Singer Resources
Warm-up videos for ccm singing
Vocal tip videos
Voice research
The Efficacy of Vocal Cool-Down – Dr. Kari Ragan
This Journal of the Singing article “The Efficacy of Vocal Cool-Down Exercises” published in 2018, is the more user-friendly version of the Journal of Voice paper, which presented the research methods and design of the original study.
Centuries of experience-based practice and publications have created the belief that warm-up is a necessary aspect of voice training. Vocal cool-down at the end of a lesson, rehearsal, or performance is not yet standard practice. In recent years, singers have more frequently been encouraged to cool down the voice, but empirical and scientific data remain in their infancy with regard to evidence-based information. This article provides an overview of the subjective measures from the study as well as the vocal cool-down protocol used designed for classical female singers. This “Cool-down Protocol Handout” provides the vocal exercises utilized in the study.
Vehicular Vocalizing to Start Your Day – Dr. Kari Ragan
This Journal of Singing article “Vehicular Vocalizing to Start Your Day (JOS, 2019)” was co-authored by speech-language pathologist Mara Kapsner-Smith. It presents a four-tiered system to provide a guideline for singers to prepare their speaking voice at the beginning of the day. The goal is to condition healthy voice production and reduce the potential for voice fatigue. The exercises outlined could be used as daily maintenance before speaking or for anyone experiencing heavy vocal demands.
https://kariragan.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Vehicular-Vocalizing-to-Start-Your-Day-JOS-2019.pdf
Neuroscience for Singers, Part 2: Anatomy, Physiology, and Motor Control of Breathing – Dr. Lynn Maxfield
While the primary responsibility of the respiratory system is for sustaining/maintaining life, species have adapted this system to meet the demands of speaking and singing. The respiratory system is the power source for voicing. Control of the respiratory system incorporates a complex balance of inputs from the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nervous system (PNS), as well as the brainstem. A comprehensive understanding of the neuro-motor control of breathing is beyond the scope of this review, but we will provide an overview of the musculature of breathing, their innervations, and discussion of some of the areas of the motor cortex associated with voluntary breathing.
While the primary responsibility of the respiratory system is for sustaining/maintaining life, species have adapted this system to meet the demands of speaking and singing. The respiratory system is the power source for voicing. Control of the respiratory system incorporates a complex balance of inputs from the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nervous system (PNS), as well as the brainstem. A comprehensive understanding of the neuro-motor control of breathing is beyond the scope of this review, but we will provide an overview of the musculature of breathing, their innervations, and discussion of some of the areas of the motor cortex associated with voluntary breathing.
https://vocology.utah.edu/_resources/documents/neuroscience_for_singers_two_stark_maxfield.pdf
Healthy Voices, Healthy Singers – Dr. Lynn Maxfield
At some point in our lives, many of us experienced some watershed moment, a musical experience so rewarding, so exhilarating, so moving, that we decided to dedicate our careers and much of our lives to the art of singing. Nico Castel reported that his moment came when, standing in the lobby of a hotel in San Salvador, the “Intermezzo” from Cavalleria rusticana moved him to tears (he was working as a toilet salesman at the time).1 For Cristina Deutekom, it happened in an adult choir she joined in her twenties after having been barred from choral singing in her childhood because her voice was “too loud.”2 I am certain that any singing teacher reading this column could readily recall a similar experience that altered his or her life.
