tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post655495572255020688..comments2023-11-05T07:41:34.380-05:00Comments on Kashu-do (歌手道): The Way of the Singer: Kashudo (歌手道): Appoggio: An Actual Support SystemKashu-Dohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17375903978220316261noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-27781288551022518632013-04-01T10:11:08.233-04:002013-04-01T10:11:08.233-04:00When i first tried it, my phonation become smooth ...When i first tried it, my phonation become smooth and easy and unusually even. It feels like there are no high and low notes. Larynx does not move an inch even on my highest note. I can sing softly now on high notes too. I mean it is wonderful, i still dont understand what is happening but something changes for good. I am not sure about vocal placement and resonance though, need to experiment with it more to see where it takes voice. Also sometimes i cant find exact muscle that i need to contract in order to achieve the support and i end up tensing abs which does not work of course.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04224381938839360633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-39623749429448915832013-04-01T10:05:12.772-04:002013-04-01T10:05:12.772-04:00First time i tried this, something happened to my ...First time i tried this, something happened to my phonation, it become smooth and easy. Larynx does not move an inch even on my highest note. Not sure it how it affects resonance and placement of the voice, need to play with it more. Everynow and then i lose sight of what exactly i need to tense in a body to achieve the support and i end up just tensing everything in body but i think i will figure it out somehow. Great post, thank you alot.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04224381938839360633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-85509112856808509572009-12-07T17:16:49.416-05:002009-12-07T17:16:49.416-05:00Thank you Lady XOC,
If you read the comments, you...Thank you Lady XOC,<br /><br />If you read the comments, you will notice that I do not advocate bowel evacuation which induces the valsuva maneuver but rather the reverse. I practice Bikram Yoga which gave rise to the entire discovery. Many singers have never accessed these muscles and so the entire pelvic floor being activated at first is an excellent beginning. Then later as in Pilates with the PC musscles and the mula bandha, we can gradually learn to isolate specific muscles of that area. It is particularly a new sensation for men.<br /><br />I will look at the sources you mention.<br /><br />Thank you as always for your excellent commentary. <br /><br />I encourage you to offer your expertise whenever.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-87242607747676510692009-12-06T22:30:35.716-05:002009-12-06T22:30:35.716-05:00May I suggest that you concentrate your attention ...May I suggest that you concentrate your attention on a point slightly more anterior than that which you describe. I think you would be better served to avoid the coarse gesture involved in the Valsalva maneuver, associated with bowel evacuation, or even the Kegel exercise which holds back a urine stream (both of which rob breath energy), and to employ the Mula Bandha, or Root Lock of Hatha yoga. It is an extremely subtle gesture which seals in and activates the energy which will allow you simultaneously to support your breath and to free up unwanted abdominal tensions. It is a tiny tenseness, a mere scintilla of precisely focused sensation which, assuming you have already developed some core strength and some flexibility in your intercostals, is capable of holding you completely together. It requires constant mindfulness and renewal; you must be present in a way that feels like perpetually cresting a wave. This has more to do with sexual sensation than excretory function, but isn’t sex the origin of all creativity? Not a bad basis for art, in my opinion. It does take a little training to become aware of. Here I quote an enlightening passage—from<i> Anatomy of Hatha Yoga, A Manual for Students Teachers and Practitioners,</i> by H. David Coulter, a brilliant anatomist and yogi—which may prevent a lot of straining and heaving on the part of new practitioners:<br /><br />“In ashwini mudra we strongly activate the pelvic diaphragm, the anus, and the gluteals. Mula bandha is more delicate. Here we mildly activate the pelvic diaphragm plus—more strongly—the overlying muscles of the urogenital triangle....Unlike ashwini mudra, which is often a response to sharp and sudden increases in abdominopelvic pressure, mula bandha (the root lock) is a gentle contraction of the pelvic diaphragm and the muscles of the urogenital triangle. It does not counter intra-abdominal pressure so much as it seals urogenital energy within the body, controlling and restraining it during breathing exercises and meditation." <br /><br />There is an accompanying illustration clearly showing that the urogenital triangle is the forward section of the perineum, as Susan Eichhorn-Young has described.<br /><br />I have found this useful in my yoga practice, and although I am not a singer, I believe this may be a refinement of the excellent ideas you have put forth in your post.LXVhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18396149640519096992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-2534123545989531412009-12-05T19:14:50.060-05:002009-12-05T19:14:50.060-05:00Thank you for contributing mweyandt!
