Great question!

Raising the soft palate is such a common suggestion, that if it didn't work, we'd have very few successful sopranos, tenors, or any singers trying to open/free the upper notes.  In instances where it is not working, there is usually a related issue.  Some have had success when suggesting,  "Lift the back teeth."  I'm lukewarm about that one - it's still possible to do that and leave the center of the palate down.

Is it possible that your concern is mouth position?  Vocal placement really refers to where you send the air - but they are certainly interrelated.

Vocal technique is so interrelated.  Whether we discuss raising the palate, energizing the abdominal muscles, shaping the lips...or any technical remedy...  generally none are fully effective when done alone.

For flatting sopranos:

1. Make sure their abdominal muscles are energized - pretty much constantly.  No house stands without the foundation.  Very few singers - even some well-trained ones - have this as a consistent physical habit, but we need to!  ;)  Discussions/worry about whether it goes in or out with breathing are less-than-productive - just think about energizing  it - and generally it will happen.   And take a full breath before each phrase! That is needed to hold the  lungs up, so they will not send the air in the wrong direction.  (down, away from voice.)  Once you have taekn a full breath, and the diaphragm is energized, "The voice will call on the breath it needs." - Jeanne' Brown, Soloist w/ Robert Shaw/ASOC

2. Be sure that all the muscles in the shoulder/neck jaw area are relaxed.  Even in singers who generally do this, their effort to pronounce words can interfere.  Watch out particularly for "L", "R", "D" "J/G" and such consonants that require the tongue to come up.  We all know we sing on vowels, but many make unfortunate effort to sing on consonants!  ;) 

[Just this morning I was helping a group doing "Il est bel est bon" - requires the sopranos to come in on a high G, on the word "Il" ("eel").  They had to do all of the above, plus think "ihl" to open, and delay the "L" until the next word.  And it had to be an open, tongue-flipped, Italian-type "L" - not an American "L" where much of the tongue touches the palate, blocking tone.  Otherwise it was strident and flat.  Their mouths were [inadvertently] closing slightly in anticipation of the "L" - and some of them were trying to phonate and sustain a tone on it !  This is a common issue that I hear addressed in voice studios, but rarely in choral rehearsals.  (Seems to me it's even more important when a group is trying to blend. ;)

3. Be sure that the back and the front of the mouth are open.    I tell them:  "Don't sing like an alligator, whose mouth is hinged together at the back, who can only open the front.  [Demonstration with hands, back of palms/wrists remaining together, fingers apart as "teeth".]  But open like a hippo - front and back.  (Demo with hands totally apart.) This works with many folks.  (Show it so that they get a side view of both "animals"' mouth position.)

4. As above, be sure that the word they're singing is not causing premature closure.

5. Explain that the word "nasal" is a misnomer/misconception.  Lifting the palate allows the nasal/sinus/cheek /head bones to act as resonators, which we need!  The quality we call "nasal" - the closed, squeezed "Aflac-duck" quality - actually occurs from blocking off the nasal area.  If you try it both ways yourself, you will likely feel this, and can demonstrate to your group.  (Sing a phrase with the palate totally lazy/down - "Aflack"-style.   Sing the same phrase with it lifted.)  I have found that a lot of singers think lifting the palate will make them sound nasal, or too "operatic", or whatever - when the opposite is actually true.  Unfortunately, there are a lot of pop singers currently that do not lift their palate - and their upper notes sound squeezed and thin.  I notice this particularly while they are improvising "extra" notes.  I wonder if some folks get the idea that improvising/scatting has to sound that way... ;(  Of course, it doesn't; I wish these singers would lift theirs - more people might enjoy their singing!

Hope this is helpful, Christy!  Best of Luck!

--Lucy Stembridge

Christy - 

 

I never talk about placement directly.  IMHO, it's one of those terms that students can easily interpret poorly (I was one of those students in high school).  If a singer's voice is working properly, then it will find the correct placement automatically.  Are you having your sopranos modify vowels?  Are they using enough air in their upper register?  Can they hear that they're flatting?

 

Lucy - 

 

Do you tell your students #3 even for oo and ee vowels?  At least in New Jersey, my students tend to not close their lips enough on oo!  

Christy:  An interesting question, and even more interesting answers from qualified voice teachers!

 

The simple fact is that the human voice and vocal mechanism cannot be seen, touched, or physically manipulated.  And because of that, any physiological instructions like "raise the soft palatte" will be met with incomprehension unless singers have been well-trained in the physiology of the human voice.  And of course unless the conductor has that same training, only a lot more of it!

