In music theater singing, a few examples of yet-to-be-absolutely-defined terms include "legit," "mix," and "belt." Maybe it isn't that important that we all agree on the definitions and sounds these words invoke. On the other hand, if teachers and singers can't even agree on how belt singing sounds different from mix singing, how will we ever agree on the vocal technique that allows us to create those sounds in healthy and effective ways?
To help address this conundrum, Dr. Lynn Maxfield and I set up a research project to see if singers and casting directors agree on what constitutes legit, mix, and belt singing. You can read our full paper here (it's free until October 23rd!), but here's a brief summary of what we did and one of the big things we discovered:
We asked four professional female music theater singers and seven student female music theater singers (college freshmen and sophomores) to perform a series of pitches in what they considered to be a belt sound. Then we had them sing the same pitches again but in a mix sound. Then we asked them to sing the same pitches once more in a legit sound. We recorded each of those sounds and played them (in random order) for five casting directors of regional Equity theaters to see if they could tell which style the singers were choosing.
In the end, the casting directors were able to successfully identify the style the singers were intending in a statistically-significant majority of the time. They had even higher percentages when identifying the professional singers' intended style than with the students.
These results should be encouraging for music theater singers since, even though legit, mix, and belt don't have set definitions, singers and casting directors may mostly agree on what those styles of singing sound like. Therefore, when a casting director asks a singer to "be more belty" or to "use more of a mix," the singers may be reasonably confident in what sound the casting director expects.
Now if we could just agree on how to make those sounds!
How has your singing been this week? How are you progressing toward the goals you outlined in the last blog?
Now go practice.
I don't really understand what the terms belt, mix, and legit mean although I do hear them bandied about quite a bit. I've always felt a little behind the curve in terms of music terminology and literacy. I love to sing and I play a little guitar but when I audition for musicals I typically end up feeling a little lost and overwhelmed, especially if I have to sing a harmony. I printed out the list of goals I made (and added a few) and taped it by my bed, I've realized that I was a little ambitious with some of the goals- for example I've realized it's quite difficult to find enough time to read a book a week unless I devote a majority of my spare time to it. However, I still have made an effort on all of them and hopefully I will continue to do so.
ReplyDeleteHey there, I remembered to do the blog this week! I didn't exactly do the last blog post, so I'll just kinda merge that into this one. One goal I have is to get done with assignments (and/or remember to do them), because that is something I haven't been good at in the past. Another goal I could add is to make it through Chess without losing my voice or having a melt down. Before I came to the U, I sang bass in my school choir. After I got here I started singing more tenor songs, but for Chess they have me singing the bass part in some songs, and it's significantly more taxing on my voice than I remember it being. Maybe I just forgot how to sing bass? Maybe it is because I've been neglecting my lower register in hopes to improve the higher part and other aspects of my voice. Also, whenever most people talk about mixing or belting, it's usually in reference to the female voice. I've heard that men can't belt, but from my experience I'm pretty they can. So does it just go by a different name, or is it like an industry taboo type thing? Or does Dave just hate belting? Just a few questions I will be pondering for a while...
ReplyDeleteThis week I have started to notice Chess taking a toll on my voice. I am starting to get tired and therefore have been on vocal rest as much as possible. I have been super stressed because of chess and I am excited to get back to being able to work and practice as much as I did before the show. I have noticed though since I'm singing tenor in Chess and MTE that I am now more comfortable singing in my upper range and in my falsetto. So thats cool!
ReplyDeleteI agree with many of the things you said in your post, such as if we can't agree to a uniform definition of the terms then how are we to find healthy and proper techniques to perfect them? However, to play Devil's advocate some, I feel that we may not need to define them to understand them. The casting directors that you had listen to the recordings knew what they were listening to, which style they were hearing. When you asked the singers to sing in the different styles, they were able to and were able to do it. It is hard to define a sound. I feel like it would be similar to trying to describe a color. But for the case of the stylized versions of singing, you know what is expected of you when a voice coach or music director tells you to belt. Although there is no proper definition of the terms, there is a proper sound that one associates with them. The sound is oftentimes definition enough for some people.
