From: Linda Cool <cool@DPW.COM>	
Subject: Singing on the Breath
Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 15:04:26 GMT



The following is an e-mail response to 12/2/92 post re
"Singing on the Breath" that was *not* posted to rec.arts.theatre.
(Name omitted at writer's request, alas.  It's a good response.)

==================================================================
In article <Byn435.Aw5@world.std.com> you write:
>
>What does "singing on the breath" mean?  Images and abstract
>concepts welcome.  I know these are very individual things, but
>I'm still interested in hearing about them.

I'll have to use images and this is probably very personal,
but here goes:
When I am singing on the breath, the sound feels "connected" 
to the breath, which feels "connected" to the diaphragm. There 
is a physical sensation of the sound  originating from the 
diaphragm and spinning effortlessly up and out on the breath. 
All the effort comes from my gut - there is no sensation of 
the throat or neck straining to produce sound. I'm learning
to sing this way by using images - for example I imagine an 
endless  spool of silver ribbon connected to the diaphragm, 
and the ribbon is unrolling, up through the body and out through 
the resonators. I don't have to do anything, the ribbon (the breath)
just moves up and out by itself. The image probably wouldn't 
work for anyone else, but it helps me a lot!

When I am *not* singing on the breath, the sound feels
like it is coming from the back of my throat, the diaphragm
isn't working at all.  The breath is being cut off at the
throat. I tend to sing under pitch, and feel a lot of strain 
and even pain in the throat after singing this way. 

>
>Also:    There are certain singers (Pavarotti, Sutherland, Sills,
>	 the *young* Leona Mitchell), when one hears them sing in
>	 an opera house or concert hall, whose voice seems to
>	 come from everywhere.  You can see their lips moving, so
>	 you know with your mind where the sound is coming from,
>	 but the reality of sensation is that their voice is
>	 encompassing.  Is this quality a result of a particular
>	 sort of physiognomy?  Or is it a function of a learnable
>	 technique.  (I.e., can I learn to do this?  I hope.)  My
>	 singing teacher seems to believe the latter although we
>	 haven't pinpointed it yet.
>

I don't know how this happens - but an interesting note is that
recently a reviewer in the local paper here declined to review 
a singer, saying that she sounded as if her voice was coming from 
all sides, and that it wasn't necessarily her fault since it could 
have been the acoustics of the hall that caused it. So however that
effect is produced, it seems that not everyone thinks it's desirable...
(I don't think I'll ever have to worry about it either way, my
voice just isn't that *big*!)

>Another
>also:    Pavarotti talks about the "bite" (as does my singing
>	 teacher).  I've never seen this discussed here though.
>	 Any opinions?

Don't know about this one.
=================================================================

Happy Holidays everyone.  I'm "unsubscribing" (desubscribing?)
myself from "theatre-post@world.std.com" while I visit St. Louis
for 2 weeks.  (If I don't take this step, my user bin overflows
its allocated space and my e-mail portal slams shut.)  However,
I'd appreciate receiving *e-mail* from any of you out there
relating to this post.

Also can anyone tell me (cool@dpw.com) if "rec.music.classical"
is available via e-mail.  For months I've been searching
through the various "news.announce.*" & "r.m.c." posts -- to no
avail.  Our news feeds are so erratic & peripatetic & arbitrary
(&, hence, FrUsTrAtInG!) here -- I'm left hanging.  Any of you
goodly folks out there have any info or words of cheer.

Much Good Will and Cheer to You All.

Linda Cool
Newsgroups: rec.arts.theatre