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From:  Greypins@a...
Date:  Thu Aug 8, 2002  4:01 pm
Subject:  Re: [vocalist] belting

anne,

i'm glad you brought up the estill approach to belting. from what i
have been able to figure out from gillyanne kayes' book (the title eludes
me), is that belting, ala estill, adopts a rather rigid posture: tilted
cricoid cartilage, neck more perpindicular to the ground (which, i believe
the estill school refers to as 'anchoring'), tongue position, etc. it is my
guess that this rigid posturing is exactly what leads to so great a need for
such vigorous 'support'. i also find it odd that clavicular breathing is
suggested when belting.

in my view, the term 'belting' has always been used primarily in
regard to female singers, making a distinction between the more 'head'
oriented singing of the female classical singer and the more 'chest' oriented
singing of the pop/mt/jazz/folk/whatever singer. in the male singer, the
distinction tends to be more stylistic (and how the use of the voice supports
a given style) rather than funtional. and in this sense, i find no unusual
need for more support than the standard.

additionally, i am bothered by the air of secrecy adopted by the
estill school. (i also find this troublesome when hearing about 'maestro'
jones.) it all smacks of marketing ploy.

mike






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