ReplyDeleteIt's reassuring to see that most people have a similar understanding of all these different terms in singing. And even if we have different ideas of what these terms mean, I think due to how similar the majority of people think, a solution could be found. I was able to accomplish my one week goal for the week, which was to learn the song and figure out the pronunciation of the Italian. I feel like I have that down, with the exception of one or two words that give me grief. I loved lessons this week because now I have a better idea of where my art song can sit in my voice and I get to play more with the brightness or darkness of it. I sometimes set myself in a rut where I don't see other options and I think there's only one way to accomplish the sound or effect I want to create, but in reality, there are a lot of different things I know I can do to accomplish what I need to do. Just taking it one week at a time!
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely good to know that we can all at least agree on what sounds like what! And I guess from a casting directors point of view they aren't as interested in the mechanics of how you produce a sound, rather can you produce the sound they are looking for, not really caring too much of how you got there. As for practice this week I have been focusing a lot on sticking to the written music. Instead of listening to recordings of the songs I have been playing the songs on the piano to really get myself to pay attention to the rhythms and notes rather than to another singers choices. Other than that, I've just been playing around with expanding the breath/ keeping muscles of inhalation engaged to give a louder more resonate sound as I practice my songs.
ReplyDeleteIt’s nice to know that I’m the only one who gets a little confused with these definitions. I feel like I can really identify the different sounds of belt, mix and legit when I hear a women sing but when I hear a man sing I can’t always tell the difference. Now that I’m in pedagogy and I know what the CT and the TA is, I think it is easier to identify a mix in my own voice even if I can’t really identify it in a mans voice. In my practice this week I’ve really been trying to make my passagio transition and be able to sing in my mix without straining. It’s been a good week!
ReplyDeleteThis was such an interesting post to read. I never knew that this debate of definitions was a thing. I am interested to learn more about it. As for my practicing for the semester so far, I feel like I haven't been as on top of it as I could have been however I am doing better than I used to. I am making progress and that's what I am going to focus on.
ReplyDeleteListening to musical theatre songs I can easily tell the difference between a belt and a head voice (not hard, I get it) but my singing friends will comment if someone is using their mix and I will just pretend I was tracking the whole time. Mix seems like the hardest and what I would call a "I wanna belt but also I can't" sound. It will be exciting as more research is done in the difference because of the taboo around belting. I know I just yell. But the thing that has been told is that only certain teachers can teach you how to belt safely and every other teacher is just slowly trying to destroy your vocal folds. Who to trust! I guess the point is truly how to create a universal way to teach it so that no one is just screeching their face off and everyone sounds powerful and awesome. I have been using my straw a lot this week and getting more mindful awareness of what my soft palate is doing during the straw, immediately after the straw, and after I have been singing without the straw for a while to keep it as relaxed and fluid as possible.
ReplyDeleteI really didn’t understand the difference between a belt and a mix until a couple weeks ago when I started in the program. I think being around a bunch of musical theatre majors 24/7 has really had an effect on my understanding of the terminology and my ability to grasp the flow of music/theatre-based conversation. I haven’t really ever considered myself a true theatre kid so during a lot of theatre events I was always so lost in conversations with peers because I legitimately had no idea what people were talking about. I’m slowly educating myself, though, so I don’t feel as far behind as I used to. I’ve been trying to limit the use of my voice so I can do my job in chess but I’ve never been good at impulse control. I’ve discovered that a consistent and good vocal rest is really hard for me. That’s definitely something I’m going to have to work on.
ReplyDelete-Fynn White
I still don't think I understand what the difference is between those sounds. I think that if a director told me to belt more instead of mix, I would just try to project my voice more; for some reason the word "belt" seems like that's what it would mean to do (luckily I'm not in musical theatre). As for my singing, I think that Barcelona is finally coming together, so I'm happy and thankful for that. My goal progress is reasonable. I didn't feel too great about my PTC audition, but oh well (that's how it goes sometimes). I doing well on my Brutus monologue and my monologue searches are coming along fine so I'm pleased with that.
ReplyDeleteThere is comfort in knowing that the people who will be listening and assessing my singing, know what they are talking about and can agree on the same sort of techniques used for certain vocal resonances.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of singing this past week, it has been going well. The songs I have for voice are challenging and really teaching me what my voice is capable, and where I need to focus more practice towards. I love that this semester in singing, there is so much singing everyday. It is more rewarding I think to come to class and just be constantly working 3-4 different pieces.
