black and white 8
    x 10 glossy publicity photos you will need to have on hand.
  18. And take care of your voice!

 

Do I Have What It Takes?

Articles, Career, Classical Singing, Non-Classical Singing, Performing

So you want to be the next big thing, the singer everyone’s talking about. Or maybe you just want to improve your chances of being able to make a living doing what you love – singing. There are three basic areas where you will need to evaluate yourself and set some goals. They are musical ability, personality and opportunities.The first musical element to consider is Voice. Do you really have the range and kind of sound that your style of music calls for? If you have a pleasing folk sound and want to be an opera singer, then you have to ask yourself (and your teacher) if it’s possible for you to get from point A to point B. Quality of voice is very important for the classical singer, as is volume, since they generally sing without amplification. If you have a classical sound and want to sing heavy metal, we may have a problem.Do you have the truly special, one of a kind voice that gets noticed? It’s very possible that you sing jazz quite nicely, but if there isn’t something unique about your voice, you may have a strike against you. That’s okay, though. Forge ahead through the other  considerations. It may be that good-but-not-unique will work for you in the right place and time.

Another musical element is Musicality. It encompasses the shapes of phrases and the putting across of a style correctly, as well as Expressiveness, or the ability to act with your voice. Do people notice what you’re saying and feeling, or do they just notice your voice
(or mannerisms, or something else)? Do you touch them with your singing? There
are different ways to do this, depending on the musical style, but it is most important, of course, to the musical theater actor/singer.

What are the elements of personality that relate to making a career in performing? You must have a Presence which commands the stage, that says, “I’m the soloist and I really know what I’m doing. You don’t want to miss a thing I sing or do.” You also need a Look, especially in popular music. If you sing rock, it’s best to develop a “Notice me” style
that’s sort of outrageous. There’s the wild hair and the funky outfit to consider, and maybe a walk, a dance move or a pose. Which isn’t to say that a producer somewhere along the way won’t want to change it all. But at least you got noticed.

Opportunities may be the area you can influence the least. Boldness helps, as you will need to approach people and create your own opportunities. A Tough Skin and Persistence are essential, or you won’t go through with that 37th audition. Location is important, so you’d better be willing to move. If no one in your town likes the music you
are committed to doing, you may not get those all-important first gigs, which give you experience and connections. And if you’re not Willing to Travel, you limit your possibilities later on, when a tour would be just the thing to get your career charged up. A positive Attitude that’s easy to work with is one way to get someone to recommend you, and believe me, the people with hiring power do talk to each other. And hopefully you’ll have a lot of Luck, but there’s no way to know that at the beginning. Better plan on making your
own.