Mix it up Monday: The Chopstick Exercise
Tongue tension is one of the most frustrating challenges singers must overcome. If you look through the archives of this blog, you will find several exercises for releasing tongue tension. … Continue reading
Mix it up Monday: Remapping the open throat
Kenneth Bozeman‘s book Practical Vocal Acoustics gave teachers a great introduction on how to make vocal acoustics research applicable in the voice studio. His second book, Kinesthetic Voice Pedagogy, takes the work … Continue reading
Mix it up Monday: Relaxing the digastric and mylohyoid muscles
The digastric and mylohyoid muscles are part of the swallowing mechanism and will often contract when singing. If these muscles contract, they can cause a wide range of problems. Most … Continue reading
Mix it up Monday: McClosky articulation exercises
David Blair McClosky was a classical baritone, voice teacher and therapist who worked with professional speakers, singers, and actors. He also created The McClosky Technique, which is still taught via … Continue reading
Mix it up Monday: Simple yet effective tongue stretches
It is a busy time at Shenandoah Conservatory as we get ready welcome voice teachers from around the world to the 14th Annual CCM Vocal Pedagogy Institute. Therefore, today’s post … Continue reading
Mix it up Monday: Tongue Mobility Exercises
When a student is struggling to produce vowels or consonants, or their tongue is constantly trying to retract, teachers will often say the student has “tongue tension.” However, I think … Continue reading
Mix it up Monday: Using a cork to improve your students’ vowels
Arthur Lessac made his Broadway debut in “Pins and Needles” in 1937. He went on to an illustrious career as a performer and spent the latter part of his career as … Continue reading
Mix it up Monday: Tongue Twisters
A few weeks ago I blogged about the benefits of extended tongue phonation for releasing posterior tongue tension. If you dwell on extended tongue phonation for too long, it could … Continue reading
Mix it up Monday: Tongue-out phonation
“Mix it up Monday” is a new series on the blog. Each Monday I will post an exercise for you to try out in the studio or in your own … Continue reading