I have a lot of trouble knowing the difference between all of those terms. My choir teacher and my voice teacher used different terminology, so that really screwed me up. Specifically, I have a lot of issues with the difference between belt and mix. Like Fynn said, I'm also very bad about taking vocal rest. It's something I need to for sure work on. It's been tough to find a routine for practice with crewing chess taking up half of my days, so that's been a struggle I've been trying to work on.
ReplyDelete-Matthew Tripp
DeleteI am glad to hear that mix and belt are generally agreed on. I've felt that my mix sound has been growing well lately and my voice is starting to become more fluid.
ReplyDeleteMy voice has been a bit tired because of the show and it's been hard as I have not been taking good vocal rest because I'm trying to get ready for the once pioneer audition and a few pieces for other things. I have been working very hard to get my voice happy by being very hydrated and keeping electrolytes in my system
I get scared when it comes to the terms 'belting' or 'mix voice' because I have never felt that I can belt or have been good at that 'mixed voice' thing. It is nice to know that there is a general understanding of what these terms mean.
ReplyDeleteI have noticed in my practice this week that when I use the straw and slide through my range, in the mixed part of my voice there is often very little or even no sound that comes out. So that is an interesting observation from my practice so far.
I have made some progress towards achieving my goals from last week. There are days when I feel I have done a lot to get closer to these goals and there are days where they seem very far away still. I think this is just how it goes, but I also still feel that they will be achievable goals for this semester.
~Jessica Graham
It’s reassuring to know that most professionals in the industry have a very similar idea of what belting, mix and legit are. I’m know what the former two are, but I have never heard “legit” in regards to singing. The straw exercises have definitely been helping me get my voice in the right place before I sing, and I’m seeing a bit of progress and results with them already. I’ve noticed I’m definitely more of a belter and hope to keep working on my mix every day.
ReplyDelete—Gavin Lewis
I think it’s interesting trying to find the exact terminology of things, yet still knowing what they’re supposed to sound like. It’s kind like a different language or if you grew up in a different place of the us. For example, pop, soda, or coke, pretty much all mean the same thing, but depending where you grew, the terminology is different. I feel as if that logic can be applied to trying to find what belt, mix, and legit. Depending if you trained with someone or just heard it from yours peers, you identify a word with a sound not so much a definition, which is why I think Dr. Lynn’s and yours experiment worked so well. Because it wasn’t definition pairing, but sound pairing. Very interesting stuff. On the other hand, my singing this week hasn’t really been put into practice. I’ve been caught up in the motion of life’s currents and have been having a hard time finding the space to practice. I still however have been reviewing the songs from class and lyrics, just not so much putting them into practice. I think my main goal right now is to keep stress low, and maintain the tension in my jaw. Both of those have affected my singing abilities in the past, and I much rather keep my neck, jaw, and head free to really enhance my voice and not strain. And time management. For sure need to work on that.
ReplyDeleteMy sining this week hasn't been great. I've been reviewing music for class as well as some music I got from Dave last semester and it hasn't been great. I've not been able to hit notes well that I was able to it in weeks prior. I'm not really sure what's going on. As far as my goals and dreams go, I definitely think I'm on the right track. I've gone to a couple auditions since the last blog. I did not get cast in the shows, but at least I went out and auditioned! I'm proud of myself for at least that, though there are things that I know I need to work on before my next audition. I did mention also that I wanted to be more organized and I have yet to follow through on that. I really need to start working on that.
ReplyDelete-Tom
While I have heard the terminology used before, I don't really understand what each is - particularly legit. As far as my singing has been this last week, I have been able to practice every day and keep to the schedule I made for myself. I think that had I not actually taken the time to make the schedule I would be forgetting to practice at least a few days a week. I feel like I am doing well in continuing to work towards my semester goals. - particularly with my short-term goal of staying on top of my work. So far I feel like I have been good about getting work done in a timely manner without letting it all pile up until the last minute to overwhelm me as I try to cram it all in so I hope I can continue doing that as the semester progresses.