 

I have in fact studied voice and the vocal mechanism, but I am not a voice teacher and would never attempt to act as one.  it would be malpractice!!!  So my advice would be to use phrases and images that make psychological sense, but do NOT talk about the details of the mechanism itself unless you are prepared to turn your rehearsal into a voice lesson and get everyone involved in learning what you're talking about.

 

Learning to sing well is more psychological than physiological.  A good teacher knows what the goals are.  A great teacher knows a dozen ways to approach every individual problem until one of them finally makes sense and clicks with the student.  My choristers understand keeping the vowels tall, and they understand the feeling of a pre-yawn.  They do NOT understand what "raising the soft palatte" translates to in terms of a physical action, because most people never think consciously about their palattes!  The same with deep breathing and good breath support.  Some do it naturally, some with reminders, and some won't have a clue until you work them through the process of expanding the rib cage and they learn to START singing from that rather unnatural and learned position.

All the best,

John

Raising the soft palate is tricky, because of the "palatoglossus" muscle, which, as the name implies, attaches to both the soft palate and the side of the tongue.  If you overdo the soft-palate lift, you will yank up the back of the tongue, thus closing the throat (and also causing some problems with the freedom of the larynx).  I will address the soft palate with my voice students in lessons, where I can supervise what they're doing, but I don't mention it directly in choir because people will misinterpret, overdo, etc., and I won't be able to effectively fix the newly-created problems.

 

You may get more improvement just by being very persnickety about vowels, posture, and a gentle, consistent and energetic air flow.  I have found that often, when these things are in place, the soft palate will take care of itself.

 

All best,

Jay Lane

President, McClosky Institute of Voice

Christy,

 

I have found that one of the best ways to ecourage the proper space in the mouth and throat is to have the singers breathe in through the nose as though inhaling deeply the fragrance of a rose.  This approach is very old and is advocated by Richard Miller who also cautions against using the yawn.  He states that the "incipient yawn produces similar sensations to those felt in breathing as though inhaling a lovely fragrance, but it is less useful because its extent is difficult to regulate.  All too often the incipient yawn develops into the full-blown yawn."  He argues that the full-blown yawn introduces tensions are undesirable in singing.  He states, "Throat tension inherent in the yawn can be verified externally by placing the fingers flat under the jaw between the chin and the larynx.  This tension can also be internally felt, and externally seen, in singers who believe they have "opened the throat."

 

Miller continues about the yawn:  "The yawn, which produces pharyngeal enlargement and laryngeal depression, plays no part in those joyous moments in life; it has no role in active athletic movement, and it is not part of the imaginative, alert, creative moments of daily life.  Why then assume a need for the yawn in singing when the open throat can be accomplished in singing by the same means as in other heightened situations in life?  The yawn is an action that belongs to the tired, to the bored, an attitude of the weary spirit and body."

 

Practice breathing in deeply through the nose and then singing different vowels in a range that is comfortable for all singers (perhaps on a chord).  Have students then breathe through the mouth, while maintaining the posture of the deep nose breath.  Have students sing onsets of four quarter notes, each followed by a quick breath then end on a whole note.  Do this with different vowels.  The process of breathing and singing, breathing and singing, breathing and singing helps students get used to starting the tone with a good throat posture.  Richard Miller recommends these exercises as the very first exercises in learning to sing.  I have found them to be the most useful exercises with my choirs.  As you can tell I would highly recommend Richard Miller's books, especially his "Structure of Singing."

 

Best of Luck,

Jared Anderson

Simply have the choir whistle, hold the shape of their lips and jaw, and sing an "ee".  The Vowel is similay to the French u, [y] in IPA, as in sur, the German ü, as in über.  Then repeat, this time feeling what the soft palette does.  Then do a couple of 5-note scales in moderate range.  Migrate the [y] (see above) sound to other vowels.  

 

Rather than attempt explaining a sensation, allow them to discover the sensation for themselves. (This is a more efficient manner of sharing knowledge.  If you don't believe this axiom, don't say in your own words what they felt, but have your choir members independently write about this new experience.  There will be common answers, but some answers, correct to the individual, may actually contradict your own words!)

 

Vowel modification to make it more rounded helps with the upper notes ([i] to [I]). If you believe they are locking their jaw and squeezing for the high notes, tell them to wiggle their jaw if it sounds or feels forced. In my lessons, this was the first step to opening up my upper range and loosening up the tension. Visually you can show them that their mouths are like this (with hands) < when they should be more like > or =. Hope that makes sense!

