VocalWorks

Help for Acid Reflux

2011-06-21T17:33:00.000-07:00

Like many singers, I have had acid reflux for some time now and it continues to be a challenge for me. Since it is not healthy to stay on reflux medications for any length of time, I am always looking for other information/treatment. Courtesy of one of our members, Lisa Popeil, I have come across a new cookbook to reduce acid reflux. I have ordered it and will try it out. You will find the link to the book and website below. After using the book for a bit, I will report back. Meanwhile, if any of you have information, ideas or solutions, please be sure to comment!

http://www.refluxcookbook.com/

Getting Motivated after 50

2011-06-14T00:16:00.000-07:00

I never expected to be where/what I am today. Like most young people, I had ambition, drive, ideas, energy and abilities. I was physically fit and assumed that I would remain so. Looking at women older than myself, I would often think, "I'll never be like that." I wouldn't gain weight or wear "matronly" clothing or give up on what I wanted. My attitude would remain positive and I would not give up on my goals. Yet, here I am in my mid fifties, looking and behaving in exactly those undesired ways. What happened? And more important, what do I do about it now?

Looking at and reading motivational and self-improvement books and websites, they all seem to be relentlessly cheerful and optimistic, touting the idea that it's never too late to go after your dreams. Well, I'm here to say that that's a load of *!$%#.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that change is impossible. What I AM saying is that it can be really tough. Whatever the reasons are that get us to our undesired versions of ourselves in midlife, those reasons are real. Life is, at times, quite difficult. We are thrown curves that we never anticipated and, little by little, our former chipper, ambitious selves are chipped away. The disappointments, the battles, the health issues, the job changes, the financial worries, the deaths, the challenges of family life - all of these add up and slowly, little by little, can change us. We wake up one day, having been so busy catching those "curve balls", and realize we are not longer anywhere on the field we started on.

Then, having realized that we are nowhere close to where we wanted to be, we have no idea what the map is for getting back to, or even close to, our former selves. Meanwhile, the curves and their respective difficulties, may still be very present in our lives.

So, how to begin anew? To be honest, I don't have a neat and complete answer for that. I'm just starting that journey myself. What I can say is that one needs to get out of one's normal realm. Being around different people or trying/learning something new gives you a new experience of yourself. For example, not too long ago, I said "yes" to being more involved in an organization of which I am a member, and to serve on its Executive Board. Being essentially a loner, doing this was a stretch out of my comfort zone. However, being around people that I don't normally see and who have a different perspective on who I am and my abilities, really jolted me out of my depressive fog. It allowed me to reconnect with some of my strengths and to realize that, at least in some circles, others saw me as competent and having certain strengths. That, in turn, gave me energy to act on those strengths and do some other new things.

Take a class. Go to a workshop or seminar and learn some new skills or information. Do something that requires interaction with other people. By being around new people, one can get a renewed sense of self. Doing a new activity or new information can create a renewed sense of capability. Before one can follow all of those grand "Just Do It!" types of slogans, one has to find the energy. For me, at least, that energy has come from getting more involved (which is still a push for me) and exploring new ideas.

Has it totally changed me and my attitude? Have new ventures taken away any of the challenges that got me stuck in the first place? NO. But, it has given me the energy and bravery to try the next steps. Taking one step leads to the willingness to take another. And that, my friends, is what it takes. Take one little leap. And than another. And another...

The Importance of Pursuing Dreams

2011-06-13T09:39:00.000-07:00

Dreams are the oxygen we breathe. If we move towards them, all the happiness hormones will be released in our bodies. If we move away from them, we experience bad emotions. Depression might not be anything but your mind's response to giving up your dreams.

You might think that currently you have no dreams or that you are not depressed because of letting go of them but if you examined your past you will find things that you have always longed for but you ignored them when you didn't manage to achieve them.

Some of us keep fighting for these dreams and so maintain optimism and hope in their lives while others bury these dreams deep down in their subconscious minds and remain depressed for the rest of their lives.

