7 DAYS OF 7 DIMENSIONS

DAY 5: TONE

THE FIFTH DIMENSION

Day 5 introduced us to the fifth vocal dimension! Below is a summary of what Richard and Areshi explored during the lesson, along with additional anatomy details and downloadable MP3s for your personal practice.

 

What is Tone? Tone refers to the quality of sound created when speaking and singing via the resonating spaces within the vocal instrument.

Improving Tone is important because it will help you:

  • Project your voice with less effort
  • Tell a better emotional story when singing
  • Create more intentional sounds, textures and tonal options

ANATOMY OF TONE

Vocal Tone is dependent on the muscles of the pharynx and chambers of space within the vocal tract, also known as the resonator. Our instrument’s resonator consists of several adjustable spaces that reflect, absorb, and amplify frequencies, which create unique shapes and sounds:

  • Pharynx – the portion of the throat most affiliated with the dimension of Tone, which extends from the larynx to the nasal cavity and can be divided into three regions
  • Oral Cavity – open space created by the tongue, oropharynx, soft palate, teeth, cheeks and hard palate as part of the vocal tract
  • Nasal Cavity- pathways made of cartilage, between the nasopharynx and nostrils, as part of the vocal instrument’s resonator

 

The pharynx can be broken down into three distinguishable moldable regions in the throat, created by cylindrically shaped constrictor muscles:

  • Laryngopharynx – lowest section of the pharynx, just above the larynx
  • Oropharynx – middle section of the pharynx, which opens up into the oral cavity
  • Nasopharynx – highest section of the pharynx, which opens up to the nasal cavities

Why Don’t You Sound Like Anyone Else? The shape and size of your larynx, vocal folds and vocal tract are all determined by your genetics. This creates a strong foundation for creating a unique sound. However, there are only very subtle differences between the shape and size of your instrument (genetically) and the other billions of people on the planet. So how is it possible that your voice can be identified from everyone else’s? The answer is simple: your life experiences, the languages you speak, the home you grew up in, and the music you listen to all heavily influence the behaviors of your vocal tract. This is due to exploring, mimicking, and experimenting with your voice when speaking and singing, both consciously and subconsciously, over the course of many years.

VOCAL EXERCISE

Let’s explore the featured exercise from Day 5 with Areshi. To start with, please take a moment to recognize the components of an exercise to help develop a mindful practice for better and faster results.

Formant: Ah/OOo/Ah  |  Feature: N/A  |  Pattern: 1  |  Volume: Medium  |  Tempo: Mid  |  Variable: Larynx Down

It’s your turn! Play the piano track (MP3) to practice the exercise. Please remember that the sound we’re attempting during the exercise is NOT the goal sound for singing, but rather a “reset” of our resonator spaces to use more freely when singing.

S1_M_090
S1_M_090

CUSTOMIZE

If you found the exercise too challenging and are not able to get consistent positive-sounding results, it’s best to modify the exercise to make it easier and then build it back up again. However, if you found the exercise to be relatively easy to do throughout your range, it’s time to challenge yourself more.

  • Make it easier: Reduce the air pressure by doing the exercise at a quieter volume and staying in a range of pitches that will minimize tension, allowing the larynx to move more freely.
  • Make it harder: Increase the volume. The additional air pressure needed makes it far more challenging to keep the pharyngeal muscles relaxed while cultivating more overtones within the instrument’s resonator.

Emotional Exploration: The shaping of the vocal tract plays a significant role in cueing a listener into the emotional intent. By highlighting and absorbing certain frequencies, sounds can be made to sound “dark”, “happy”, “light”, “sad”, etc. When singing a song, take a moment to identify with the emotional intention is and allow your voice to reflect those conversational tones and textures within your performance.

WHAT'S NEXT

In the next video, we will work on the dimension of Articulation, which helps to build upon your Tone to bring your story (lyrics + melody) into focus. You’ve got five dimensions down with just two more to go before our big announcement!

 

Keep Singing,
Richard

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 6

Day 7