By David Delaney, MA, CAR

david@singingvoicetraining.com

Shana comes to me through a recommendation of a fellow singer. She is having vocal difficulties and does not know why it is happening. I can hear over the phone the first time we talk that she has a mild ‘glottal fry’ and she is gasping for breath constantly. This is someone who speaks with a degree of tension in her throat and it produces a low popping or rattling sound when air passes through the throat. If you try to sing with this going on, you are likely to have at minimum a sore throat and at maximum more serious vocal difficulties. Shana is unaware of it’s existence though.

The vibratory ability of cartilage and soft tissue in your throat cannot compare to the vibratory properties of your teeth and bones of the cranial cavity and sinuses. To attempt to use your throat, even partially, for producing a resonant voice is like using a butter knife to shave. It is neither sharp nor effective. Nature has designed speech to be produced by the mouth and teeth (the most vibratory bones in the body) and setting off a vibratory circuit in the cranium that has unimaginable acoustical properties.  These acoustical properties happenis via sound waves which interact with your immediate environment, both people, things, and the air around you. Let us look at Dr. P. Mario Marifiotti’s first voice principle to ground this in a scientific understanding:

Voice is speech, and is produced by the mouth, not by the vocal cords.The vocal cords produce only sounds (primitive vibrations) that are transformed into vowels and consonants by a phonetic process taking place in the mouth, and giving origin to the voice.

Caruso’s Method of Voice Production: The Scientific Culture of the Voice, by Dr. P. Mario Marafiotti, Dover Books

This is why the singer’s understanding of the basic anatomy of the vocal instrument and how to use it effectively is necessary for anyone who plans to sing in public. Shana is the lead singer for a local band and she rehearses a number of hours every week with them, and often has a number of gigs for a few hours each, as well as coaches singers privately, and sings in her choir. She is ‘roughing up’ her vocal chords, as my teacher would say, and no matter what she does, she cannot stop it from happening. Some days are better than others are for her, but there is still a soreness most of the time, especially after an hour or so of rehearsing or performing.

Many singers have this same problem. Actor Julie Andrews had to eventually have a vocal operation and now she cannot sing at all. Tina Turner has been having vocal problems that are ongoing. The immense pressure of having to get up night after night and deliver ‘the goods’ demands that we insure that we have a scientific technique that we can fall back on if this begins to happen. Instinct is most important, but when it fails us, we need technique until we get instinct back on course. If we do not, we are at the mercy of fate, which can be a cruel master.

A singer who is a ‘natural’ can still have problems over time, with the psychological pressure that is put on the performer. We must have a working knowledge of what the vocal apparatus is (this does not mean being an anatomist), how it functions efficiently, and then what our own tendencies are that cause us to sing with force rather than relaxation.

After a month of working together, Shana is beginning to recognize when her throat is tense and learning how to compensate with body control to overcome her unconscious habit. She has learned that it is body flexibility which controls the flow of relaxed air, not compression as she had been doing previously. She is learning how to increase rib cage flexibility for increased adaptability, a key to singing for long periods without causing vocal problems. She is also receiving manual therapy sessions from me to free areas of her body that have been locked. ]]> http://singingvoicetraining.com/a-problem-that-you-are-unaware-of-still-exists/feed/ 0 http://singingvoicetraining.com/vocal-difficulties-what-to-do-when-the-pressure-is-on/ http://singingvoicetraining.com/vocal-difficulties-what-to-do-when-the-pressure-is-on/#comments Sun, 28 Dec 2008 03:40:15 +0000 http://singingvoicetraining.com/?p=168

Shana comes to me through a recommendation of a fellow singer.  She is having vocal difficulties and does not know why it is happening.  I can hear, even over the phone the first time we talk, that she has a mild ‘glottal fry’.  This is someone who speaks with a degree of tension in his or her throat and it produces a low popping or rattling sound when air passes through the throat.  If you try to sing with this going on, you are likely to have at minimum a sore throat and at maximum more serious vocal difficulties.