https://vocology.utah.edu/_resources/documents/healthy_voices_healthy_singers_maxfield.pdf
What Happens During Vocal Warm-Up? – Elliot, Sundberg, Gramming
Most singers prefer to warm up their voices before performing. Although the subjective effect is often considerable, the underlying physiolocical effects are largely unknown. Because warm-up tends to increase blood flow in muscles, it seems likely that vocal warm-up might induce decreased viscosity in the vocal folds. According to the theory of vocal-Told vibration, such a decrease should lead to a lower phonation threshold pressure. In this investigation the effect of vocal warm-up on the phonation threshold pressure was examined in a group of male and female singers. The effect varied con- siderably between subjects, presumably because the vocal-fold viscosity was not a dominating factor for the phonation-threshold pressure.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qBQafTl41F5Wd0Q068gcmAQux9MunkJT/view
Defining Evidence-Based Voice Pedagogy: A New Framework – Dr. Kari Ragan
Evidence-based voice pedagogy is a term used synonymously with science-based voice pedagogy, function-based voice pedagogy, or fact-based voice pedagogy. However, there is a precedent for defining evidence-based voice pedagogy (EBVP) with a broader understanding of the term. This new framework provides a context for an inclusive perspective of what constitutes evidence in the field of voice training. The gold standard of evidence for any voice teacher is to achieve efficacy in the form of vocally efficient and artistic performances. Tools necessary to be an effective teacher are acquired through a broad continuum of resources. By definition, evidence-based voice pedagogy is the integration of voice teacher expertise and experience, student goals and perspectives, and relevant research into voice science and production to effectively evaluate and identify technical inefficiencies to guide students toward vocally healthy and efficient, stylistically accurate, and artistic performances. EBVP is a voice pedagogy framework that acknowledges the importance of both scientific voice research and anecdotal evidence, along with consideration of the experience acquired by a teacher, and the importance of individual student needs. EBVP provides a new framework that honors traditions while simultaneously leading to the integration of fact-based principles of voice production in the field of voice teaching.
Voice Science and Vocal Art, Part 1: In Search of Common Ground – Dr. Kari Ragan
Voice Science has influenced, and to some extent, even defined voice pedagogy over at least the past fifty years. While few voice experts agree on the quality and extent of this influence, most would concur that it is significant, that this influence has been both positive and negative, and finally, that disagreement and miscommunication between voice scientists and voice pedagogues unfortunately persist. This article and its companion, “Motor Learning Theory and its Application to Voice Training,” explore the relationship between science and art through its history, its current state, and the new field of cognitive science to which voice pedagogy could look for a rapprochement between these two valid modes of understanding and teaching the voice.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Gszv5ijxU1p4wsoh6_aoR_dyqaL59SwF/view?usp=sharing
Evidence-Based Voice Pedagogy (EBVP): Part 2 Voice Teacher Expertise and Experience – Dr. Kari Ragan
This article is the second in a multi-part series that explores and further defines each of the three components of the Evidence-Based Voice Pedagogy (EBVP) framework, as outlined in Kari Ragan’s 2018 article “Defining Evidence-Based Voice Pedagogy: A New Framework.” Each article will discuss a single component of the tripartite framework, which consists of Voice Research, Teacher Expertise and Experience, and Student Perspectives. The order in which these components are presented in this series should in no way be seen as creating a hierarchy of importance.
https://kariragan.com/evidence-based-voice-pedagogy-part-2-voice-teacher-expertise-and-experience/
Evidence-Based Voice Pedagogy (EBVP): Part 3 Student Goals and Perspectives – Dr. Kari Ragan
This article is the third in a multi-part series that explores and further defines each of the three components of the Evidence-Based Voice Pedagogy (EBVP) framework, as outlined in Kari Ragan’s 2018 article :Defining Evidence-Based Voice Pedagogy: A New Framework.” Each article discusses a single component of the tripartite framework, which consists of Voice Research; Teacher Expertise and Experience; and Student Goals and Perspectives. The order in which these components are presented in this series should in no way be seen as creating a hierarchy of importance.