Suppressing Your Dreams

Some people lie to themselves by trying to believe that they are living the lives they wanted. A man who has always wanted to be the CEO of large company but only managed to be a supervisor might start convincing himself that going higher in the corporate ladder might result in a stressful life. Even though the man might actually believe the lie his subconscious mind never believes it and the result in an inner conflict and a severe depression

Unless you revive your dreams you will always stay depressed. So, is there any solution to this problem? Yes! There is a powerful solution that requires some courage but that is very effective. Remove the dust the covers your old dreams, revive your life goals that you have always wanted to achieve and admit that you were lying to yourself by accepting the way you live right now. Only then you will start to breathe once again and only then your subconscious

mind will find that your life is worth living and that depression is no longer needed.

You just need to make your life meaningful, and nothing can make it more meaningful than fighting for the things that you really wanted to have.

M. Farouk Radwan

Article Source: http://www.positivearticles.com

Self Motivation Tips

2011-06-12T12:34:00.000-07:00

Tips for Self Motivation

Each of us has enormous, untapped potential. Here are several very effective strategies to help you get moving toward that fabulous potential.
1. Be willing to leave your comfort zone.
The greatest barrier to achieving your potential is your comfort zone. Great things happen when you make friends with your discomfort zone.
2. Be willing to make mistakes.
Wisdom helps us avoid making mistakes and comes from making a million of them.
3. Practice empowering, expansive thoughts.
Don't indulge in self-limiting thinking.
4. Choose to be happy.
We often cannot control the events, circumstances or people in our lives. However, we CAN control our reactions to them. Happy people are more motivated. Make the conscious choice for happiness.
5. Finish what you start.
So many of us become scattered as we try to accomplish a task. Finish one task before you begin another.
6. Practice, "I get to...."
When you experience a setback or frustration, turn it around by saying, "I get to...". I get to take more voice lessons before I win that audition. Never quit because of a setback.
"We must be prepared, at any moment, to sacrifice who we are for who we are capable of becoming." - Charles Dubois

Motivation

2011-05-25T16:24:00.000-07:00

While this may apply more to teachers and conductors than it does to singers, I found this video to be fascinating. I'll let it speak for itself here:

Teaching Children Singing

2011-05-25T07:50:00.000-07:00

Teaching Children: Vocal Pediatric Research

Pediatric Vocal Development: Implications for Teaching Singing to Children

I’ve just read an article discussing the vocal differences between child and adult singers and the implications for teachers. The information cited below is a reduced version of that article. For more information and the complete article, please see the footnote.*

Most of what we learn about vocal pedagogy and the voice science behind it is based on adult vocal pedagogy. With few exceptions most research in pediatric pedagogy for singing has not incorporated findings from the voice science field. The following is a brief outline of more current research findings in voice science that music teachers need to know to work effectively with young voices.

1. Children’s Vocal Anatomy is Not Like That of Adults.
The primary function of the larynx is to protect the airway from unwanted food and liquid. Because of this, the infant larynx is placed very high in the vocal tract and the rest of the vocal structures are also undeveloped and remain so until the onset of puberty.

Therefore, children have small singing and speech ranges, that are higher than adult voices. We should have our young students start with songs in a narrow range, D—A.

2. Young Children Do Not Have a Fully Functional Vocal Ligament.

A fully functional vocal ligament does not develop until between the ages of 10 and 13 years. The vocal ligament binds the muscles together that cause registration events and, thus, children do not have the registration events we associate with singing. Since the bands are fairly short, they are limited to how much they can stretch, which results in a small pitch range for singing. However, vertical laryngeal movement is observable when the child tries to phonate at a pitch that is too high or too low to produce with the larynx in a resting state.

On a practical level, this means that the teacher should monitor for any signs of stress in singing. Common signs of stress are a forced sound, raising and sticking out the chin, or pulling the chin into the chest.

3. Children Do Not Have a Physiologically Natural Vocal Vibrato

Since children’s voices lack a developed vocal ligament prior to pugerty, that means they cannot produce healthy vibrato. They lack the physiology to create it. (This doesn’t stop children from generating a forced vibrato). On the other hand, vibrato in an adult voice is the indicator of a healthy voice, since lack of vibrato indicates that there is excessive vocal tension in the vocal bands.