Shana is unaware if it’s existence though

The vibratory ability of cartilage and soft tissue in your throat cannot compare to the vibratory properties of your teeth and cranial sinuses.  To attempt to use your throat, even partially, for producing a resonant voice is like using a butter knife to shave.  It is neither sharp nor effective.  Nature has designed speech to be produced by the mouth and teeth (the most vibratory bones in the body) and setting off a vibratory circuit in the cranium that has unimaginable acoustical properties to set off via sound waves in your immediate environment. Both people, things, and the air around you are the target of these waves. Let us look at Dr. P. Mario Marifiotti’s first voice principle to ground this in a scientific understanding:

Voice is speech, and is produced by the mouth, not by the vocal cords.   The vocal cords produce only sounds (primitive vibrations) that are transformed into vowels and consonants by a phonetic process taking place in the mouth, and giving origin to the voice. Caruso’s Method of Voice Production: The Scientific Culture of the Voice, by Dr. P. Mario Marafiotti, Dover Books

 This is why the singer’s understanding of the basic anatomy of the vocal instrument and how to use it effectively is necessary for anyone who plans to sing in front of live audiences.  Shana is the lead singer for a local band and she rehearses a number of hours every week with them, and often has a number of gigs for a few hours each as well as coaching other singers privately, and sings in her choir.  She is ‘roughing up’ her vocal chords, as my teacher used to say, and no matter what she does, she cannot stop it from happening.  Some days are better than others are of course, but there is still a soreness most of the time, especially after an hour or so of rehearsing or performing.

Typical problem for singers

Many singers have this same problem.  Actor Julie Andrews had to eventually have a vocal operation and now she cannot sing at all.  Tina Turner has been having vocal problems that are ongoing.  The  immense pressure of having to get up night after night and deliver ‘the goods’ demands that we insure we have a scientific technique that we can fall back on if this begins to happen.  Instinct is most important, but if it fails us momentarily, we need technique until we get instinct back functioning. If we cannot, we are at the mercy of fate which can be a cruel master.

Singer’s pressure

A singer who is a ‘natural’ can still have problems over time with the demand that is put on the performer.  We must have a working knowledge of what the vocal apparatus is (this does not mean being an anatomist), how it functions efficiently, and then what our own tendencies that cause us to sing with force rather than relaxation. 

After a few months of working together intensively, Shana is beginning to recognize when her throat is tensing up and learning how to compensate with body control to overcome her unconscious habit.  She has learned that body flexibility and posture, control the flow of relaxed air, not compression (shortening her body) as she had been doing previously.  She is learning how to open up her rib cage for increased adaptability, a key to singing for long periods without causing vocal problems.  She is also receiving body sessions from me to free areas of her body that have been locked and have prevented her from singing naturally and freely with our ever resorting to force again.

Neurofeedback training and the performing artist…

George (not his real name) is a seasoned singer/performer with many years of experience performing for audiences.  However, he has always had to deal with a low self-esteem issue that, even though he is loved by the audiences her performs for, he questions his skill and this affects his performance of course.  He was referred to me by a voice therapist who knew about my background in the performing arts and suspected that I might be able to help him.

In speaking with him, I saw that he had this self-defeating mechanism, which affected his confidence and the ability to trust his choices moment to moment; which the performing artist needs in live performance.  I have seen this with many people, especially those who have real talent but who don’t completely trust themselves.

Relaxation…

Since relaxation is the hallmark of creativity and spontaneity, those of us who provide Zengar NeuroCARE neurofeedback training have found that performing artists benefit greatly from neurofeedback training.  Training the brain (Central Nervous System or CNS) to orient to the present allows us to improve focus and concentration, strengthens our body-mind interaction, and reduces the nervousness that can inhibit our performing at our peak.

Research in the past 15 years has demonstrated that whatever has happened in our past be it trauma, accidents and injuries, emotional issues, mental liabilities- all can become triggered by present issues and this causes our brain to lose it’s present moment awareness and orientation.  The same neurons (nerve cells) that were involved in the original condition (the time the teacher embarrassed you in front of the class, or the time your Dad was upset and yelled at you, etc.) can be set-off by present stressful events. Therefore, your brain is acting as though that event is happening all over again with it’s attendant reactions and energy loss.