Of Comparison, Envy, and Self-Enhancement: The Dark Side of Listening to Your Peers’ Performances – Dr. Lynn Maxfield
As you read this, the academic year is wrapping up, studios are beginning summer schedules, and students are performing in front of their teachers, public audiences, and (perhaps most nerve-wracking) their peers. As I write this, young singers are furiously preparing for, or are in the midst of the thrilling and/or excruciating audition and competition season. These two periods of time are ripe for growth and recognizing potential for our students, but they are also notorious for dashing singers’ dreams and even ending their study of voice. Both results are in response not only to the feedback they receive (or don’t) from adjudicators and those hearing auditions, but also to the singers’ internalized comparisons of their own performances to those of their peers. The latter is potentially more devastating as those comparisons occur in the dark recesses of our singers’ minds where reality, perception, and reason battle for supremacy. In this article we will explore the nature of comparison, its underlying cognitive principles, and its potential impacts on the performance and health and well-being of our singers.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1clxKIAyIdAmGkMFkPKvuIHkGsMrqTmKX/view?usp=sharing
Motor Learning and Voice Training: Locus of Attention – Lynn Helding
Perceptual motor learning is, quite simply, how our bodies learn to do their movements. A more complex definition from the field of perceptual motor learning research is that motor learning is a process, which is inferred (rather than directly observed), that leads to permanent changes in behavior as the result of exposure or practice.1 Perceptual motor learning research has its roots in psychology and kinesiology and stretches back over a century. New advances in cognitive neuroscience have eroded the artificial barriers between mind and body, with some results for motor learning being that the adjective “perceptual” has been dropped and research on this topic has “exploded” recently.
Employability ecosystems in music: (Re)navigating a life in music (in precarious times) – Burland, et al.
Preparing students to navigate a life in music involves understanding how they develop awareness of their personal and professional identities, build networks, and reflect on practice in order to sustain and develop work which is meaningful. In a complex, uncertain and rapidly changing world, particularly following the Covid-19 pandemic, we explore the ways in which HEIs might support music students as they prepare for their futures. We argue that employability ecosystems may provide a useful frame for considering the ways in which students’ work transitions can be supported. We consider three vignettes of practice relating to the role of eportfolios and mentoring in scaffolding student reflections on how the intersections of passion, partnership and identity inform personal definitions of success. We suggest that there is a need to disrupt dominant working practices within the music industry and its institutions towards a more ethical, sustainable and culturally enriching employability ecosystem.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KrxFxVG6sL8uqdDg5Refu5v-_NdD22oZ/view?usp=sharing
The Connected Voice Teacher – Dr. Kari Ragan
Singers who choose to teach privately instead of pursuing an academic position experience both rewards and challenges. Private teaching grants independence, but also isolates teachers in a profession that depends upon collaboration and connection. Nevertheless, they can find many opportunities to stay engaged and informed. This article suggests numerous ways in which teachers can connect outside the boundaries of the private voice studio, including continued education, networking, performing, and fostering collegial relationships.
https://kariragan.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/The-Connected-Voice-Teacher-JOS-2010.pdf
Voice Science and Vocal Art, Part Two: Motor Learning Theory – Lynn Helding
Part one of the present study, “Voice Science and Vocal Art: In Search of Common Ground”(Journal of Singing 64, no. 2 [November/December 2007]: 141–150), explored the historical relationship between the two most prominent modes of understanding and teaching the voice: the scientific, versus the intuitive, or empirical approach. Whichever approach is used, the successful transference of voice technique from teacher to student ultimately hinges on the ability to impart a motor skill. Research in motor skill acquisition (a branch of cognitive science), which initially focused on basic physical education, has expanded from the 1940s onward to include studies from neurophysiology, psychophysiology, and learning and information theory. The results of this research augur profound implications for the future of enlightened voice pedagogy.
Recent research has produced evidence contrary to preferred training styles in many voice clinics and studios. The evidence strongly underlines the principle that knowing “what” to train does not necessarily translate directly to “how” to train it.
