> experience, I am completely unable to make any form > of the UH vowel sound forward or upper such that it > will sound like the AH vowel in "File" without > greatly distorting my vocal tract and creating > strong amounts of tension. Have you learned to > sing with an accommodation of the vocal tract
When I say the word, "cup" or "up," the vowel is naturally forward. It's not a schwa -- it's a combination of an Italian [a] and a mental image of the sound between my front teeth and slightly above my upper lip. When I talk to my friends and say the word "duh," it's completely different. If you say [ap] like an Italian (a little more relaxed with the corners of the mouth -- as far as you can get from [ae] as in cat while still pronouncing the forward file-like [a]), that's how I say "up" naturally. Doesn't that sound like "up" to you? I'm a native San Franciscan, if that sheds light on regional differences.
I just tried this out on my husband. If you smile slightly and say the word "up" in a pleasant, soothing voice -- that's the forward quality. If I elongate the word and say "uuuuuuuuuuuuup" the vowel is actually [aaaaaaaaa]. But a slightly longer position; more relaxed in the mouth opening. It must just the the forward way I say "up" and "cup."
I first started doing this because my teacher suggested that I start singing an "UH as in up" in one of my lessons; it worked so well to get the tone out of the throat that we kept it. If she had said, "sing the AH's like the UH as in duh," that concept would have gotten thrown in the trash can. So it must just be my [a]like way of saying UP.
Isabelle B.
===== Isabelle Bracamonte San Francisco, CA ibracamonte@y... ibracamonte@y...
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