On Wed, 13 Jun 2001, John Link wrote:
> Ginny Allen wrote:
>
> >The difference is that the emphasis is the preposition
> >"ON the breath," rather than "WITH the breath."
>
> I know what it means for a book to be on the table but just what is
> the meaning of "on the breath"? Is it possible to explain it, or
> would a demonstration or a lesson be required?
I think it's an imagery thing more than anything, though it definitely has
tangible technical results. Some of the images that work for me to
*visualise* how the sound and the breath interplay are:
One of those little toys where you have a hollow plastic ball and a stream
of air blowing from below - if you don't keep the stream of air flowing,
the little plastic ball drops and sits still - but when the airstream is
flowing, the ball not only keeps up, but also spins and "dances" on the
column of air. So the ball - the note(s) I'm singing - are literally
suspended "on the air" or "on the breath", floating, in motion, dancing.
I also think of an oil slick on a river - the sound is the multicoloured
oil slick, the river is the flow of breath - the river may widen, may move
faster, or narrow, move slower - but it continues to flow, and the oil
slick continues to move, change its rainbow colours and conformation on
top of the flow of water, but not until that flow of water stops would the
oil slick finally go still and begin to break up, disintegrate, and
disappear - just as the vibrations of my sound won't begin to fade and
disappear until I stop the flow of breath. Again, the sound is "on the
breath", just like the oil is on the water.
"With the breath" seems to me more like a thing that has the breath
pushing it involuntarily along. It just seems like a more effortful
concept, and also one that results in breathiness in the sound, because
the air is basically forcing itself through the folds, and the singer is
having to concentrate on reining the breath back - where as with "on the
breath" singing, the breath stream is always exactly the size it needs to
be in response to the acoustic, musical and emotional requirements of the
music I'm singing.
I warned you it was all a matter of imagery, at least that's how it works
for me.
KM
............................
NEIL SHICOFF, TENORE SUPREMO
http://www.radix.net/~dalila/shicoff/shicoff.html
My Own Website
http://www.radix.net/~dalila/index.html
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+ I sing hymns with my spirit, +
+ but I also sing hymns with my mind. +
+ - 1 Corinthians 14:15 +
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
|
|  |
