Date sent: Thu, 27 Jan 2000 10:29:38 EST
Subject: Re: Exercises for Breathy Singers
To: vocalist
Send reply to: VOCALIST <vocalist>

In a message dated 01/26/2000 3:34:25 PM Eastern Standard Time,
lasharp-at-nycap.rr.com writes:

<< Let me clarify that this student's challenge is NOT the common teenaged
breathiness, but one that has been drilled into her as a member of a choir
where that hooty sort of white sound was considered desirable and she has
taken it to a painful extreme. >>

I have a student like that. The sound drives me nuts, because it sounds
like she's singing around a mouthful of cotton. What has worked best for me
with this student is to do everything I can to bring the sound forward. I've
had her concentrate on really singing the consonants and making them very
precise. I've also worked on "nyah" a lot, which has helped. When she gets
the sound forward, it's a great sound. She's also very musical, which makes
working with her a real joy. I think she just took everything she learned
from her children's choir director (who happens to be my church choir
director, so I have a good idea of what she heard in choir) waaaay too much
to heart and went too far with it.

Lee Morgan
Mezzo-soprano