A wonderful discovery, isn't it? When I started studying voice, I used to
be a jaw-clenching chin-jutter - not excessively, but enough that it made
it impossible for my vocal production to be free and easy. My teacher did
two things with me that helped a lot - the first was the chin thing you
described. The second was to essentially hang my tongue limply out of my
mouth and over my lower lip, and to "hold" it there very lightly with the
tip of my finger as I vocalised. I'm not sure if your teacher has tried
this with you, but you may want to give it a try. In the same way that the
new chin position you discovered frees the tension in the jaw, this tongue
exercise frees the tension in the back of the tongue (jaw and
back-of-tongue tension virtually always go together).
One caveat - as you work in your new "chin" position, just be careful not
to overdo it - you'll lose the good effect if you try dropping the chin
too far down or pulling it too far back. That "dropped" position should
come from a feeling of opening and "unhinging" of the jaw, and not from a
muscular effort to push the chin down and back.
Good luck!
Karen Mercedes
http://www.radix.net/~dalila/index.html
***************************************
The ones I love are incapable of ill will, and return love for hatred....
[They] who serve both friend and foe with equal love....Such as these
are dear to me. [Bhagavad Gita, Chap. 12]
Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate
you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; that
ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven. [Matt. 5:44-48]
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