In a message dated 2/10/01 12:47:07 AM Central Standard Time,
lloyd.hanson@n... writes:
lloyd.hanson@n... writes:
> It is for this reason the few classical singers and teachers of classical
> singing encourage the development of a belt voice. What you and Barry
> describe as belt voice is not, in my opinion, an accurate picture of what
> many consider to be a belt voice but rather a belt voice color that can be
> produced and heard with a mike.
>
> Belt voice that is achieved without the use of a mike and must therefore
> carry easily in a large hall, begins out of chest voice and becomes a form
> of middle voice that displays a raised larynx and an extremely high
> sub-glottal pressure. It is a hyper function of the vocal mechanism and it
> requires substantial use of the extraneous muscle of the larynx. Most
> belters who produce this kind of vocal function do it over short bursts of
> time and, in effect, save it for the dramatic needs of a song. It appears
> that this a primary form of the belting that Jo Estill teaches. I am not
> sure it is damaging to the voice but I am reasonably sure that it is an
> example of "singing on the principle rather than on the interest of the
> voice."
>
>
>
>
Well, in this case Lloyd all I can do is point to the track record of the
technique I described for producing "belt" (a word I hate BTW). Numerous
huge Broadway stars have been trained this way and if the audience buys it as
serving the style well then it is a "belt" to them. In the sense that it is
not a supported yell (singing on the call), you're right in that it is a
tonal difference in that it sounds closer to the speaking voice. Streisand
is good example of this production.
Concerning acoustic energy, I theorize (because I have no data here) that
this would carry more unamplified than just a yell and that there are opera
singers using this technique or one close to it in the opera world.
Just a funny aside, an ex girlfriend of mine who is a fine soprano
(classical) would listen to the end of Dawn Upshaw singing there won't be
trumpets and would comment on how she was belting and that it was all chest.
The same when she would hear Natalie Cole. I'm sure we'd all agree (and I
know for sure) that those sounds are mixed and done with a stable laryngeal
position. But, if you're not familiar with the high mix, it will sound like
chest to you in the lower portions and be interpreted as a belt.
Randy Buescher
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