Camryn- McCoy Chapter 5

 One thing I loved about this chapter was how it talked about harmonics. I laughed when the author compared the importance of harmonics to sex. They said that "when you sleep with someone, you also are sleeping with everyone that person has ever slept with". Similarly, the text stated "when you sing a pitch, you are not just singing that note; you also are singing every harmonic in the series above it". It's a unique and funny comparison, but it's so true! It's extremely important to be aware of the harmonics that soar from your mouth as you sing. Including this, the book talked about how the first harmonic always is the loudest part of the sound when the sound leaves the larynx. After this, every additional harmonic grows weaker. This reminds me of chamber choir, when we sometimes sing on a quiet "oo" in unison, then grow to a loud, rounded "ah". Right as we would hit the "ah", and our pitch was immediately balanced, the overtones filled the room. The first harmonic after the original pitch was the loudest, and was extremely clear. Then, if you listened more closely, you could hear the next harmonic, and the one above it. A few times, I stopped singing so that I could see how many overtones I could hear. The most I've heard is 3, and it was so interesting to hear the different layers of harmonics in just one pitch. I agree with the author in saying that learning about harmonics can help anyone become a better singer and teacher of singing. By understanding this information, we can make our singing stronger and more efficient. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tougas- Voice Overview- 11/9

 This week in Voice Recital Hour, Kate Wilson performed L-Invitación a Voyage. Something that was really awesome was the placement remained the same through out each note. Every word was in the shape of an “ah” just with different lip shape to round out the desired vowel. This gave great resonance and each note could springboard off of the hard palate! Also, Kate usually takes a stance of putting one hand on the piano which in turn expands the area for the diaphragm and deeper breaths. One thing I noticed was that depending on high notes or low notes, Kate would move her head slightly in the same direction. This probably is more a psychological effect but leads to out of alignment breathing, actually making it more difficult to sing. I noticed this in particular because it is exactly what I worked on in my lesson this week. We had an awesome break through where I realized I had root tension due to moving my head up for high notes and so Laurie and I worked on singing an Ah then to ...
Read more

Dombroski-McCoy-Ch. 4

 I think reading about how stuff works inside our body is interesting. The fact that my vocal folds are 18 millimeters is crazy! I wonder if that’s why men sing lower, because their folds are slightly larger? It’s also wild that our folds oscillate hundreds of times per second when we sing. I was amazed to read that the when singing the F6 in Queen of the Night, the vocal folds vibrate 1400 times. I don’t feel the vibrations when singing so it’s strange to think about. I think it’s amazing the sounds we can make through the larynx, which is only the small size of a walnut/pecan.  It’s important as teachers to consider onset and phonation. If our students are singing with excess breath, we can know one of the reasons might be their vocal folds aren’t completely closed. It’s also important to consider the difference between adduction and abduction, and basically what the body requires for the voice to sound balanced. 
Read more

Camryn-McCoy Chapter 4

 There were a lot of things in this chapter I thought were surprising and interesting! First, the vocal folds are SO SMALL. Literally the size of a DIME in women and a QUARTER for men?! I don't know why I thought they'd be bigger than that, but still! The vocal folds are responsible for sound production, and can produce a sound loud enough to be heard over a symphony orchestra. That is insane to know just a tiny portion of our vocal folds create such a strong, powerful sound. Another subject I want to touch on is the glottal onset. Listening to the example given, the attack of the note sounds really harsh. When reading about this, I was surprised to see that these onsets can lead to vocal nodules. On the opposite side, an aspirate onset lacks energy, and sounds airy/breathy. There's little no none air support and flow in the voice. In doing this an excessive amount, it can also lead to voice problems, such as "chronic incomplete glottal closure and muscular tension dys...
Read more