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hows my support?

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bigmike092

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i posted this in the critique section but im really only looking for a support critique and i thought im more likely to get a comment here . so even if you just listen to it for 5 secs all be grateful, and if i shouldnt be posting it here sorry in advance. otherwise any comments would be appreciated but mainly im concerned about support and breathiness though i am aware that its still a work in progress. also the recording is on my phone and my cuckoo clock goes off at one point but oh well..

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ok thanks for the advice phil all do that.

videoehere, yea i can sustain a vowel for around 10 seconds (though not completely without wavering) as i have been practicing exhaling completely silent while not closing the throat for an extended period of time,but it seems i have more trouble holding back the breath while singing.

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big mike,

if you're a beginner, i wouldn't worry too much about learning to hold back breath right now....

right now you want to be learning to let the air flow in a very steady, controlled (not held back) and consistent manner.

lip bubbles are great for this.....the fluttering consistency and evenness are a barometer of your ability to let air flow without interruption.

the leaky tire is great too....

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To control the breath.

Huge difference.

I personally don't like the phrase "hold back the breath", even though i'm studying with Phil and he uses it all the time. It's okay now because he's showed me what he means by holding back the breath in our lessons, had me do it and he'll say to hold it back more or less and so I learn the right balance. But personally, I think it's way different than what someone who knows very little about singing would imagine as holding back the breath - as like, holding your breath for dear life and trying to make sound at the same time. No, not at all. That just gets you squeezing and strain and blowing out your voice just as badly as if you're blowing loads of air out. Correct support is more like you're exhaling normally but thinking of an inhaling sensation. You never hold it back with all your might, you hold it back a certain amount but how much a student feels like they need to hold back varies because some folks will habitually hold back too much or habitually blow way too much air etc. and it's all just a matter of finding just the right amount of air so that you can sing efficiently and not encounter vocal problems

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are you meaning compression as in cord closure? when i think of compression i think squeezing lower torso muscles to add pressure to the sound which is part of support, and cord closure as separate from support but another form of compression, though maybe im wrong.

also after doing lip bubbles i definitely notice i don't blow enough air and it's probably why i feel it in my throat too much. so is support more like a balance between air flow and air pressure. or maybe ratio is a better word? cause im guessing in some instances you add more air pressure and others you blow more air depending on volume and how high or low the note is?

anyways, i recorded another clip which is my last one since id imagine it would get annoying if i kept uploading.

it's only 10 seconds long. also i had to sing really quietly since it's midnight here. but i tried to hold on too the imagery of blowing air out and holding it back at the same time using support muscles. and at the least im hoping the tremelo thingy isn't still there?

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so you did hear it in the last clip i posted?

this one i just try to hold a note out for about 10 secs which i notice its actually hard to do without any wavering

this one i start at some note for a few seconds then gradually go up as smoothly as i can for a few secs

also how much you charge for lessons?

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i see support and compression as two different things which I know is probably controversial. Most people when they think support they immeidately think of a compressed sound. I don't. I think of a compressed sound as something else you add on, and it's something I do not teach to beginners until they are able to connect their uncompressed sound without feeling a break, then I get them to start adding compression/more closure. the fact they are not feeling the break whatsoever is what I consider to be a well supported tone because the pressure is balanced, if the pressure loses the balance the flip suddenly returns. this doesn't mean if you support well the breaks will disappear instantly because you still have to build up the muscle memory for it. so it is a process of learning to balance the airflow

yes, i do not recommend beginners hold their breath. as they get better connecting their voice lightly they should start thinking more about using less air to make the sound.

jaime vendera has a few different ones like inhalation sensation as well as "grunt without grunting" sls has "the cry" whatever the term is - they all have one thing in common: if done wrong they will choke you :P

Also CVT's "cough" sensation - I think Eric Arceneaux uses it too, he uses a light cough (which is probably the smarter approach)

The cough sensation IS very close to the sensation of combined support and compression, but ONLY DOWN THERE. My theory is we naturally support our coughs because the motion the vocal folds have to make would damage them otherwise. Which I think is actually true with heavy compressed singing too, but still not the extreme extent of what happens in a cough.

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I wouldn't hold back or compress anything at this point in your training. Just breath in fill your body like a glass of water from the bottom up and exhale on a nice clean eh or ah. think of the word "every" use the eh of "every" as your attack. do it in a comfortable range say F3 to Bb3. do it staccato and legato get it smooth. Just breathe in then sing your note or scale and start over breathe in sing your note or scale etc. if you start holding your breath or compress things you are only gonna make some problems for yourself later on. hope that helps. good luck. don't over think this

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totally agree....you should be focusing on a consistent, controlled, flow of breath right now. now you want to be experiencing breath flow, not impeding it.

as owen said, this "holding back the breath" is an advanced technique and can very easily be taken the wrong way.

first get good at onsetting (starting a tone) and move towards sustaining a nice, clear, open tone.

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I wouldn't hold back or compress anything at this point in your training. Just breath in fill your body like a glass of water from the bottom up and exhale on a nice clean eh or ah. think of the word "every" use the eh of "every" as your attack. do it in a comfortable range say F3 to Bb3. do it staccato and legato get it smooth. Just breathe in then sing your note or scale and start over breathe in sing your note or scale etc. if you start holding your breath or compress things you are only gonna make some problems for yourself later on. hope that helps. good luck. don't over think this

yea i see im trying too hard to hold back the air too much and i think thats why im not blowing enough air and feel it too much in my throat. im noticing it helps to blow air out but hold it back in ways like keeping ribs expanded and solar plexus engaged instead of physically trying to hold back the air in my mouth. as for over thinking its hard not to do since im not taking lessons and im trying to find my way through experimenting and sensations. but maybe i am too much...

also thanks everyone for the advice, you guys help a lot.

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