Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
Sing
Opera
Now!
http://www.singoperanow.com
Copyright
2010
All
Rights
Reserved
2
Introduction
Did
you
know
that
YOU
have
a
genuine,
operatic
voice?
I
know
what
you’re
thinking:
“You
have
to
be
born
with
it.”
Right?
Nope!
Everybody
has
the
same
‘equipment’
and
to
say
that
you
have
to
be
‘born
with
it’
to
sing
is
like
saying
that
you
have
to
be
‘born
with
it’
to
walk.
We
all
have
legs
and
we
all
can
walk.
We
all
have
voice
boxes
and
so
we
all
can
sing!
Singing
is
a
technical
subject:
I'm
talking
huge
textbooks
and
enough
physiology
diagrams
to
freak
out
a
med
student!
But
let’s
be
real,
you
don’t
want
to
read
through
all
of
that
stuff
and
I
don’t
blame
you
–
it’s
boring!
You
just
want
to
sing!
That’s
why
I’ve
cut
all
the
fat
and
covered
only
the
essentials
that
you
need
to
know
to
begin
singing
better
today!
Right
NOW!
Whether
you’re
in
middle/high
school
or
middle
age,
in
a
choir
or
a
shower,
this
book
will
show
you
how
to
develop
an
operatic
voice
quickly
and
easily
while
loving
every
moment
of
it!
4
A
lot
of
people
have
various
tensions
and
it
takes
time
and
patience
to
retrain
how
your
body
behaves
–
but
it’s
totally
doable!
There’s
no
such
thing
as
complete
relaxation.
Remember
when
you
first
rode
a
bike
and
clutched
the
handlebars
while
your
whole
body
tensed
up
trying
to
learn
this
new
and
scary
skill?
Then
you
finally
figured
it
out
and
relaxed.
You
have
to
make
some
sort
of
muscular
effort
or
you'd
fall
off
the
bike
like
a
limp
noodle!
But
now
that
you
know
what
to
do
-‐
your
effort
is
minimal.
It’s
the
same
with
singing:
find
the
minimum
amount
of
effort
required
to
achieve
the
greatest
result.
Less
is
more!
6
[Nervous
Habits]
We
all
have
them…
They
betray
our
emotional
states
and
level
of
comfort.
Whether
you
rock
back
and
forth,
fidget,
twiddle
your
fingers
or
play
with
something
to
occupy
the
“silence”
of
a
relaxed
body,
there
are
reasons
for
it.
I
encourage
you
to
explore
them.
Also
remember
that
a
nervous
habit
is
just
that
-‐
a
habit!
You
can
develop
confident,
calm,
relaxed
body
language
simply
by
paying
attention
to
it
and
correcting
it
until
it
replaces
the
old
habit.
[Personal
Issues]
Everybody
has
emotional/psychological
issues;
fact
of
life!
The
sooner
you
deal
with
yours,
the
sooner
you
can
move
on
to
productive
pursuits.
I'm
not
a
psychiatrist
-‐
why
do
I
bring
this
up?
Because
the
mind-‐body
connection
is
HUGE
for
a
singer!
A
7
singer's
body
is
his
or
her
instrument
and
any
kind
of
personal
issues
can
and
will
affect
your
singing
and
mental
clarity.
I've
found
self-‐help
books
to
be
really
valuable
for
sorting
out
my
"stuff".
They're
cheap,
effective
and
empower
you
to
overcome
your
problems,
yourself.
Notice
that
growing
requires
you
to
step
outside
of
your
comfort
zone.
Learning
to
sing
will
definitely
do
that
.
.
.
enjoy
the
ride!
Ok
.
.
.
Less
talk,
more
rock!
Here’s
the
good
stuff!
8
[Hips]
Next,
swivel
your
hips
back
and
forth.
Feel
where
the
top
of
your
body
meets
the
trunk
of
your
body
and
line
up
the
top
and
bottom.
If
you
swivel
the
hips
too
far
back
you’ll
be
bent
forward
and
falling
over.
Too
far
forward
and
you’ll
feel
a
pinch
in
your
lower
back
and
a
feeling
like
you
want
to
fall
backwards.
(Find
where
it’s
comfortable
for
you!)
[Chest]
Pretend
there’s
a
string
connected
to
the
middle
of
your
chest
and
that
it’s
lifting
your
chest
straight
up.
This
is
about
where
you
should
hold
your
chest.
Too
low
and
you’ll
feel
your
ribs
collapse
(they’re
connected
to
the
breast
bone!).
Too
high
and
your
shoulders
will
pinch
and
you’ll
look
puffed
up
and
silly!
Find
a
happy
medium
that
feels
comfortable
for
you.
10
[Shoulders]
Consciously
relax
your
shoulders.
Check
up
on
them
frequently
to
make
sure
they
are
at
ease.
[Head]
Swivel
your
head
slowly
in
every
direction
and
feel
where
it
sits
evenly
and
in
balance.
You
should
be
looking
straight
ahead.
11
[Arms]
Your
arms
should
hang
freely
at
your
sides.
You
may
feel
awkward
at
first
but
it
will
feel
natural
soon
enough.
The
idea
is
that
your
body
is
open
and
exposed
and
all
the
power
of
your
being
comes
out
in
your
voice.