In this approach to neurofeedback training, because we monitor all brainwaves with an EEG in a non-linear fashion and communicate back to the brain how it is behaving comprehensively moment to moment, and since our brain is adaptable in it’s very nature our brain learns to let go of these negative events, and return to the present moment.  It is designed on the mindfulness model of observing physical sensations, emotions, and thoughts, and continually retuning to present moment focus.

Your brain can change…

When our brain (which is extremely sophisticated and is all about solving the constant problems of survival) learns to orient to the present more often through this training, it becomes more adept at returning sooner to the present. Neuroplasticity, the ability of our brain to find new and more effective and efficient ways to behaving, is what this training takes advantage of. 

Training outcome…

After a series of training sessions, George is seeing that the issue with which he came in with is suddenly a non-issue.  He says that he is finding that he has more present awareness and does not notice the nagging insecurity to be an issue.  He is not sure how it went away, but all he knows is that now when he performs, he is more focused and can accept what happens even if he does it is not perfect in his mind.  He is more enjoying his time on stage and is less and less critical and judgmental of himself.

david@singingvoicetraining.com

When we talk about singing, we are really talking about ‘talk-singing’, since speech is the basis of all singing, whether operatic singing, pop, broadway, rap, or whatever style; it is all the same exact process. Many people have been taught, and thus believe, that it is the vocal chords (vocal folds) that are the key to sound production but this is not accurate. Sound production begins with natural speaking.  The vocal folds produce a primitive vibration which is not speech, but which is picked up at the mouth and teeth, and turned into speech, and eventually singing.

So what is the circuit which allows someone to produce a strong,  pleasing, and resonant voice?  Nature has set this up for us; there is a circuit that is produced by a combination of mouth, teeth (the most vibratory bone in the human body), head sinuses and cavities, bone and fluid, (which is a wonderful conductor of sounds), and eventually the entire body has vibratory qualities.  But relaxation is the necessary state that we need to be in in order to produce this and many singers have too much tension to experience it.  Whisper to someone and tell me if your vocal chords need to be onvolved in order to be heard.  They do not.

Many singers, though pleasant in sound, never go to this next level of voice production, which often demands a mentor who can demonstrate it and then lead you into it.  Few individuals just do it naturally, though I have met a few.  Most singers are stuck in their throat, some more than others.  But still, many do not understand that the throat has nothing to do with voice production nor is our voice centered in the throat.  When you sing the way that I was taught and now teach, vocal chords are not participating consciously; the ear and instincts control their function completely without our ever having to actively involve them in what we are doing. 

Here is an example of how to ‘understand’ what I am pointing to.  When you say the word ’sing’, notice that if you sustain the ‘ng’, the area of the mouth and behind the cosmetic nose vibrates.  What is happening is that the ‘ng’ is formed by a continuous stream of air being transmitted into the post nasal holes (just above the ‘pharynx’ in the picture below) and up into your nasal cavity.  Notice also that in order to sustain that ‘ng’ longer than just a few seconds, you have to lengthen your abdominal muscles and chest and this is the support needed to sustain that vibratory event.  This approach uses body length as Nature designed it, not body compression to produce sound.

See the picture below to realize that the space in your nasal cavity is much larger than the space in your mouth- when you are relaxed.  Many singing approaches ask you to unnaturally open you mouth, drop you jaw, open your throat, compress your chest; but when you speak you do not have to do this and everyone understands you just fine and your voice carries- unless you are carrying tension in your body.

No-one ever needs to over-articulate in order to be understood. Nature is very efficient and would never have us overwork, as the relaxation state is the most natural state for us to accomplish anything in our life; here we are speaking scientifically.  And singing is no different.  But what is different in this approach is that we learn what the vocal instrument is through anatomy, and then learn to free the body in order to allow our voice to do what is is designed to do; communicate naturally, efficiently, and with our own unique, resonant sound.