How Singing Works

Plain and simple, singing is the production of musical sounds using one’s voice, going beyond speaking by utilizing specific tones and rhythms.

Anatomically, there are five components that allow singing to occur:
1) Air supply coming from the lungs
2) The larynx (or voicebox) where the vocal folds/cords are located and vibrate, creating sounds
3) The head and chest cavities that amplify the sounds
4) The tongue and other parts of the mouth that put consonants and vowels with the sound created
5) The abdominal muscular structure, especially the diaphragm

These five parts work together to help a person sing. Here’s basically how it works:
- Air is taken in by the lungs
- That air is then compressed and has force put behind it by the diaphragm and other muscles
- The air travels through the larynx and causes the vocal cords to vibrate
- These vibrations are amplified and resonate in various cavities and tubes in the body (see the picture below) and exit the body, creating a musical sound

Vocal Warmups

You can use almost any sound to warm your voice up. You should do many different types of sounds and start in the middle of your range moving up and down very slowly. It is important to not just warm up the high part or just the low part of your voice. You should move up and down by half or whole steps so that you do not harm your voice.

Pre-Warm Ups
Before you start to sing or even talk it is important to be completely relaxed. First thing to do is to warm up your body.

• Bend at the waist and touch your toes
• Slowly roll up
• Allow your head to be the last thing to straighten out completely
• Carefully and slowly lean your head back and roll from side to side
• Repeat in the front

• Hunch your shoulders up to your ears (count to ten)
• Let them fall
• Repeat several times
• Last time hunch your shoulders up to your ears and bring them back

• Breathe in slowly for 10 counts (puckered lips)
• Breathe out slowly for 10 counts (snake sound)
• Repeat

You can even give yourself or if there is someone else singing with you a massage.

Here are some easy exercises

stretch and yawn; hold the ending "ah" sound; relax your throat and jaws

say and then sing

• SOL FA MI RE DO

You can sing the rest of these in place of SOL FA MI RE DO

• MMMMMMMMMMMMMM...
• ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ...
• EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE...
• NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN...
• VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV...
• ThThThThThThThThThThTh...
• Mum Mum Mum Mum Mum Mum

(If you know how to play the piano you can start on the G and then play F, E, D, C) G-Sol, F-Fa, E-Mi, D-Re, C-Do

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9pwK21LJOo

You could also make siren sounds (Like a fire truck)

Here are some fun exercises
Each phrase features different difficult consonant combinations. Start slow, over-articulating and then increase speed.

• Red letter, yellow letter
• Good blood, bad blood
• Eleven benevolent elephants
• The big, black-backed bumblebee
• Selfish shellfish
• Really rural
• Unique New York
• The tip of the tongue, the lips, the teeth
• To titillate your tastebuds, we've got these tasty tidbits

Posture

Posture
The ability to move air in and out of the body freely and to obtain the needed quantity of air can be affected by posture. A sunken chest position will limit the capacity of the lungs, and a tense abdominal wall will inhibit the downward travel of the diaphragm. Good posture allows the breathing mechanism to fulfill its basic function efficiently without any undue expenditure of energy. Some believe that when singers assume good posture it often provides them with a greater sense of self assurance and poise while performing. Audiences also tend to respond better to singers with good posture.

There are eight components of the ideal singing posture:
1. Feet slightly apart
2. Knees bent
3. Hips rotated forward
4. Spine aligned
5. Abdomen flat
6. Chest comfortably raised
7. Shoulders down and back
8. Head straight ahead

Proper Breathing

Singing requires more thought to breathing than normal. A “deep” sort of breath from the lower abdominal or diaphragmatic area is necessary. A person’s shoulders should not move when breathing in this manner. One’s whole lower abdominal area should expand when breathing, including the diaphragm, rib cage, and back; muscles in all these areas are used when one inhales and exhales.

To ensure correct breathing for singing, try these steps:
1) Lay flat on your back on a firm surface (i.e. the floor) and place a book on your lower abdomen. Breathe deeply in and out. If the book rises and falls with your breathing, you are taking breaths from the proper area.
2) Look at yourself in a mirror. Breathe in and out. If you see your shoulders move up and down with your breaths, you are probably not breathing from the proper area.

Proper Breathing Technique

Unrelated musical fun

Batter Percussion

Djembe

• Dates back to the early 1100s
• Originally belonged to the Mandinka Tribe in Africa
• Goatskin is best when used for djembe head

Snare Drum

• Dates back to the Tabor in Medieval Europe in 1300
• Became popular in the 1400s with the fife-and-drum corps of Swiss mercenary foot soldiers
• Military snares came from the Ottoman Empire in 1500
• The European version of the snare drum became popular in the 1500s and spread to other countries
• In the 1900s, the marching snare was created and took the place of the other snare drums

Tabor

Djembe

Vocal Percussion

Vocal Percussion

Definitions

²Vocal Percussion: Making percussion sounds with one’s mouth

²Beatboxing: An artist imitates the sound of a drum machine or a “beat box”

²Multivocalism: A technique that incorporates beatboxing, poetry, vocal scratching, singing and MCing in a performance

Origins

²1200-1300s:Troubadours of Southern France—short, sharp notes interchanged to give music depth, call and response

²African Ritualistic music: Clapping, stamping, and “over breathing” (loud in and out breathing) used to keep time, also implemented vocal percussion pattern

²1880s: Barbershop/a capella—vocal percussion used to keep time

²Blues: Lack of real instruments inspired black slaves to create drumming and other instruments solely with their voices

²Beatboxing

²The first rhythm machine was made between 1959 and 1964—it was called the Wurlitzer Sideman

²The first time the phrase “beat box” was used in reference to a rhythm machine was in the 70’s, when the ELI CompuRhythm CR-7030 Beat Box was invented.

²Some well known beatboxers include: Joel Turner, Rahzel, Doug E Fresh, and Darren “Buffy” Robinson