ReplyDeleteI think it is great to hear that it was more frequent that the professionals were able to differentiate their technique compared to the students. This shows that students are still in the process of learning, but it shows that improvement will be made in order to become a professional singer. Translating into my own life, I strive to work hard for the things that I dream about. And knowing that there is always room for improvement in anything I do.
ReplyDeleteSinging this past week has actually gone fairly well. I feel that I am definitely making improvements, especially in my Italian. Before I had feared the language and the pronunciation, but I think I have made a lot of growth in the dialect. I am trying to add a new goal for the semester of being mindful of my voice when I am not using it to sing. Especially when I am singing along to the radio or even just talking too loud during the day, my voice feels tired by the end of the day.
-Caden Tudor
This research really fascinates me, because I need to find the security and flexibility within the songs in my book to easily change how I approach them technically at a moments notice.
ReplyDeleteWith going from tech straight into runs this week my voice has been working a lot. I’m trying to be on vocal rest as much as possible, so it has given me the time to work on the text of my songs. I’m excited to have the next two days to rest and work!
I think it is great news that the singers and the casting directors agree on which sound is which. Definitely since we got to school and I've been hearing the talk about mixing all the time, I've been working on integrating it into my practice sessions a little bit when I'm working on the higher portion of my range and I think learning to do that in a healthy way is going to be a really good addition to my toolkit because it does strain my voice some after doing it for more than a short period of time.
ReplyDelete-Michael Davies
Seeing as I’m still not completely better from being sick, my singing has been more cautious, but I am sticking to the schedule that I have set in place, which is always a plus. I’m starting to become more comfortable with where my voice is at right now, but I haven’t been able to fully explore because my voice is still a bit vulnerable. I think it has given me insight into other things you can be doing that is helping technique and practicing, without actually singing or taxing the voice.
ReplyDeleteFrom your research results, I find it incredibly interesting that the auditors overall had similar "perceptual expectations" and agreed upon the general sound of the type of voicing, but that there was much more variation and difference in their definition of the voicing styles. My singing this week has been great overall. Coming from having almost no practice in the last year, I am pushing myself yet holding room for error and kindness. As time goes on, I realize that being my worst critic is very seriously hindering me when I have the ability to instead push myself to succeed and be more open to different ways of doing so.
ReplyDeleteI am taking private lessons as well and see how much quicker I can learn a piece of music when I'm not dwelling on mistakes. This includes being honest with myself so I can continue to move forward and take what works and capitalize on it. So, I did not read 9 plays in the last two weeks, but I have read 5. I am also on a more consistent schedule, but I am still solidifying parts of it. The major thing is that I'm finally singing regularly again and my soul is more happy and filled with joy because of it.
I get overwhelmed by singing terminology like belt, mix, legit. I have never heard the term "legit". I have heard the rest but that's it. I have been overwhelmed by singing a lot and so I steered clear of it and so hearing and learning about it can be kind of stressful. I really like that we made practice schedules because I wouldn't remember to ever practice if it wasn't set into my schedule. It has been very useful. -Fina Posselli
ReplyDeleteIn my daily life, even though I am an acting major, I typically surround myself with musical theater majors. My friends are constantly talking about belting, mixing, head voice, and a lot of other terms that are typically subjective. In the past year I have been able to slightly keep up with these terms but occasionally I will not understand one of the terms they are talking about and I can see where that can potentially hurt me in a classroom/audition setting. I really loved the study that was done and the fact it was proven that a certain sound can be produced by the placement of the sound and then the type of sound can be identified by casting directors not based on performance quality but instead by placement. I am hoping that this semester I will be able to really understand the different ways to place sound and so that when I am asked to mix, belt, or perform any other type of sound, I will able to do it efficiently. I am a little stressed currently with rehearsals until 10:30 every night and hardly any break during the day but I am still finding time to practice even if its in the car or on a break.
ReplyDeleteWho is this?
DeleteThroughout my singing experience, I had only ever heard of belting and legit. I always thought that those that had the more whiny voices were born with them and that it wasn't something I could ever do until I got here. Taking lessons at the University has opened new doors for me by learning how to mix. I love learning new and healthy ways to use my voice and expand my repertoire accordingly; there is so much that we can do with our voices. This week has been a struggle vocally due to singing in Chess and the senior show with practices and auditions on top of it. I am very vocally tired and taking as much rest as I possibly can when time permits.
