In my last post, I was very excited about lift. Still am. But I have found some dangers.
It is important to note, for example, that a new technique does not render invalid all old techniques. It’s not necessary to sing with the most ring all of the time. In fact, in some settings, singing with too much ring in the voice is the worst thing to do (in choral settings with tight harmonies, for example). Be flexible.
Bad habits will tend to become problematic while learning a new technique. You may think that you have mastered them, but then they come right back up when you add a new technique. For me, it’s my tongue and jaw. For my students, their breath collapses or their neck becomes a tight wad of veins and tension. It may be different for you. Be careful.
For some reason, when people find a way to be louder, they concentrate on the loudness rather than the pathway to doing it. Be careful while practicing “lift” that you don’t get decibel happy and push with all your might from your abdominals. Remember, the point with this technique to to not have to use excessive amounts of breath pressure. Ride the brightness, not the loudness. If you feel any discomfort, take a break and evaluate what you are doing or ask your teacher or a trusted friend for help.
I am still very excited about using lift to help create a better resonance space, but I must temper this with my brain that remembers taking techniques too far and tiring myself out.
I would love to hear your thoughts. Have you tried something like this? Do you have other images? Do you think this is all crazy?
Lately I’ve been working on technique with a slow, meditative approach. Slowing down helps me to become aware of my body’s own intelligence. For example, instead of reacting to a tension by trying to make the muscle relax, I simply observe it. When I do this, the tension moves-it releases-without me feeling like I had anything to do with it.
Here is my process that I’ve been developing the last couple of weeks:
1. release the jaw. For me, I think forward and down, but this may be different for some singers. I place my hands on the sides of my face and observe it intuitively. It sometimes takes a little while, but there is always a moment it finally releases.
2. Observe the back of the tongue. I find this releases easily once my jaw is released, but if it still feels a little held, I imagine the feeling of “gentle softness” in that area. This also helps me to sense that imagined space between the ears.
3. Add the lift. I always do this last while still keeping some attention on the release of the jaw and tongue. I focus on the lift happening on the front of my cheekbones and eyebrows. I am aware of the inhalation while I do this, but I don’t feel anything-not the slightest sliver of breath in my neck/throat.
This is a highly individualized approach, and I’m sure I’ll change it over time (as all singers need to recreate and explore continuously); however, it has really worked these last couple of weeks. It has completely cleaned up my onset. I’ve also noticed that once the back of my tongue releases, my lower belly releases (it took me a while to figure out that was actually happening. I don’t even really feel the initiation of the tone. It feels like it comes out of nowhere, which I think is a big step forward for me.
You bring up many good points about the tendency to try to force results and not evaluate approach. Good advice for everyone!
I like your ideas very much, Johanna. What you address very clearly here is the problem of being simply overwhelmed with information. We all know that we need full breaths, a relaxed tongue, released jaw, open pharyngeal space, clear diction, and have some space left over in our minds for artistic interpretation, but this is all really hard! I like the way you break down your process into individual steps. I will have to explore this more.