Tina,
Having people bend over and then inhale as they raise to an upright position
often works well...........sometimes you have to watch for the high shoulders
in some.
However, I think Cindy has the best idea.........talking about posture and
breathing is irrelevent unless you can talk about the voice as a
whole.......getting more breathe in the body does nothing to help one sing
better if you don't know how to begin the tone with a balanced onset.....etc.
Another thing to look for that relates to the balance of breathing/tone is
whether or not they can cresecendo/descrescendo correctly. Many, if not most,
singers will get louder by squeezing the tone tighter instead of pushing more
air. Conversely, many will get softer by releasing the tone instead of
decreasing the air pressure. In both cases the resulting tone will be either
strident or breathy.....working on this issue will naturally demand that the
singers' voice be in balance in order to do the exercises correctly.....and,
as Cindy suggested, you won't have to talk "technique" but will just teach by
application.
Anyway, I'd much rather focus on what I'm singing (the words), than where I'm
singing from (the butt ?) as some have eluded....... just a matter of
preference I guess :)
Good luck, you'll do great!
Mary Beth Felker
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