Courtney- Lesson 11/12

Exercises:

• 1358531 [a] change to [o] on the 8
• let it be light
• focus on the continual movement of air  
• 8531 [fa] start light, tiny and quiet and then crescendo down
•    my [a] sometimes gets a little nasally when I'm coming down and as I lose focus
• in general this exercise sounded freer than I anticipated because I wasn't really paying attention what it sounded like when I was in the lesson, I was focused on keeping it moving
• 54321 with a flip on each [ri ro ri ro ri]
• aim the [r] at the front of the teeth 
• needs more stretch in my back molars, the sound falls a little flat
• 12345678987654321 [i-e-a]
  
• my switch from [i] to [e] is not super clear, probably need more stretch in molars so that my mouth opens more
• use cork or tootsie roll to keep it open? Watch in mirror?
• on one pitch [ŋe]
• feel the [e] in the same place, let it be and fill your face instead of trying to make it resonant
• [n] can be shorter
• can change it to an [o] vowel
• [ni ne na no nu] 5 5 5 5 54321
• keep back molars up away from bottom ones on the [nu]
• 8531 [no]
• my [o] doesn't sound an [o] until the bottom
• trust your body, right now I have a grip on every part of the process, just trust that it'll happen and when it doesn't happen the way I want, play with it, find what works. 
• Let it Go
• Let the vowels be more focused and forward, especially in the extremes of your voice 
• Wait for the piano and trust yourself on "the wind is howling" 
• You're adding extra weight with your tongue that doesn't need to be there in the first verse, find a way to let go of some of that weight as you move into the first chorus 
• More focused vowels on the B4 and C5, feel it in your bones, let the air carry it out
• Divorce the pitches from your larynx but not your air or body
• Come down on the higher belt notes and make sure you have space: stretch those back molars!
• The power for belt comes from a focused vowel, not from thrust
• calling/whining not yelling
• [æ] mixed with [i]
• cartoon in the top of the vocal mechanism but open in the bottom
• Decide your vowels for all the notes, but especially the higher ones
• Tongue can still be floaty and forward
• The Light in the Piazza
• I think some of the heaviness I thought I was hearing in the lower/more spoken pitches comes from wearing a mask LOL, so I had to filter through that part of the sound
• <care> popped into the right spot by the end and sounded so crystalline 
• The first set of "The light in the piazzas" is a set of 1/2 and 1, the second has a measure of rest then two full ones
• The high section wants to crack.... let it???? maybe that's what I need
• pitch the [gr] of grows and the [f] of fills, let them pop/bounce right up while allowing the air to move as it wants
• Hear the high notes and trust that they will come out, also know what vowels you need/want
• Sing with jaw down and back, [a] in the jaw and lips, then find [i] from
• Stop and listen more Courtney > < :/
• Listen to the piano to feel the length of the whole notes
• meet the pianist on the downbeat
• conduct
• Listen to what's right in front of me, not my thoughts
• Decide where to breathe and then breathe there
• Breathe after "all I see is" dang it! LOL
• focus on the vowel of <thing>