Week 9! Mid Pharynx, Twang, and Introducing: Tongue

 Summary

There are a lot of misconceptions about body mapping and function of the tongue and mid pharynx when it comes to singing. This week, we de-bunked the fear of twang and engagement of the tongue! Instead of regurgitating that information, I'm going to focus on some personal findings this week.

Things I thought made my singing unhealthy:

-narrowing the pharynx 

-raising the tongue 

-having too much brightness/brass in the sound

-nasality

Things that do not make my singing unhealthy:

-all of the above:)

I have always been a singer of all genres and styles. However, when I was younger (late middle school or early high school age) society made me believe that I was not a serious singer if I worked on CCM music, and I was less talented if I transitioned from being a soprano to a mezzo-soprano. Seriously. I believed when I was fifteen that I was worse than I was in middle school because I was labeled "mezzo." I have been so glad to see this stigma falling away, especially at UWM. The more I learn about tone colors and the anatomy of each individual voice the more I learn to value my own, especially after experiencing a vocal injury (which is its own animal of self-doubt, of course!). Once I understood the difference between pushing for belt and narrowing in the pharynx, I began to conceptualize effort level and coordination for different timbres and styles. Also, with the use of twang, mixed recipe after true belt range can become much brighter and richer even in thin fold! It feels easy, it sounds authentic and it doesn't involve any squeezing. Twang also does not equal nasality, but they can work together. True nasality is actually dull! It does not have the bright ringy quality of twang because of the limited resonating space. All of this information sort of washed over me this week and explained so many past physical revelations that I could not verbally explain. So fun! 

The engagement of the tongue is just as important a player in this equation. Singing is not being relaxed, and muscular involvement is not always tension. I found my mapping and understanding was incorrect in this area especially after working in foreign languages in my college voice lessons. "Stay relaxed" and "release your jaw" are such common phrases singers hear that I think we manifest this idea of looseness that then eliminates the importance of the mouth, tongue, and face in forming every word--no, every sound--we make. I am still learning how to do this every time I practice! Mirrors are extremely helpful. 

Overall, it is the duty of educators and students to update our vernacular to prevent misunderstandings that perpetuate bad habits and self-concepts. Keep informed, be aware, and be open to new opinions!