Lesson and Practice 1/7/17

I preceded this lesson by warming up with my 4/14/14 Lesson recording like yesterday. I warmed up for about 30 minutes at 11:00 am before my lesson at noon. At this point, I'm wondering if my new exercise regimen has something to do with my breathing technique and jaw tension. I've been doing light cardio for the past couple of weeks (~30 min. 3-5 days a week). 

I've sort of been feeling like my vocal tension dysphonia is just on the verge of becoming "bad" these last couple of weeks. Signs/symptoms that I typically notice:

• root of the tongue gets unusually tight
• I can't seem to release my jaw
• I can't help but spread the corners of my mouth and make things shallow. (It becomes my default.) 
• Even my low feels "beaty" or like the folds are coming together violently. The folds feel like they are pressing really hard together, resulting in quick vocal fatigue. 
• It feels like I've done everything possible to try and release, but I can't seem to figure out what is wrong. 

Take-aways:

• Think of vocal tension dysphonia as a "charlie-horse" cramp. Stretch it out. Exaggerate. 
• Feeling of suspension/singing on the gesture of the inhale/etc. from the bra-line down. Release everything above. 
• Begin the gesture of singing while the expansion in the lower body for inhalation is still happening. 
• Sometimes trying to be "quiet" or too careful doesn't work when trying to get rid of muscle tension dysphonia. 

Lesson Summary: (For practice, I started leaning forward on a chair...) 

• "puffy lips straw" phonation. (looks like a chimpanzee) 
• flip to the top pitch. Don't drag up. 
• "yawning, yelling yodeling" 
• molars stretched by opposing forces
• Use a bit of wiggling
• "I'm mighty" 
• Watch upward travel 
• listen to Cindy's model 
• "I'm Mary"
• "I'm Mabel/Mayree" 
• Watch that you don't add unnecessary pressure before the top pitch
• "ya ya"
• outward push from behind sternum
• eliminate unnecessary sostenuto 
• "why not"
• take pressure off during the middle range of voice
• "thee" flip ups/decay exercises
• "ng - m - n" 
• Always be conscious of jaw/tongue. Use the down to the shoulders from under the jaw sides. 
• really concentrate the nasal consonants. 
• "hng - nm - uiuiuiuiui- a"
• "n - n - n - a"
• think of buoyancy 
• exaggerate mouth opening during "n" (you can see the tongue behind top teeth) 
• "a - a- a- a- choo" pharynx
• Think of the top pitch before singing it
• "in the end"
• Take your time. 
• Think of your breath. 
• Think and sing--breath just happens with it. 
• Breath is coming in through the ears.
• [thi thi thi] 
• cheek massage
• sound is falling out of mouth to floor. The sound may come out of the upper cheeks than the mouth. 
• I'm noticing a tendency to lock my jaw.
• Alternate posture. Take a seat and lean forward with elbows on knees. 
• "Things are different in our bodies, but subtly so, so we tend to think something is wrong with our voice. That's not necessarily the case." When tensions are small, it's difficult to tell where it's coming from. 
• "Go to the body always--just notice the breath more." Especially when life gets stressful. 
• "oh why" on non-descript swooping. 
• think whiny 
• "my oh my" 
• watch that you don't brace with the body or the face!!! 
• "teeth"
• good release supra-laryngeally, but maintain sense of suspension below the bra line. 
• Don't release the energy with the air.... 
• Like the hamster wheel analogy. Keep the hamster below the bra line!
• Really think about this. Also, think of tracheal tug while maintaining release in the jaw. 
• "sigh" 
• encourage feeling of yawn as you do this. 
• Emily. Open your eyes. Don't squeeze them shut. What are you doing. 
• "what a day" (no kidding...)
• not going for volume. Absence of pressure + clarity. 
• "sobby" onset. 
• Watch your ears--you tend to tighten the muscle behind them and it's exhausting... (I know, right? Weird, Emily. Weird.)
• TRUST that you can sing it completely released. 
• "zi zi zieaouoaei"
• Watch that you don't come off your voice on the darker vowels. 
• internal grin!
• "zi" 
• show your top teeth
• Less singy. Just "cry" mode. 
• Don't get lazy as you descend! 
• try different head positions to stretch things out
• Don't try to sing soft, but you can sing lightly. 
• "why not"
• grandpa death rattle
• as you stretch, allow the tongue to be the occlusion. Not the throat. 
• "yawning, yelling, yodeling"
• concentrate the "ng"
• "Take a breath and let your voice fall on it, like a cushion."
• Focus on the "point of appoggio" - where there is the most resistance against the breath. 
• "caring"
• use the [k] 
• breathe low, and while you're still expanding, release the [k] while maintaining suspension. 
• also try not filling up as much as you can--try 2/3. Don't overfill. 
• I DON'T KNOW WHERE THIS IDEA CAME FROM, BUT THIS HELPED A LOT. 
• long cheeks

We spent about an hour trying to get me released. And my practice session after that took about the same amount of time.