Dear Laura and List,
Have you come across Jo Estill's teaching? Among other things, she uses
something which she calls anchoring, particularly head and neck
anchoring. Put very briefly, and probably simplifying way too much, this
makes use of the big neck muscles, such as sternocleidomastoid, to help
the smaller laryngeal muscles, which, in the case of the singers you
mention, are no longer strong enough to keep the voice steady.
I went on a course run by Estill in 1996, when she was, I think, 75
years old. While she said she had lost her very top notes, due to
laryngeal ossification, she sang a soprano top G without a hint of a
wobble. Her neck muscles were working very hard to do this, and I really
think it's the sort of thing that needs to be learned from a real live
teacher rather than over the internet, but she repeatedly maintained
that, although you have to work harder and smarter as you get older,
there need be minimal voice deterioration (apart from the aforementioned
ossification).
If there are any Estill teachers out there, sorry for probably
oversimplifying! There may well be other vocal teaching methods which
use the same sort of techniques.
Regards, Sheila
Sheila Graham
Mezzo-soprano, Edinburgh, Scotland
www.sheilagraham.demon.co.uk
'She is a singer, and therefore capable of anything' (Bellini)
In message <000001c057fa$345155c0$732b1d18@d...>, Laura Sharp
In message <000001c057fa$345155c0$732b1d18@d...>, Laura Sharp
<lasharp@n...> writes
<lasharp@n...> writes
>Dear List:
>
>I sing in a rather fine church choir with a better-than-average soprano
>section. But this year I've seen one after another quietly head over to the
>alto section or switch to second from first. Each woman who made a switch
>was older - between 65 and 70 and each was saddened by loss of range
>accompanied by increase in wobble. Not all were large-voiced or classically
>trained, but all have lovely instruments and are excellent musicians.
>
>Some have asked me to help them see if they can work towards feeling
>comfortable in the section again and I'd like to try. I know I've seen some
>studies on the aging voice somewhere in my web research and I'll dig those
>up again, but do any of you know of any published work on this subject? I
>know there are physical changes - ossification and the like, but I don't
>believe the physical changes cause the wobble - I've known more than my
>share of 30-something wobblers! It makes sense to me that a certain amount
>of body bracing becomes more habitual as we get older and maybe some of us
>get less in tune with our bodies and how to relax that tension to breathe
>freely and efficiently.
>
>I'd like to believe, as a future old but still groovy soprano, that much of
>the changes reflect a need to acknowledge a changing body and therefore,
>instrument. There are drivers ed. classes for the older driver called Alive
>at 55. What about Divas at 75?
>
>Thanks!
>
>Laura Sharp
>Albany NY
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--
Sheila Graham
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