The Essentials of Beautiful Singing. A Three-Step Kinesthetic Approach

Voice research has revealed much about the singing voice, but this valuable information does not necessarily transfer into fine singing. In The Essentials of Beautiful Singing: A Three-Step Kinesthetic Approach, performer and scholar Karen Tillotson Bauer bridges this gap by reframing the complexities of voice science with a cultivated simplicity of style and terminology that speaks directly to the singer?s experience of singing.

With her three-step approach, Bauer integrates fact and application in a logical order, step by step. With clarity and immediate relevancy, this work takes the mystery out of singing by approaching it as a kinesthetic experience. Through the use of short verbal prompts and guided exercises, The Essentials of Beautiful Singing helps the singer discover good breath management, realize good resonance, and achieve clear enunciation. The focus throughout is on the skillful use of the body as a musical instrument, the source of fine singing.

For the experienced voice teacher, choral director and singer at any level, Bauer?s three-step approach offers a fresh perspective on the familiar principles of vocal function. Clear explanations of the singing processes replace vague notions, and a relevant terminology makes refined singing more accessible. The Essentials of Beautiful Singing cuts to the heart of vocal technique and challenges some common pedagogical assumptions while defining a dependable foundation for fine singing.

CONTENIDO:

List of Figures
Acknowledgments
Introduction

Part 1: Setting the Stage for the Three-Step Approach
1.- Overview of the Three-Step Approach
2.- Posture: A Precondition of Beautiful Singing
Context
Achieving Body Alignment
Combining the Effort with Movement

Part II: The Three Steps: One Step at a Time
3.- Step 1: "Open Body" and Breath Management
The Context: The Kinesthetic Experience of the Open Body
Inhalation: The Body as Initiator and Receptacle
Exhalation: Controlled Release of Air
Summary

4.- Step 2: "Open Throat" and Resonance
The Context
Phonation
Resonance
The Workload
The Kinesthetic Experience of the Open Throat
Part 1: Posture Preparation
Part 2: Inhalation
Part 3: Consciousness Raising
Part 4: Resonating en Spoken Tones
Part 5: Resonating en Sung Tones
Talking Points
Forward/Back
Dark or Light: The Chiaroscuro Balance
Pharyngeal Space Soft Palate Nasality
Jaw/Mouth Opening Tongue Involvement
Summary

5.- Step 3: "Forward Articulation" and Enunciation
The Context
Vowels
The[a]
The[e]
The[i]
The[o]
The[u]
Consonants
The Kinesthetic Experience of Forward Articulation
The Dropped Jaw
An Enemy to Forward Articulation:
A Tongue That Pulls Back
The Chiaroscuro Balance
Summary

Part III: Refinements toward Greater Skill
6.- Principies of Registration
The Context
Chest Register in the Female Voice
Accessing and Isolating the Chest Voice
Relationships between the Female Chest, Middle, and Head Voice
Head Register in the Male Voice
Accessing Head Voice
Strengthening the Head Voice
Relationships between the Male Chest, Middle, and Head Voice
The Messa di Voce for the Male and Female Voices
Volume-Dictated Adjustments
Summary

7.- Developing the Upper Range
The Context
The Male Upper Range
The Female Upper Range
Summary
Open Body
Open Throat
Forward Articulation

8.- Legato and Musicality
The Context
Meter
Words
Meter, Text, Singing, and Musicality
Music Excerp
Fast Passage Work
Summary

Postlude: What Goes Around Comes Around
Appendix: Selected International Phonetic Alphabet Symbols and Corresponding English Words

Index