Christy,

 

To be a great choral director, means knowing about the voice - firsthand. Take as many voice lessons as you can for at least five years, and find the very best teachers in your state, region, and US.

 

Artificially raising the soft palette creates significant tension in the tongue and mouth.  It is not a natural position.  Excessively opening the mouth also causes unnecessary tension. 

Where there is tension, there is faulty vocal technique.   Not sure what I mean?  Open your mouth as wide as you can, artificially raise the soft palette (the yawn idea), and now try to talk.  Keep doing that for 15 minutes or an hour, then see how your voice feels, your mouth, etc.   I know of an opera singer in California who was taught such a method - and rigorously.  The sad news is that she developed TMJ as a result, had to have jaw surgery, and her career was shot.

 

I often see kids who suffer serious vocal problems because of these kinds of approaches.  They tell me they get hoarse and that their jaws are sore.  They tell me it is hard to sing overall and that trying to sing the high notes with these techniques is virtually impossible. 

 

Another misconception is that choral singers are supposed to 'place the tone'.  I have never understood this as the vocal folds are the location of the sound, and the primary resonance source is the pharynx and naso pharynx. 

 

Another common misunderstanding is that, in order to sing high notes, a singer must take in as much air as possible and then use as much of that air as possible to try to sing the high notes (notes above the staff, for example).  In fact, it takes very little air to activate the vocal cords and the higher the note, the more stretched out the vocal cords, and the less air is needed to activate them.  What is needed is air compression - so that means keeping the air in the lungs, which is accomplished by sets of muscles including the abdominal muscles (but not only these) which work to keep the diaphragm (involuntary muscle) flattened out, thereby keeping the air compression and air away from the vocal cords.  If this is not done, the air rushes up against the cords, the sound is breathy, strained, raspy, or does not sound at all.  Untrained and young singers typically are unable to take in large amounts of air and then ration it out - they simply do not have the physical stamina and technique to do this.

 

In short, singing should be free of tension to be effective.  Singers leaving the rehearsal should be free of vocal strain and hoarseness for the remainder of the day.

Just ask the kids - during the rehearsals, ask them how their voices feel - they will tell you.

 

Zoe Vandermeer

opera singer, voice trainer, voice consultant, choral director

In short, is it possible that this thread/discussion has taught us that:  (...?)

1. We need as much technical/pedagogical understanding as we can get.

2. Individuals respond differently to technical advice.

3. We cannot observe technical issues visually if our heads are buried in the piano/sheet music.  We must look at our singers.

3. The voice is a delicate instrument (even those whose voices are strong and well-developed can have issues).

4.  We have to maintain detailed obersvation of how our singers react, and the resulting action and sound.

...?

But that does not mean, "Give up and say nothing."!  :)   Just observe, listen, and re-state the advice in another way.

Christy -- in addition to the excellent points made above, you may also want to consider the following:

 

I've found that many singers will unconsciously "cover" or darken their head voice to made the sound more palatable in their own head.  (Singing sounds drastically different on the "outside" from the way it sounds on the "inside," and the sound you're probably wanting them to make will probably sound wrong to them -- both empty and harsh at the same time, like a bad connection on the telephone.)  To counteract that, I'll have sopranos shout a "whee" or "whoo" (like they would at a rock concert), and then sing a note or passage modeling that same sound.  I'll then ask them to raise their hands if they thought that didn't sound good or right.  (Many hands will go up.)  I then ask the rest of the choir to raise their hands if they thought it DID sound good or "right."  (Again, many hands go up.)  Once the sopranos learn to let their head tone sound "bad" to themselves (and BTW, it feels much easier to sing this way), their head tone is less covered, more resonant, and much more in tune.   FWIW.

Christy,

 

Just two ideas as you have many great suggestions already.  I find that pitch issues in the upper register with SOPs stem from improper breath management more so than tone placement.  With my SOPs, I teach engaging the intercostal muscles for an energized breath (rather than the diaphragm).  The old addage of "sing from your diaphragm," and phrases like it, are a technical misnomer that create tension in the vocal aparatus which drags the pitch down.  Another method I use to keep my SOP I's from going flat is to ask them to "exhale" the held high note or phrase as they sing.  This image causes them to keep the breath moving and the tone supported.  One poster has already mention Richard Miller.  I recommend his book, "The Structure of Singing," as an excellent resource for choral vocal technique.