Voice and Opera Training

  I am sure that most of us are familiar with the adage of the Italian school, “sing like you speak”.  We also know from experience that while in some respects this is completely true, in other respects it is not. It would be equally correct to say, “to sing well, you must have a flexible vocal position that will allow for modification of the vowels when acoustically necessary.” There is no single correct vocal position that will accommodate every note in the singer’s range. While the first two formants of the singer’s voice determine what vowel is produced (and in this way are intimately related to correct speech), formants 3, 4 (the singer’s formant, which does not appear in speech, and allows the voice to be heard over the orchestra) and 5 determine vocal quality and individual timbre.   Without correct balancing between the fundamental pitch and the shape of the resonance cavities, beautiful singing is impossible.  Both vowel modific...

Welcome to my first blog posting. I thought I would use this format to discuss what interests me, and hopefully, it will be of some interest to you too. Because I am a singer and voice teacher, my posts will be mostly about singing and good performance practice. Please feel free to leave a comment or send me an e mail.   Some time ago, I attended the annual vocal showcase at a prominent local conservatory. I was struck by what worked and what didn't work in performance. All the performances were dramatically committed, and all the singers were talented; but there was a certain problem. Presenting opera in a concert situation requires a balance between the staging we rightfully expect in a full production, and a sense of the conventions of the recital format. Dressed in a beautiful white strapless gown, one performer sank to the floor to mourn her dead father. In a concert situation with piano, don't end up on the floor. No matter how heartfelt your performance, breaki...