Body position - Thomas Hampson masterclass

Singing starts with and in the body, and for singing to function optimally the body must be in balance to avoid tensions, to provide good breath support and to optimise the spaces for resonance.

When it comes to body alignment, one of the mistakes I often see is the tendency in young singers/students to bend forwards, stretch the head forwards and tilt the neck, especially in softer, "cute" sections of songs, instead of keeping a tall, erect and balanced position. It is almost an intuitive reaction - to "follow" the music with your body, but the result is inevitable a less resonant and more unstable sound.

A great singer does not necessarily make a great teacher, especially not in open masterclasses, but one of those that excels both as a singer and as a teacher, is the American baritone Thomas Hampson.

There are lots of masterclasses with him available on Youtube, all of them really interesting and informative to watch. Maybe his "pet project" - the topic that he comes back to again and again, no matter if the singer is a male or a female, is exactly this: how to hold and use your body in a natural way.

• how to stand
• how to elongate your back and your neck
• how to use the chest and the diaphragm and the muscles that you normally use for breathing in also when you breathe out - aka "sing."

The video below is a very good examples of how he works and what he focuses on, but this is a recurring topic in all his work with students. It is a lot to pay attention to and to learn here! 

Edward L. Johnson - The "complete introduction" to singing

There are so many thing to talk about in this journal, and some topics that we will return to numerous times is apoggio, bel canto, chiaroscuro and diaphragm. We will touch all of these topics through several videos, explanations and links, but I want to start out this journal with a series of 5 videos where the tenor  Edward L. Johnson (1923-2008) discusses singing technique, what parts of the body we use (and don't use) for singing, how breathing works and how resonance works.

These short videos are a fantastic "introduction" to the mechanisms of singing. When I say "introduction", I don't mean to say that this is for beginners only. It was useful for me to see it, and it can be useful for many professional singers to see it. I call it an "introduction" because he covers a lot of topics and information in a very short time, and in an eminent way. It is clear, thought-through, understandable and clear.

Lets start here! These videos are highly recommended both for beginners and professionals, for students and for teachers!

An introduction to bel canto

Lesson 1 - Parts of the body used in singing

Lesson 2 The Diaphragm and Intercostal Muscles

Lesson 3 Relaxed or Open Throat

Lesson 4 Resonation of Tone

Lesson 5 The Mask of the Face

Lesson 6 The Inhalation of the voice

Lesson 7 Vocal Ranges

Lesson 8 Breathing Exercise

Lesson 9 Concluding remarks and Singing exercises

THE SINGING TEACHER'S JOURNAL - WHAT, HOW and WHY

In 2017 I was invited to start working as a lecturer at the Lithuanian Academy of Theatre and Music. This has turned out to be one of the most challenging, awarding and interesting periods of not only my "art life", but in my work life in general.

To be able to answer questions from students - or to answer all the unasked questions - I have had to revisit, restudy, reread and improve on quite a lot of my own knowledge of vocal theory and physiology from my own years of studies and singing. Hopefully, this has been of some help to my students, and it has also had a huge impact on my own singing. 

There is no doubt that I knew too little of vocal theory (through no fault of my own teachers), and there is no doubt that improving the knowledge about how the body is built, and how it affects the singing, about traditional vocal theory and vocal schools can greatly improve the way students are able to understand and approach their own singing, voice, body and problems.

I do not adhere to the theory that singing should be "intuitive". Like any art, it should not be bogged down and restricted by theory, but theory applied correctly is liberating. At the age of 20, some students are studying advanced mathematics or physics. There is no reason vocal students should not be able to study and understand the functions of the larynx and the diaphragm :)

This blog will be my attempt to collect information - and maybe write myself - about these aspects, as well as about interpretation, musicianship and other things. I will try to post videos of singers, masterclasses, lectures about singing of physiology, link to articles, books and further. I will try to give the posts a pedagogical angle, not only post a concert because it is "good".

The internet is FULL of all information - about singing as well. Not all of it is good, though, and on this field, as on all fields, it is easy to be led astray and get lost. My selection of information will of course be subjective, but I will try to present information that I find artistically and scientifically solid, in hope that the blog over time might become a useful source for inspiration and information

20.10.27

Stein