Lesson Summary and Take-Aways 2/25/15

5432123454321 [gai lai gai lai], thinking of having a rectangle shape in the back of your mouth; think of a stretch not only vertically, but also horizontally. Think of the placement of the [g] sound; high and crisp/clear. With that square/rectangle shape in the back, wrap the lips around it/stretch the flesh around.

54321. 54321. [gai lai gai, go do go] Experiment with having more of the back teeth apart, especially on the first part of the exercise. Showing more of the front teeth in preparation for the vocalize.

8-5-3-1 (small) [i] (released) [a] (small) [u]. Skinny on the closed vowels of [i / u]. Then move on to quicker 8531, "yeow yeow yeow yeow."

5434323212171 "nya nye, nya nye nya." If you have a 'back to front' sensation with these vowels, then you weren't thinking high enough.

"Guess not" 8531. Notice the difference between "crashing the cymbals" and "ringing the bells." We want a feeling of "ting," not "splat."

12345678987654321. [a e o e a]. Maintain square feeling in the back of the jaw. Increase the slope of the space (diagonal line from tip of top front teeth to the cheek bones) as you go up in pitch. Also try experimenting with adding a "g" to the beginning of each of the vowels. Let the feeling of stretch be incremental. Think of the progression of going up in pitch as a track that comes towards you and curves up and around at the point of your neck--think of the turn as a wide turn in the pitch... if that makes sense. At a certain, there's an over/up sensation that eventually comes back to you when you get high enough in pitch. Extend this exercise so that it spends more time in the good/easy range for you. See recording @ 18:00.

Worked on my German pieces ("Frühlingsglaube" and "Gott I'm Frühling").
Work on an attitude change! Love the notes, love words. Have a feeling of appreciation. Enjoy the moment/savor each note.
Be more friendly with the notes. Be liberal with air in the beginning of phrases. Sing as if you really love all of these notes.
Pay attention to changes in tone/mood, from appreciative to hymn-like. Have a difference in physical approach.
Think of breath as incremental.
Always feeling winded --> have a feeling of "of course..."
For singing softer: think of the appearance of soft.

Take-Aways:

• Horizontal/rectangle stretching in the back of the mouth/bracket jaw
• Change your approach to music! Savor, enjoy, appreciate, predict. 
• Think of breath as incremental; use steady motions.