Therefore, the following is recommended: if you can sing with your grown-up voice in a light adjustment and your children are able to match you, then that is the best. However, if you do need to go to a straight tone to help the children sing in tune, that is fine as long as you don’t do it for an extended period of time.

4. The Healthy Child Voice Physiologically Cannot Sound Like an Adult Voice and Vice Versa.

A healthy child voice should sound focused but not forced with the singing voice and the speech voice sound much more the same than in adults.

The timbre of the child voice should be even along the range of pitches the child can sing with no vibrato, no excessive dynamic changes, and no overt physical stress. They need frequent breaks.

5. Children Do Not Have Fully Developed Respiratory Systems

Children will need to breath much more often as the respiratory system does not become adult-like until around the age of 11. Short phrases in singing are good, long phrases are bad.

6. Children are Susceptible to Vocal Problems

65% of K-12 students involved in music suffer form neuromusculoskeletal problems that could be attributed to music performance. What does this mean to music educators?

First, the songs children sing at concerts must be physically appropriate as well as aesthetically pleasing. Songs written for adult voices should not be used.

Second, monitor for signs of vocal distress.

Three, reassess use of prerecorded accompaniments. Many are over orchestrated, forcing kids to over-compensate to be heard.

* "Pediatric Vocal Development and Voice Science: Implications for Teaching Singing.” Valerie Trollinger. General Music Today (Online) 20 no3 1 Spr 2007

Conquering Flying Cows

2011-04-12T21:48:00.000-07:00

I was at a voice student's dress rehearsal for a recital and she was having major memory lapses. As the rehearsal went on, she just got worse and worse. The more upset she got, the less she could remember and actually sing through. Her flying cows were winning.

What the heck do I mean by flying cows? Do you remember the movie, "Twister"?I may have changed some things in my memory of the film, but the scene I have in mind goes something like this... The two main characters are scientists who study and chase tornadoes. In this scene they are going to drive across a bridge, over a large expanse of water, with wild winds all around them and with a tornado bearing down on them. Suddenly, a cow goes flying past their vehicle, grabbing their attention.

Here is where my analogy begins. We all experience forms of "flying cows" - something that is unexpected and grabs our attention. It can be a word slip, phlegm, someone rattling a program - anything that can potentially distract the performer. Well, had our movie characters been totally focused on the cow, they would have driven off of the bridge and plunged into the water and drowned. Instead, they noticed the cow and then kept driving straight down the road toward their destination, thus avoiding disaster. My poor student got so focused on her mistakes, her "cows", the she crashed.

Learning to focus on what is coming up ahead is one of the most valuable skills a performer can learn. It can also be one of the most challenging. However, any distraction, whether it comes from within (one's thoughts) or from the outside (a wrong note in the piano, a crash outside, etc.) will kill one's performance, if one lets it. For example, as soon as my attention is on the word I missed, I am out of the present moment. I am trying to retrieve a word that it is already too late for. The moment is gone and if I try to recapture it, I forfeit whatever still lies ahead in my song (or speech). Instead, I need to stay focused on the phrase coming up next.

Practice letting the cows fly past. Yes, you will notice them. But they don't deserve any focus. Concentrate on the phrase you are going to sing, not the one you have already sung. With enough experience and practice, one can learn to stay on task.

Your Voice on Drugs

2011-04-08T00:52:00.001-07:00

As voice teachers and singers, most of us are aware of the side effects of at least some medications. What may not be common knowledge is just how many drugs, supplements, and even foods can have a detrimental effect on one’s voice. Here is just a short list of substances of which to be aware.

Alcohol is both dehydrating and causes swelling of the tissues (not to mention
impaired coordination). Best to have that glass of wine after a performance!

Aspirin. Aspirin causes platelet dysfunction and can lead to vocal fold hemorrhage. If used for pain, a safer alternative is ibuprofen (motrin). However, if one is prescribed aspirin for coronary artery disease or heart disease, taking a child’s dose daily is considered to have a low chance of jeopardizing the voice.

MAOIs (used in treatment of depression). Many of these drugs have been associated with speech disorders, hoarseness, and loss of voice, among other possible symptoms. Discuss possible side effects along with alternative drugs with your physician.

