Talk:Vocal pedagogy/Archive 1

This is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page.

I do intend to delete this article and contribute to Singing instead, but I don't know how to delete articles yet (sorry) and I have to leave for class... be back in a couple of hours. PeripheralV 21:08, 28 September 2006 (UTC)

• My apologies, but this is NOT how I currently feel. I now know that it isn't cool to delete things from talk pages, but I felt I had to make that clear. Chalk it up to newbness I suppose. PeripheralV 02:43, 29 September 2006 (UTC)

• Oppose: I have to oppose the proposal to merge this article with Singing as they are two totally different things. Singing is when you produce musical sounds, where as vocal technique, although also applicable to singing, could apply to for example just speaking. Madder 00:05, 29 September 2006 (UTC)
  • Wow, I didn't think that two people would feel concerned enough to comment on the article. I guess I caved too quickly, because I agree that while the most common connotation for Vocal Technique is its application in "clean" vocals in music, it also applies to less "clean" vocals like screaming, growling, grunting, and the "death growl" or "death grunt", and speaking as well.

(ARG! Again I failed to sign my comment... I'll sign it now, at least the time will be close) PeripheralV 02:43, 29 September 2006 (UTC)

• • • Hey, no problem! I think this is eligible for an article of its own (my reasons above). Sure it might seem as if it's instructing, but that can be changed so that it's just an article listing commonly used vocal techniques by singers. By the way: please don't delete text from the talk page, though I know it's an easy mistake! And also don't forget to sign with ~~~~ - again an easy mistake to make! :-) Madder 01:20, 29 September 2006 (UTC)
• How long do proposals stay "open" before consensus or lack thereof is determined? If no one else voices an opinion one way or another within, say, a couple days, I guess that no one will object to my removal (in good faith) of the mergeto/mergefrom. PeripheralV 17:59, 29 September 2006 (UTC)

I would also agree that singing is a seperate topic. Actors study vocal technique in regards to speech. They study diction and projection and how to do certain kinds of accents and things along those lines.Nrswanson (talk) 03:59, 29 March 2008 (UTC)

Every article needs an introduction, I suggest that this article's introduction include a nutshell description of the basics of technique that give the vocalist as many options as possible, things like releasing perceived "control mechanisms" (tongue, jaw, pharyngeal muscles, et cetera), diaphragmatic breathing, and separating vocalization and singing. Perhaps also a declaration of intent to describe a wide range of technique (and the foundations thereof), from the melodic clear vocals commonly associated with "proper" singing to melodic death grunts and hardcore screams.

From there we could move to describing the instrument in question (the body) part by part. Relevant anatomy. While a brief treatment of the pneumogastric nerve might be interesting, we don't need to go into that kind of detail as this isn't a pure anatomy article. A brief mention of all the relevant parts should suffice, skeletal structure (spine, ribs), head airways (pharynx, nasal passages, mouth), muscles (intercostals, diaphragm, abdominals, straps), larynx (cricoid and arytenoid, true folds, false folds, abductors, adductors, tensors and relaxers), sublaryngeal stuff (trachea, bronchi, bronchiole, alveolar sacs).

Next we could move to breathing. High-, mid-, and low- torso breathing are all available to the vocalist, although high breathing sacrifices tone for about 10% of the body's total air capacity, it's still an option when necessary, so it should be included.

Next could come phonation. We could mention here that whispering is bad news for your vocal folds. It could be desirable for one or two very quiet lines in a song, but only rarely. A treatment on phonating for maximum resonance could lead right into the next section...

Resonance! We could mention here that resonance means more projecting power, and more perceived volume for less effort on the part of the vocal folds... quite desirable for every singing style, from opera to death growling. A brief touch on acoustics might be nice here, but it may be beyond what a vocalist needs to know.

Building the instrument. Since you can't buy a new larynx, every vocalist has to build his/her own instrument... time consuming, but highly satisfying. Here we could include common exercises, and what's happening under the hood (again, without overloading non-medical students)

Tools of the trade. Staccato, legato, volume, tone (lax, tense, balanced, scream, growl, grunt, spoken), register theory (one, two and three register theories, auxiliary registers). This naturally leads to a discussion on how to play the instrument you've built. Posture, how to not lose your voice, stage tricks.

Maintaining the instrument. Nutrition and exercise is crucial since the vocalist is both instrumentalist and instrument. Good diet, aerobic and stretching exercise, getting enough sleep. Warm-up before vocalizing or singing and warm-down afterwards, every time, no exceptions. If you use screaming/growling/grunting, practice it enough so that the excitement of performance doesn't make you blow your technique and therefore your vocal folds.

Vocal Damage. Unpleasant, but it must be explained. Nodes, polyps, ulcerations, chronic laryngitis, bowed folds, abnormal closure. When to see your otto-laryngologist.

This is nowhere near the kind of outline you would submit to an English teacher, but it's something. Of course I forgot stuff, and of course I'll only think of said stuff after hitting the save button, but I hope to start some dialog on all of these concepts. I don't want this article to sound instructional (I'll save that for Wikibooks) since we're dealing with an encyclopedia, but I do want it to mention all the details of technique and its building blocks.

I didn't read all that as it's far too long for me to be bothered with. It's nice to see you're giving it a think though. Please do tell me however what the difference between grunting and growling is.--I'll bring the food 23:06, 25 November 2006 (UTC)