This was one of my big problems when I started out, and it still can creep
back to haunt me, particularly when I'm tired, or learning new rep (when
technique goes out the window for me), and particularly on "dark" vowels
like "a" and "o", where the tongue is naturally low in the mouth (vs. "i"
or "e").
More radical exercises that helped me overcome the worst of the problem:
Allow your jaw to drop, then allow the tongue to hang out over your bottom
lip. Touch the tip of your tongue gently to "keep it down", then vocalise
on "a". Really pay attention to the sensation of having the jaw
completely relaxed, and the tongue completely relaxed. Memorize that
sensation - particularly focusing on how open you feel at the root of the
tongue.
Work a lot with exercises that move between "i" and "a", "e" and "o", etc.
"Ya ya ya ya ya" (on a descending 5-note scale) is a good one. Concentrate
on total freedom in the root of the tongue to allow you to make the "i" to
"a" transition (required in the "ya") freely, easily, and quickly. Again
"memorize" that feeling of freedom and agility in the root of your tongue.
Vocalise often on closed vowels that require you to raise the middle of
the tongue toward the roof of your mouth. As you do these, think about
keeping a total "slack" feeling in the jaw - not that it hangs open, but
that it feels totally liquid, with no tension at all.
On the "dark" vowels, unless you're singing in the top of your range, try
closing your mouth slightly more than you would otherwise - think
"slimmer" - and as a result, concentrate on feeling the vibrations of the
sound farther forward in your mouth. IF you feel your main
vibration/resonance under the soft palate, you need to adjust your
"placement" (I hate the word, but what I mean in this case, is the sense
of where the main vibration is in your mouth) forward so you feel the main
vibration/resonance under the hard palate/behind the upper teeth. Indeed,
you really should narrow/close (relatively - of course it's open somewhat
if you're not humming) your mouth opening on all your lower notes,
particularly in chest, with that "forward vibration" feeling. This closure
and forward feeling will also help a lot in getting over the "hump" (i.e.,
the lower "break" or passagio).
Use a hand mirror or sing in front of a wall mirror when you do the "ya
ya" and other exercises that involve changing tongue position. Really
*watch* what your tongue is doing. Overemphasise the changes so that it's
really lifting from the "floor" of your mouth on the "i". The idea here is
to get it used to the feeling of free movement, without any tension or
"holding". Become extremely aware of how that freedom feels, and then you
will be able to recognise the opposite feeling - the feeling of tension,
of "swallowing" your tongue (that sense one gets of the root of the tongue
somehow sliding down into the throat), etc. The more aware you are of how
things should and shouldn't feel, the easier it will be to stop yourself
and correct the "shouldn't" to become the "should".
Karen Mercedes
http://www.radix.net/~dalila/index.html
---
Hillaire Belloc's flawed but insightful essay on Islam:
http://www.ewtn.com/library/HOMELIBR/HERESY4.TXT
Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a
little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
- Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsyl., 1759
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