Antihypertensive (blodd pressure) Agents tend to dry mucous membranes of the respiratory tract. They are often used in combination with a diuretic that promotes dehydration. If mucosal drying and a dry, nonproductive cough persist, discuss using a different hypertensive agent with your physician.

Sleeping Pills. Avoid diphenhydramine (Benadryl, Warner-Lambert), an antihistamine that is a common ingredient in many sleep aids. It is a safe drug but produces excessive drying of mucosal membranes.

Cough Medications may be drying to the mucous membranes. Be sure that the one you use contains Guaifenesin, a mucolytic agent (provides moistures).

Supplements and Common Ingredients

Dandelion acts as a diuretic; can cause dehydration.

Echinacea
Used to treat upper respiratory infections. Short term, it can have an immune stimulating effect. Usage for mare than 8 weeks, though, may suppress the immune system and cause liver damage.

Elder acts as a diuretic; can cause dehydration.

Goldenseal may elevate blood pressure and cause allergic responses.

Melatonin Used by many as a sleep aid; it has hormonal activity and can also cause immune dysregulation.

Ginkgo May cause bleeding, GI upset, palpations. Do not take with blood thinning medication, insulin, antidepressants. One of the more worrisome, potential side effects is excesseive spontaneous bleeding with reports of spontaneous brain hemorrhage.

Ephedra Used to reduce weight, it has been known to be fatal. It may cause heart attacks, strokes, seizures, hypertension, or death.

Ginseng May cause agitation, insomnia, nervousness; may cause vaginal bleeding. Avoid using with caffeine, blood thinning, and antidiabetic medications.

Kava Liver toxicity, GI upset, headache, dizziness. Avoid using it. Several European countries have banned its use.

This is by no means a complete list and please keep in mind that these are possible side effects. Any questions or problems should be discussed with a qualified medical professional.

Sharpening Your Musicianship

2010-05-18T09:45:00.000-07:00

Want to challenge yourself? Here are some fun exercises to try to hone your skills as a musician:

1. Sing a familiar melody in a different mode. For example, if the song is in a Major key, try singing it in a minor key, flattening the 3rd and raising the 7th.

2. Sing 7 notes in whole steps. For example: A, B, C#, D#, F, G, A.

3. Try singing a melody with accompaniment, but one 1/2 step higher or lower. This one will drive you crazy!

4. Write down a random series of numbers (such as 1, 2, 7, 3, 6, 4) and then sing them.

(For more suggestions, check out Judy Rodman's "All Things Vocal" blog).

Memorizing Music

2010-05-03T11:22:00.000-07:00

Having trouble memorizing your pieces? There are several ways to go about this effectively. Here is just one method that I've found useful:

Write out the words.
Write out the text, a sentence or phrase at a time, repeating the words out loud,
and memorizing the translation (if in a foreign language) at the same time.

Do this over and over until you can do most of the song without getting stuck.

Then, for the places where you do forget, take the last few words of the previous line and "link" it to the first few of the next line.

Example:
Line ends with "And I will pledge with mine."
Next line is "Or leave a kiss within the cup..."
You would then write (several times) "pledge with mine or leave a kiss".

The act of using several senses: sound, sight, and touch, plus thinking of the meaning, will really help cement the words for you.

When you get to the point where you can "rattle off" the words, without punctuation and without stopping to think, then you truly know your words!

Becoming a Vocal Athlete: Part II

2010-03-20T14:49:00.000-07:00

How Much Should I Practice?

Recently one of my students posted a note on FaceBook about being so pleased with his vocal progress. When I asked him about it and to what did he attribute it, he replied, "Well, I am practicing every day now." That's in addition to whatever singing he already does.

As teachers we emphasize the importance of regular practice, but singing every day is not enough. For a singer's body to transform into an optimum singing "athlete", he/she needs to delicately push the limits of the voice. One needs to create the physical demands that will cause the body to adapt and change. At the same time, one must not push the voice too much.

So, how do we know how much is just right? Singing and practicing until the throat begins to feel tired is a good guideline. One will feel that the voice is less flexible in dynamic levels, range, and color. The voice may feel heavy. It should not, however, feel strained or begin to sound edgy or hoarse. That's pushing too far.

