Dear Listers,
Wow! what a great batch of email we had running today. Hats off
to Lloyd and Reg for their insight. I'm glad to be back in on these
informative discussions.
A few comments regarding nasal resonance, V.Port, and/or
nasality: The tried and true method used decades, perhaps centuries
ago, still works today. It is a sure way to monitor whether you are
employing the use of a side-branch resonator.
Sing a medium pitch and hold a vowel(Italian 'a' as in 'padre'
works well)....pinch the nose...if the voice becomes muffled
(immediate change in sound quality and feeling of air moving through
nares) you are most likely using a side branch resonator. You can
also hold a tone while alternately closing and opening the nostrils
with the fingers while monitoring for changes.
The main idea behind this rather simplistic exercise is to have
NO change at all in vocal quailty from the closed nostril position to
the open position while sustaining a tone. I use this exercise quite
ofter with my voice students. It is something they can FEEL and HEAR
immediately.
It may also be important to keep in mind the fact that not all
sympathetic vibration contributes to the acoustic product. Some of it
is wasted, and the audience never hears it. In musical instruments
we encounter three kinds of vibration: 1) the primary vibrator; for
singing this is the larynx, 2) secondary vibrator, which we call
the 'resonator'- in singing this is the body of air mainly in the
throat and mouth, and 3) 'waste material'(mentioned above). I
suppose this waste material may also be termed 'resonance' if you
like. However, we may want to apply the word 'resonance' only for
those vibrations which enhance the product that the audience hears.
Take Care All,
Taylor L. Ferranti
DMA Candidate in Vocal Pedagogy
LSU
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