Probably the simplest agility exercise is a five note scale 123454321 (Do re mi fa sol fa mi re do). After you have done some session 1 exercises (most agility exercises are better used in session 2) try singing this pattern in the middle voice on an “ah” vowel. Move quickly but not so fast that the notes get sloppy. Move up and down the middle voice using the exercise on different vowels. As you approach the passaggio allow the vowel to modify to whatever works best. If a certain vowel is not working well, try a different one.
Try setting the exercise to a metronome. Gradually work faster and faster, working for the same evenness and clarity from note to note.
You can easily extend this exercise a couple of different ways. Try starting on scale degree 5 (sol) and descending first: 5432123454321 (Sol fa mi re do re mi fa sol fa mi re do). Again experiment with different vowels as you move throughout the range.
You can also try the exercise two or three times in a row using different vowels each time: start with [i] (“ee”) and sing 123454321 then move immediately to [e] (“ay”) for 123454321 and then to [a] “ah” for 123454321. Work for the same evenness from note to note and gradually increase the tempo.
Another one I like to incorporate is even shorter, though not necessarily easier. Choose a vowel and sing the pattern 121232321 (Do re do re mi re mi re do). Again, try it on different vowels and at increasing speeds. You can string this pattern together with the first pattern: 12123232-123454321.
Why are agility exercises important? We all want a bigger sound (in coming to lessons, many singers have two main goals: to sing higher and to sing louder). The result is the tendency to sing too heavily or with too much weight in the voice. Physically this means that we use more mass of the vocal folds when we sing.
To sing fast agility patterns (and to sing higher) we need to use a lighter balance that encourages the edges or outer layer of the vocal folds to handle most of the vibration. Then the voice doesn’t get bogged down with too much pressure and the result is better flexibility and range. Often, if the voice can’t move quickly it’s because we’re just singing with too much weight. Finding how the voice can move faster through agility exercises builds the balance of pressure that will allow us to access more of our full range and will gradually develop into greater dynamic control as well.
Move the voice!
Now go practice.
As you know, I have been struggling (and struggle in general) a lot with breath support, especially in my classical Italian piece. These excersizes you've described actually remind me a great deal of the structure in O Cessate! A lot of the song is composed of long phrases with the same note repeated on each new word, much the same idea as going through the 1234543212345 phrase living on the same pitch. I'm wondering if incorperating these into my practice will help me, not only with my flexibility and clarity in these verses of O Cessate, but with my stamina to get through them on a single breath as well....!
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ReplyDeleteMy frustration with practicing lately is that I don't feel like I'm growing. When I'm doing the exercises I feel like they're easy and I don't think they're supposed to be, so maybe I'm doing them wrong...? I guess I just feel like it should require more concentration. I just don't know if I'm making progress. :(
When I started with voice lessons my freshman year, I did want to be able to sing higher, however I've never had a problem singing, or being, loud... My biggest second goal, I think was being able to sing soft and light on pitch. I think I am definitely a culprit of singing to heavy in an attempt to make the sound nice. As I've been doing some of these agility exercises, with the the focus of release, I have noticed a difference and it phonation has been feeling lighter for sure.
ReplyDeleteThis week was very strange for me. I had great register and space in my sound, but suddenly this week my voice closed off. I don't know if it was because of the body still trying to get over the cold or if I was trying harder than usual to control the voice. I'm leaning towards the latter because I have always had the worst control obsession since I was young and all my voice teachers have tried to get me out of the habit. However, yesterdays practice I started by drinking lemon water and taking a spoonful of sugar and that either got my throat to kick the last of the sickness out or miraculously relaxed my control enough to get me back on track.It seems I'll find out during next practice!
ReplyDeleteI feel like a main goal of mine doing these agility excercises is speed. When I started taking voice lessons all I listened to was musical theatre which didn't feature a lot of riffs(which is swiftly changing). I know listen to all sorts of different genres of music which I think has tuned my ear more. I feel like my agility grew the more riffs I have tried. I once spent a week breaking down the riff in the new recording of "On the Right Track" from Pippin. My agility has grown a lot more since then but, I'm excited to see how much more my vocal agility can grow.
ReplyDeleteI grow the most in a performance skill when I am able to achieve a complicated or difficult exercise with total comfortablility. For instance: I know when my monologue is fully learned when I can do it regardless of what other distractions circumstance I am with physically or mentally because the action is so in my body that I don't need to expend excess physical or mental effort to recreate the performance of the time before. It is the same when I am singing. This exercise give my academic brain a number to train to. Now, instead of asking myself if this time was as comfortable as the time before, I can ask myself "was the speed of this exercise comfortable this time? Was it last time?" The difference of someone who has the ability to sing at higher speeds and someone who can't might be small, but it's another tool the singer has in their repertoire, and another exercise in control that will make the rest of their singing much more comfortable, for them and the audience who is listening.
ReplyDeleteI've found that agility is something i have the ability to do fairly well naturally, and for that i am grateful. I've found that i often try way too hard when attempting a riff or some sort of melisma in a song, which makes them sloppy and out of control. Practicing lightly with agility has helped my agility so much, and still have more improvements to make. it also helps smooth out the breaks in my voice around the passaggio ranges, and i've enjoyed being able to be light in my practicing. I always for some reason thought that light was weak and heavy and loud was strong and good. I've found that not necessarily to be true through this kind of exercising and it's quite exciting!
ReplyDeleteI have done been doing these exercises since our lesson Friday. Though I think they are hard to keep balanced, i tend to get jumbled up easily. I have always sung in a very grounded and loud sound so it is a tricky thing to learn (for me) to rest back a bit and let my vocal chords be lighter. I think a lot of the learning process in my opinion has to do with the mind and letting yourself get "out of control" to be in control. Anyway, i hope i get better and better, and maybe i can be an opera singer one day. Just kidding.
ReplyDeleteAgility is something with which I struggle, though the issues I have with agility exercises are more mental and inside my head. Every time I practice or warm up using agility scales and such I worry about muddling the notes or not being able to execute the exercise with precision, which causes me to sometimes speed through the exercise (in order to finish it sooner) and the notes to lose clarity. But during my previous lesson, we used a metronome to not only keep time but challenge my vocal agility and precision by speeding the tempo of the exercises, and it worked wonderfully in keeping my speeding tendencies to a minimum. And since I have been using the metronome when practicing certain agility exercises, which has been helping a whole lot!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love singing along with songs that have fast vocals because it does just this. It helps my agility as well as my diction while singing. Working on agility not only improves your speed but also allows you to improve on enunciating each word in the song. And I always feel extremely proud of myself after I've managed to say every word correctly and in the right order. "Your Fault" from Into the Woods, "Shall I tell you What I think of you" from the King and I, and "I've decided to Marry you" from a Gentleman's guide are some of my favorite songs to practice with. It almost feels like your voice just ran a marathon after practicing your agility which, in my opinion, is one of the best feelings in the world because I feel like I was truly working out my voice, allowing it to become stronger and more versatile.
ReplyDeleteI found these warmups very helpful! Sometimes I find myself sliding instead of actually singing each individual note. These exercises help me to work through that! This can also really help me with the optional colorful notes in my Italian piece! I'm really excited to see how these exercises help my vocal jury pieces and the things that I just sing for fun!
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