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Singing Voice Pedagogy Tutorial (Article)
This 33 minute tutorial was presented at the Voice Foundation's Annual Symposium: Care of the Professional Voice, in June 2016, by Dr. David Meyer, Professor of Voice at Shenandoah University. This lecture explains the basics of vocal pedagogy, and includes discussion of what the field of vocal pedagogy needs from the field of voice science. (posted 1:56 PM, September 12, 2016)

The Role of the First Formant in Training the Male Singing Voice (Article)
Awareness of the acoustic registration events caused by changing interactions between the lower harmonics of the voice source and the first formant of the vocal tract can assist both teacher and student in working out a smooth, comfortable transition through the passaggio into the upper range of the male voice. This paper explains how knowledge and anticipation of these events, and of the passive vowel modifications that accompany them, can form the basis for effective pedagogic strategies. A relatively stable tube (vocal tract) length is necessary for timbral consistency and balance across the fundamental frequency range, since this can stabilize the general location of all formants and especially the singer’s formant cluster. However, upon ascending the scale, untrained males instinctively tend to activate muscles that shorten the tube in order to preserve the strong first formant/second harmonic (F1/H2) acoustic coupling of open timbre, resulting in “yell” timbre. If tube length and shape are kept stable during pitch ascent, the yell can be avoided by allowing the second harmonic to pass through and above the first formant. This results in the timbral shift referred to as covering or “turning over,” a shift which enables avoidance of the laryngeal muscular adjustments associated with pressed phonation. The variety of first formant locations, vowel by vowel, where these shifts occur creates opportunities for developing effective strategies for training the male passaggio. (posted 5:31 PM, November 2, 2014)

More About Resonant Voice: Chasing the Formants But Staying Behind Them (Article)
To achieve a more resonant voice, a formant is not placed directly on a harmonic, but rather slightly above a harmonic. Stated conversely, the harmonic chases the formant, but never quite catches up with it. The advantage of this maneuver is a strengthening of all harmonics, not just a single one. (posted 2:34 PM, August 27, 2014)

What Makes a Voice Acoustically Strong? (Article)
A voice is acoustically strong if the glottal flow can be reduced from a high value to a low value in a short time interval. The total collapse of flow per second is called the maximum flow declination rate. It can be increased by increasing lung pressure, by increasing vibration at the bottom of the vocal fold, or by narrowing the acoustic tube immediately above the vocal folds. In practice, a combination of these control strategies is probably utilized by singers. (posted 2:34 PM, August 27, 2014)

Source-Vocal Tract Interaction in Female Operatic Singing and Theater Belting (Article)
Contrasting operatic and musical theatre voice production, the authors seek “to explain the female opera-belt contrast in terms of source-vocal tract interaction.” The study shows that despite aesthetic differences, many of the technical approaches overlap between these otherwise markedly different genres. (posted 2:34 PM, August 27, 2014)

Dispelling Vocal Myths. Part IV: "Talk Higher!"_x009d_ (Article)
Continuing the series begun in 2010, Michael aims to "clarify misconceptions about vocal production.” In this installment she notes of the titular myth, "Like many of the anatomically incorrect images we use routinely in the studio, this advise is well motivated, but can have unintended consequences.” For part one see 66, no. 5 (547-551); part two 67, no. 4 (417-421); part three 68, 4 (419-425). (posted 2:34 PM, August 27, 2014)

Dispelling Vocal Myths. Part 2: "Sing It 'Off' the Chords! (Article)
Continuing the series begun in 2010, Michael aims to "clarify misconceptions about vocal production.” In this installment she addresses three pervasive _myths”: 1) that the vocal folds are "chords” (sic); 2), that one can sing "on” or "off” the cords (sic); and 3), that falsetto is produced with _false vocal folds.” For part one see 66, no. 5 (547-551); part three 68, no. 4 (419-425); part four 69, no. 2 (167-172). (posted 2:34 PM, August 27, 2014)

The Application of Vocal Fry (Article)
Vocal fry is a vocal production that is marked by a low fundamental frequency (below 70 Hz), low subglottic pressure, and minimal air flow. This article describes in detail how vocal fry is produced, explores a variety of pedagogical opinions about fry and its utility in the teaching of singing, and provides sample exercises the authors have found successful for addressing specific vocal problems. (posted 2:34 PM, August 27, 2014)

Building Strong Voices—Twelve Different Ways (Article)
emailed author for abstract (posted 2:34 PM, August 27, 2014)

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