Hi y’all.I’d like us to be friends.Friendship starts with mutual respect. Did y’all see that symbol at the bottom of the page? © for copyright. I’ll admit there might be a paradox here. If this site is a choir, what is that all about? This month I have been re-reading the delightful Howard Becker classic, […]
Have you ever participated in a video-chat prayer meeting, or meditation group, or energy healing circle? If so, then you know it’s possible to connect with other people vibrationally in Web spaces, not only by gathering physically. We can sense another’s presence, scan and rebalance their energy field, conduct sacred rituals, offer and receive spiritual
This site is a choir Read More »
What is the sound of one hand clapping? There are ways to make sound with one hand. Tap your chest. Snap your fingers. Or you could strike a drum. Pluck a string. Shake a rattle. That is tapping, and snapping, and plucking and drumming and rattling.That is not clapping. One choral voice is like one
What is the sound of one ensemble voice? This voice exists to be in blend with other voices and instruments. It has no fixed placement. No particular fach nor charateristics, no personally identifiable timbres. The overtone profile adjusts itself to suit the ensemble settings where it happens to be singing. The purpose, la raison d’être
Does this image remind you of singing in vocal ensembles? What happens if we suddenly remove either person from the picture? It’s possible they each have amazing muscles and will continue to remain suspended in a precarious balance. But actually, you know they are about to fall on their backsides.
Are you an ensemble singer? Read More »
“It takes two to tango.” We have all heard this. The expression takes on new life for those who actually learn more about how a tango works. One of the dancers gets to look great and make most of the impressive sweeping moves. The other dancer is actually the leader, and is in charge of
You can’t tango alone! Read More »
Vibrations and people don’t have fixed edges. We overlap, like circles in a Venn diagram. Once we say this, it seems obvious. Of course, we are always being affected by each other. And yet, do we sing as though we understand this is happening?
If you put a stringed instrument near a compatible vibrational source, the strings will tend to tune themselves to that source. Entrainment means the tendency of any vibration to readjust and match other vibrations nearby. People do this too! Social entrainment can be observed in the way that groups of friends may tend to move
What is entrainment? Read More »
Remember the macarena? It was the hottest new dance in 1996. People loved it because it was easy, and fun, and you could go out and do it with other people. And yet, you didn’t exactly do it WITH other people. The dance was hailed as self-affirming and inclusive, and it was something each of
Tango vs. Macarena Read More »
They are glorious, beautiful creatures. In many traditional myths, the earth is carried on the back of a turtle. And yet, perhaps not always the best role models for humans. Why do we try to duck our heads into our shells? What is the easiest way to convince yourself to stop doing this?
Turtle and unturtle Read More »
Transgender voice coaches are specialists who help people learn to communicate a particular gender identity. They may help transgender people to “pass” as a person of the newly chosen gender, or help others to neutralize undesired gender markers. A few years ago I learned just a little bit about vocal gendering. (Well, a little knowledge
Gender bending is for everyone! Read More »