Aim for a "good" tired in each practice session. Depending on your body and the level at which you are at on any given day, the length of time will vary for each individual and from day to day.

Next: How to use the principle of "Muscle Specificity."

Becoming a Vocal Athlete: Part I

2010-03-05T12:27:00.000-08:00

Why do we need to practice? One can look to exercise physiology for some of the answers. Conditioning the body for singing is like conditioning an athlete's body for any sport. One must "build up" one's body through time with repeated and specific exercises in order to achieve optimum singing ability. This is the first in a series of posts on how principles from exercise physiology can be applied to the voice

The body wants to conserve its current state. Before the body will make physiological changes it must "believe" it is going to need those changes for a long time. It yields its current state only over time and with repeated demand.

Here are just some of the physical changes that occur with regular singing and the time it takes for the body to begin those changes:

3 months: The body begins to transform the processes that inhibit the signals that stimulate the muscles. This allows muscles to respond more readily when called upon.
6 months: The Body begins to increase the number of mitochondria (microscopic "energy factories" that supply muscles with fuel to contract).
12 months1: The body starts to increase the ability to circulate, deliver, and use oxygen during intense muscular contractions. This help to develop extended range as well as sostenuto, intense, and continuous singing.
15 months: The body beings to grow more capillaries that reach teh muscles used in singing over time, increasing the blood supply and the oxygen available for the muscles to process energy and ward off fatigue.

Not only do we, as singers, need to practice regulary, but we must continue to do so over a long period of time to even begin to affect change! So let's get going and sing!!

(Excerpted from Excellence in Singing by Robert Caldwell and Joan Wall, Caldwell Publishing, 2001, Vol. 3).

Going Backwards for Success

2010-02-05T11:03:00.000-08:00

Feeling clueless on how to proceed towards your goals? Don't know quite where to start? Or feeling overwhelmed by the enormity of what needs to be done? Use this plan to take you, step by step, towards acheiving your goals. It's planning backwards and here's how it works...

Start by stating, in writing, where you want to be in, say, five years. This can include your career goal, financial goal, fitness goal, really anything you want. For each one of those goals you will work out a backward plan. For example, let's say that I want to be twenty pounds lighter and able to run a marathon. In this case, I might want to work backward from a one year goal (since it is doable in that amount of time). Okay, now where do I need to be in six months? Maybe it's ten pounds lighter and able to run a half-marathon. What are the steps I need to take me there, in three months, one month, one week, and one day at a time?

By breaking it down into smaller and smaller units as well as daily tasks, I no longer feel whelmed by it all. Plus, I can have a sense of accomplishment with each mini-task that I've completed. Before you know it, I've arrived at the destination!

Where do I want to be (to have accomplished) in 5 years?
What has to happen this next year to get me there?
What do I need to do by the end of 6 months?
3 months?
1 month?
This week?
Today?

Map it all out on a large calendar or chart and place it where you can readily see it each day. Be sure to check off each item that you've done to show your progress. By starting backward, you can move forward and end up right where you want to!

Back to Basics

2010-01-23T10:34:00.000-08:00

I recently took a voice lesson that consisted almost entirely of just starting the tone, over and over again. Keep in mind that I have been singing professionally and teaching for almost thirty years. One would think, then, that this lesson was both boring and useless to me. Instead, it was one of the best lessons I’ve had. It is precisely because I have been singing and teaching for so long that this was terrific. One gets so used to one’s routine as well as seeking newer and better ways of doing things that it is easy to forget that the simplest and most basic of elements can often be the most profound.

Particularly in the last decade or so, the voice teaching profession seems to have gotten more competitive with more and more business minded types out on the internet, advertising, blogging, and, sometimes, hyping their wares. “You, too, can learn the secrets to a high C and ultimate success.” In this environment it is easy to think that one is not up to date, or providing the best information and service to one’s students. Yet when I go to a lesson myself, I am not looking for the newest, shiniest “toy”. I am looking for someone to care about me and to hone in on and help me with whatever issue I may be having with my voice; or, just helping me to stay on track. So, it is an excellent lesson to realize that sometimes the simplest of things can be the best of things.

