Great article on open throat

[Khassera]

I love the author's description of "finding" the open throat technique with the zygomatic muscles. Actually concentrating on those muscles alone removes much of the tension I correlate with trying to find the correct configuration.

 

Also, to add, I think about putting the "feel" of the "H" consonant into my scales. So instead of doing a hard glottal on "ee" I'd do an onset of "hee" but with the H being very, very soft and inaudible to not push too much air out. This helps me focus on keeping the airflow steady.

 

Maybe this helps someone struggling with the same stuff I was struggling with a while back.

 

http://www.singwise.com/cgi-bin/main.pl?section=articles&doc=VocalTractShaping

[aravindmadis]

Thanks.. Can you please post a short video of how this can be done if possible?  Some of the information is too technical!  

[ronws]

To me, open throat is a sound quality, rather than an exact dimension or shape. Because, sometimes, the idea of hold thing the "throat" as "open" as possible will detune some of the actual alignment that you need to produce a strong and rounded note.

[Khassera]

I've just associated open throat technique as crucial in learning appoggio. So whenever I do scales wit a bit less twang or whatnot (dickinson style belting) I tend to choose this configuration rather than... Something else. It sounds beefier.

I just differentiate between the two configurations (one that feels very air-economical but a bit whiny/staley-y, and the other, beefier one that feels more like i'm driving the sound with my diaphragm only) by adding the "H" to the sound. That makes me push a bit more air but it also unconstricts everything above the neck.

I'll do a recording at some point today.

[m.i.r.]

Karyn is great and a sweet heart. I met her in Boston when I was subbing for keys in a jazz group for a brief tour. She is extremely, extremely knowledgeable in the mechanical workings of the voice, as well as acoustics of it.

She basically teaches the same school and method of maestro jones, I actually believes she cites him quite a bit. Only complaint i have ever heard about her is it is like pulling teach to get her to sing anything. However, I have also heard that she has some great teaching ears though.

[Martin H]

I honestly don't think it's a very good article. She does have a lot of knowledge but think it's a shame that she is affected by a sound ideal when she is lecturing about the voice.

 

Also this statement is just plain wrong:

 

"Higher pitches require more space, and an elevated larynx shortens the resonator tract, making higher notes more difficult to sing. With a high larynx, getting into the upper passaggio and the high vocal range is usually difficult because the folds can’t pivot properly for the correct register changes to occur. The vocal folds also do not close properly. No part of the vocal tract, then, is in the correct position for healthy singing to occur."

[Khassera]

Martin, that's true. She does seem to be inclined towards a tone.

 

What would you say about the zygomatic muscle activation to help find the right sensation for an open throat configuration? Does it seem right?

[Martin H]

@Khassera

 

Well, if having a little lift in your cheeks helps you relieve some unwanted constrictions (which is actually what an "open throat" is mainly about) then by all means go for it.

[Nalyd]

All singing in what CVT calls the "metallic modes", that is, powerful singing, involves a very precise activation of the "constrictors". Too much will be fatiguing. In some situations, too little can be fatiguing if the air supply is not adjusted accordingly. To be sure, powerful singing can indeed feel very free, if done properly. We could call this a feeling of an "open throat", but from an anatomic perspective, it is not absolutely true. 

 

Best regards

[benny82]

Martin is right. Very biased to classical sound ideals. You can have a perfectly "open throat" with high larynx coordinations also. To me the main effect of the "silent k" excercise is actually that it lifts the back of the tongue and brings it into a position that can apply neccessary twang without adding unnecessary constrictions.

 

Same goes for "lifting the cheaks". It makes finding twang easier without those unneccessary tensions that are often triggered as side-effects when you try to find twang just by the acoustic sound.