Allow
yourself
to
feel
vulnerable;
it
will
lead
to
growth.
12
Make
sure
that
when
you
allow
air
to
come
into
your
lungs,
you
don't
heave
your
chest.
Your
breathing
should
feel
like
you're
filling
your
lungs
from
the
bottom-‐up
NOT
the
top-‐down.
14
yet,
use
these
methods
until
you
can
simply
lower
your
larynx
on
command.
Avoid
jamming
it
down
forcefully.
Simply
lower
it
until
it
is
comfortably
settled.
[Onset]
The
way
you
begin
a
sound
is
called
your
onset.
There
are
three
different
kinds:
hard,
soft
and
balanced.
You
want
the
balanced
onset.
Here's
how
to
do
it.
Pretend
like
your
baby
nephew
is
trying
to
put
a
dirty
toy
in
his
mouth
and
say
"uh-‐uh!"
Do
it
a
couple
of
times.
Now
do
it
slowly.
What
you're
feeling
is
your
vocal
chords
opening
up
quickly
and
popping
just
a
little
bit.
This
is
an
example
of
the
hard
onset.
Now
pretend
like
you
want
to
annoy
your
friend
by
breathing
garlic
breath
on
them
by
saying
"ha".
Do
this
without
any
sound
16
at
first,
then
add
a
little
sound.
It
will
sound
breathy.
This
is
the
soft
onset.
The
balanced
onset
is
in
between
these
two
extremes.
Keep
doing
both
and
taking
away
or
adding
air
and
pressure
until
your
sound
comes
out
without
a
pop
and
without
breathiness.
[Mask]
Close
your
mouth
and
hum
at
a
normal
volume.
You
will
feel
a
distinct
buzz
in
the
nasal
area
of
your
face.
This
area
is
your
mask.
Play
around
with
how
much
buzz
you
can
get
going
in
the
mask.
You
want
to
feel
vibration
in
this
area
at
all
times.
A
good
teacher
can
help
you
determine
how
much
‘mask’
is
appropriate.
Too
much
will
result
in
a
"nosey"
sound
and
too
little
will
result
in
a
hooty
quality.
Certain
vowels
lend
themselves
to
resonance
in
this
area.
“Eeh”
17
as
in
“Me”,
is
the
easiest
one.
You
want
to
maintain
resonance
in
the
mask
on
every
vowel
at
all
times.
This
will
take
some
practice
because
sensations
in
the
mask
tend
to
be
elusive
(especially
for
young
singers).
But…you’ll
get
it!
Keeping
the
sound
in
the
mask
gives
it
a
‘point’
which
helps
singing
in-‐tune
dramatically
and
brightens
the
tone.
[Vibrato]
Vibrato
is
a
periodic
‘beat’
in
the
sound
during
singing.
It
is
the
result
of
getting
your
breath
control
handled,
tension
minimized,
larynx
low
and
sound
in
the
mask!
Listen
to
a
few
famous
opera
singers
and
pay
attention
to
the
relaxed
consistency
of
the
vibrato.
It
may
take
some
time
to
develop
a
consistent
vibrato,
particularly
if
you
have
some
bad
vocal
habits
to
get
rid
of.
Be
patient
and
18
work
with
a
competent
teacher
and
it
will
come.
Once
you
have
it
you’ll
wonder
how
you
could
have
ever
sung
without
it!
Vibrato
can’t
be
taught,
as
such.
But
it
can
be
recognized
as
being
vibrato
or
not-‐vibrato.
This
is
your
process
for
acquiring
vibrato:
1. Listen
to
(paying
particular
attention
to
vibrato)
and
emulate
world-‐class
opera
singers
2. Follow
Golden
Rules
at
all
times
(larynx
down,
sound
in
mask,
carriage
in
elevated
position)
3.
Experiment
with
adding
vibrato
and
“spinning”
the
voice.
The
more
you
play
with
these
sensations
the
more
in
touch
you’ll
be
with
what
feels
and
sound
“right”
and
what
doesn’t.
You
won’t
necessarily
know
when
you
finally
have
real
vibrato
until
you’ve
had
it
for
a
while.
This
is
one
area
where
a
teacher’s
continual
guidance
is
super
valuable.
19
Let
go
of
wanting
an
outcome.
Whether
it
“happens”
for
you
or
not
is
meaningless!
Singing
badly
once
doesn't
make
you
a
loser
any
more
than
singing
well
makes
you
a
winner.
Those
are
labels
that
only
mean
what
you
think
they
mean.
Let
go
of
all
that.
Become
indifferent
to
the
outcome
and
you’ll
find
yourself
enjoying
the
process.
It's
counterintuitive
but
it's
true:
The
difference
that
makes
the
difference
is
indifference.
21
If
you’ve
gotten
any
value
out
of
this
ebook
whatsoever,
share
it
with
your
friends
and
family!
Email
it,
review
it
on
your
blog
and
feel
free
to
offer
it
for
download
from
your
own
website.
Sharing
is
caring
and
the
world
could
always
use
more
beautiful
voices
singing
together.
This
is
work
is
copyrighted
and
licensed
for
public
use
under
Creative
Commons
Attribution-‐NoDerivs
3.0.
Yours
in
song,
Vic
Dorfman