In practicing and in teaching, don’t be afraid to revisit basic tenets of singing and performance. In our quest to constantly advance, these basics can often get left by the wayside. Yet they are the core of what we do. Breathing, easy onsets and phonation; how to walk onto the stage and just be present; these are things that are worth our time and effort, even if it IS the thousandth time!

Confidence Wins Over Smarts

2010-01-20T12:58:00.001-08:00

Frustrated because you are not taken seriously? Other people get opportunities that you don't? Maybe they are just speaking up more than you. In an article published in Scientific American Mind (September/October 2009) by Robert Goodier, new research shows that leaders are not necessarily more intelligent than others, but rather they simply speak up more often. People believe that those who speak up more often in a group are the smartest even though, in reality, they have the same intelligence as others in the group.

How does this relate to performance? We've all seen the person who, when performing or auditioning, does not exude confidence. While we may feel for that person's discomfort, we do tend to perceive that person as not being very capable. On the other hand, the person who confidently presents his performance, regardless of its true quality, is often judged to have been "better" or more successful.

What if you are not that naturally confident, outgoing animal to which I refer. What if, instead, you are NOT sure of yourself -- you are innately quiet and unassuming. This is where one's acting chops have to come in to play. Behave AS IF you are confident. That's number one!

Secondly, no one can hope to step on stage with a sense of empowerment if he or she is not completely prepared. Do your homework! Learn everything you can about the material you are performing. Plan every moment of your execution of the piece. If you don't know how to sing or how to act, take lessons! Practice, practice, practice. And, by all means, practice behaving in a confident manner.

Other interesting research (same issue of Scientific American Mind) shows that the way we feel emotions isn't just restricted to our brain. There are parts of our bodies that help and reinforce the feelings we're having. If we act and smile in a confident manner, we are more likely to actually feel that way.

So let's get started. Ready? Smile, step forward, and speak up!

Why Can't Singers Act? (Or vice-versa)

2010-01-19T16:13:00.000-08:00

If you are in the world of song performance, you’ve seen the following: a fabulous singer who is, nevertheless, boring on stage. Or, the wonderful actor who, when singing, suddenly looks like he’s never been on stage before. What is it about the act of singing that turns even the most accomplished performer and expressive person into a stiff, awkward, untruthful, and less than human being on stage? And is it the singing or the acting that needs the attention?

Well, if you are a trained singer, chances are that you are at least somewhat comfortable with the singing aspect of your performance. If you are not yet at the level you wish to be, at least you have some sense of control over your voice and what is expected of you. However, the acting of the song often leaves something to be desired because, as singers, we are not trained in what to do. We are left to our instincts rather than a methodology for buiding an effective performance.

On the flip side is the trained actor who, robbed of his usual timing and vocal contr0l (let alone an acting partner), is left to flop his way through a territory that he is already terrified of — singing.

What is little known to both the singer and actor is that there IS a method for building one’s performance. All of the elements of good acting: point of view, objective, obstacle, tactics, etc. are involved. But above and beyond that is how to apply them to song in an interesting, rather than cliched way, and to move with appropriate timing.

My premise here is that the singer who “can’t” act, as well as the actor who performs dismally when singing, are both simply the victims of a lack of the appropriate tools. The singer must learn the language and methodology of acting. The actor must become confident that what eminates from his mouth when he opens it to sing is something he has control over – achieved through technique and training. And both must learn how things are different in a song from any other type of performance. The timing is different.

With that said, it is my intention to post articles here that relate to the topics of voice training and to performance training for singers. Stay tuned for more....

Just Where IS that Diaphragm?

2009-07-13T18:27:00.000-07:00

There seems to be a lot of misconception about the diaphragm: it's location and it's role in singing. So let's begin with a little anatomy lesson...
News flash: the lungs do not cause the air to come into the body and thus make your chest or abdomen expand. It's the action of muscles, which cause the lungs to expand, that brings air into the body. Those muscles are called the diaphragm and the external intercostals. For this post, we'll just address the diaphragm. Learning about the intercostals later will give you something to look forward to!
The diaphragm is a muscle, the second largest in the body (second only to the gluteus maximus muscles. They're not called maximus for nothin')! It is shaped like a dome with two small humps.