ReplyDeleteOh My! I think my training over he past couple of years has really helped to develop my mix. I always thought it was wimpy in a sense. But, it for me is very difficult finding the right mix(haha) of chest and head for a mix song. I have to take a mix song and think what is the style of this piece, what will be the most sustainable way to sing it and how can I approach it differently than others that will give me a fresher perspective. I will always remember this interview with Morgan James and how she explains she thinks of singing in percentages and that definitely is an approach I try to take as well. Ive had a rough week physically but, I have a lot of ideas for cuts for some new songs and I am excited.
ReplyDeleteBelting, mixed, head voice, and chest voice. These are the different registers and styles of singing in our world. Well atleast to my knowledge. Since my junior year I have always been curious to what these all mean. Where does one register end and another begin. Still one question stand whats the difference between head voice and falsetto? Though there are many defintions maybe one answer is impossible. Another goal I have now is to figure the difference bwtween these types of singing and study it a little more cloesly. I will pay more attention to the style of singing not only in musical theatre but in singing over all.
ReplyDeleteSorry for my lateness.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of those mystical things I can hear, but have no idea how to make/if I'm making it. I know I have certain resonances that make my "chest" placement more carrying and resonant, which could possibly be considered a belt, and similar devices for legit and mixed, but whether they're accurate or technically correct is absolutely over my head. It would definitely be an interesting thing to delve into.
It’s good to know and reassuring that auditors can ageee on what a sound is. I feel some confusion about what exactly my mix is. I’ve had some teachers tell me that what I thought was my mix waa my belt. I feel like I have a better understanding now than what I did before college.
ReplyDeleteMy singing has been going farely well this past week— my voice has felt slightly congested from the air which is irritating. I’m hopeful that the songs in singing will challenge me to free up my head voice but to also use my mix more comfortably. Go cubs!
-Allison
I think I have a pretty good grasp on the difference between chest voice and mixed voice. However...I’ve noticed that sometimes when I use my mixed voice I suffer from really bad pressure in my head. Sometimes when I belt too. I can’t quite pinpoint what it is but I have started to notice that it’s when I try to make myself louder. Why is this? It’s a great way for me to have an instant headache! My schedule has been going fairly well! I’ve had to sing more in the car because I don’t have a lot of time now that rehearsals for Caesar have begun. I try to play karaoke track so I don’t have a voice guiding me. And then I’ll often play the current song that we’re learning on my drive to school! The perks of having a 45 minute drive! But I also fit practice in when I can stand and have better posture. I have noticed that lately my throat has really been hurting me...in Stacy’s voice class I scream and yell a lot and I haven’t quite figured out how to use my entire range and voice, in a healthy way. I’m definitely excited to- and I know my voice will appreciate it! — Shelice Warr
ReplyDeleteThat is encouraging! I must say that my University voice teachers (at BYU, Westminster, and here at the U) have all been really good at explaining the difference of styles without much variation in their explanation. Which is also encouraging. Legit to me is like classical singing... the way I was trained mostly at Westminster in their Opera Studio. Mix is what I'm learning mostly here... like learning to use a good blend of everything to make it so nothing stands out as a "different" voice than the rest of it. And Belt... is BYU haha... which... I don't necessarily agree with. A lot of their students just end up sounding the same without respect to the other things their voice can do.
ReplyDeleteBefore college I had never heard the term “legit” in my experience in singing, so I have a very loose idea of what that means in my body. I used to get vocal lessons from an opera singer who liked to explain a ton of pedagogy in conjunction with more subjective terms like “mix” and “belt,” pretty similarly to how you teach these terms. She explained them in a way that made them seem like the “correct” term, though, so I didn’t really realize there were many many different ways to say pretty much the same feeling or sound. In the end, it seems as though the way we term it doesn’t affect the way it sounds, it just matters that it makes sense to you. I used to be terrified of my voice teacher asking me to “belt” or “mix” because it felt like I couldn’t do it; my voice was too naturally low and my vocal folds were too weak to let me really open up into a higher note. But as I’ve come to learn how a “belt” or a “mix" works in my body and how it should feel, rather than how it should sound, I’ve grown more comfortable with it and I like doing it more. Funny how we can be bogged down by terminology.
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