If recent research in cognitive science is to be employed to answer the question “how?,” a fundamental change of emphasis from how well teachers teach, to how well students learn, is in order.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mnIlX8UrHy68yOJZNPm7Wk0PJ2jXGjST/view?usp=drive_link
Serious Singers: Repertoire for Talented Teens – Dr. Kari Ragan
The next generation of young singers is preparing for a career at an earlier age and with more intensity than past generations. This group of talented teenagers requires special multifaceted instruction during their vocally formative high school years, one important element of which is carefully selected repertoire. The challenging aspect is selecting age appropriate arias that are also competitive enough for competitions and top tier university auditions. This repertoire should demonstrate the singer’s particular strengths, and at the same time be technically appropriate as well as textually and dramatically relatable.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vZ7s8rze1PZ2dnJuRSj_B6BKdT2_fJ4i/view?usp=sharing
Teaching Transgender Students – Dr. Loraine Sims
The 2016 NATS National Conference in Chicago included a session titled “Coffee and Conversation for the Teachers of Transgender Students.” Presenters Nancy Bos and the author thought a handful of interested teachers would appear for the 8:00 a.m. session, but were pleasantly surprised when more than a hundred people were in attendance. Clearly there is much interest in this topic, and that is why the author was invited to write a report for this column on some of the salient points that were discussed.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hnBUk-DyIIzoLa9c5DG2O80SPff9o-fY/view?usp=sharing
“My voice speaks for itself”: The experiences of three transgender students in American secondary school choral programs – Joshua Palkki
With the purpose of furthering lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and allies/agender/asexual (LGBTQA) dialogue in music education and to improve choral instruction for trans(gender) students, this multiple narrative case study explores the experiences of trans students in secondary school choral music programs in the United States. The emergent research design employed narrative and ethnographic techniques to honor and highlight voices of the three participants. The connection or lack thereof between voice and gender identity was different for each student. The policies of the students’ school districts, school officials, choral programs, and state music organizations shaped and influenced the participants as they navigated their trans identity within the high school choral context. Mentors (including teachers) and other “important others” helped these students as they traversed their gender journeys. From this research, it emerges that schools and choral programs can make policy changes to better serve trans youth, and more professional development and incorporation of (trans)gender issues is necessary for choral music educators.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ydQbPJKwLrKsvhQ60HUbe98Q0Ydi31by/view?usp=sharing
Major Benefits of Semi-Occluded Vocal Tract Exercises – Dr. Ingo Titze
Much has been written about the application of semi-occluded vocal tract (SOVT) exercises, both for singing and speaking. Their efficacy is no longer challenged, but when practitioners are asked to explain what goes on inside the airway during these exercises, the answers are inconsistent and occasionally incorrect.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NdOegP4AX7A-jNFXnVkr4M1XgL7MvG-3/view?usp=sharing
Dependence of Phonatory Effort on Hydration Level – Dr. Ingo Titze and Katherine Verdolini
In this study, a double-blind placebo-controlled approach was used to assess the relation between hydration level and phonatory effort. Twelve adult, untrained voice users with normal voices participated as subjects. Each subject received a 4-hour hydration treatment, a 4-hour dehydration treatment, and a 4-hour placebo (control) treatment. Following each treatment, phonatory effort was measured with a physiological measure, phonation threshold pressure (PTP), and with a psychological measure, direct magnitude estimation of perceived phonatory effort (DMEPPE). Summarizing the results across these measures, the findings indicated an inverse relation between phonatory effort and hydration level, but primarily for high-pitched phonation tasks. The findings for PTPs replicated those from an earlier study conducted without
double-blind experimental manipulations (Verdolini-Marston, Titze, & Druker, 1990). Theoretical discussion focuses on the possible role of vocal fold tissue viscosity for hydration and dehydration effects, although direct measures of tissue viscosity are lacking.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dnERazZh8UdmiTbLl4g9Af294TluiCuk/view?usp=sharing
Music scientists find the connection between music and emotion:’ Our neurons dance to the same rhythm’ – Enrique Alpañés
Three independent scientific studies analyze how the human brain transforms notes into feelings, a mystery that has intrigued psychologists and musicologists for decades