This concept...Thank you for contributing mweyandt!<br /><br />This concept has been articulated in similar ways in Kung Fu, Karate, Yoga, Ballet and classical schools of Horsemanship. In our times, science is able to share light on what the ancients understood proprioceptively. I am happy to receive your commentary. Don't be a stranger!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-37900256390995287132009-12-05T17:18:21.868-05:002009-12-05T17:18:21.868-05:00I stumbled across this post just after having read...I stumbled across this post just after having read 'The Invisible Actor', by Yoshi Oida. Among other things, he makes a big deal early on about how "[in] Japan, the martial arts and theater traditions place great stress on keeping the anus tight while working," and that it's especially important when you need to "strike a powerful blow" or "use the voice with great power" (p. 8). I assume this is what he meant!Michaelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16447137615630450757noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-26833441854194956742009-11-24T22:43:54.908-05:002009-11-24T22:43:54.908-05:00some good ideas - and glad you clarified Kegel/PC ...some good ideas - and glad you clarified Kegel/PC et al - especially for women. The muscles of engagement and anchor for women are further forward in the pelvic floor and lower abdomen and draw through and find elasticity deeper in the pelvis and further back. Core strength has flexibility and elasticity and not grip and contraction in the traditional sense. Glad to see the discussion and discoveries!!!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00399266373570613570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-33239819693555033952009-11-23T13:24:28.908-05:002009-11-23T13:24:28.908-05:00Dear Bleetenor,
I will look into Tosi and company...Dear Bleetenor,<br /><br />I will look into Tosi and company and see what I find. There is ample evidence in modern research to connect core strength to good support. I too am interested in seeing what the old masters might have written along those lines. I have quite a bit of other reading (not to mention teaching) in the short term. I will look into this at the first opportunity. If you find anything, please do share.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-46870035218144597612009-11-23T13:20:33.094-05:002009-11-23T13:20:33.094-05:00Thank you for posting the abstract Martin! Knowing...Thank you for posting the abstract Martin! Knowing what I know now, I am not surprised that abs out would actually cause laryngeal raising. I will find the article and read further. But I suspect that the "core" issue is one of readiness of breath pressure. Abs out tend to reduce sub-glottal pressure, which if too far reduced would cause a necessity for pressing, resulting in a high larynx.<br /><br />I appreciate this quote. Thanks again.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-33225744579241779192009-11-23T12:58:45.588-05:002009-11-23T12:58:45.588-05:00Dear TS,
My comment on the subject of "abs i...Dear TS,<br /><br />My comment on the subject of "abs in" was caused by reading an article by J. Iwarsson, Effect of Inhalatory Abdominal Wall Movement on Vertical Laryngeal Position during Phonation, <i> J. Voice </i> 15:3 84-294. I found the article interesting and the conclusions quite surprising! Let me quote the abstract:<br /><br /><i><br />The configuration of the body resulting from inhalatory behavior is sometimes considered a factor of relevance to voice production in singing and speaking pedagogy and in clinical voice therapy. The present investigation compares two different inhalatory behaviors: (1) with a “paradoxical” inward movement of the abdominal wall, and (2) with an expansion of the abdominal wall, both with regard to the effect on vertical laryngeal position during the subsequent phonation. Seventeen male and 17 female healthy, vocally untrained subjects participated. No instructions were given regarding movements of the rib cage. Inhaled air volume as measured by respiratory inductive plethysmography, was controlled to reach 70% inspiratory capacity. Vertical laryngeal position was recorded by two-channel electroglottography during the subsequent vowel production. A significant effect was found; the abdomen-out condition was associated with a higher laryngeal position than the abdomen-in condition. This result apparently contradicted a hypothesis that an expansion of the abdominal wall would allow the diaphragm to descend deeper in the torso, thereby increasing the tracheal pull, which would result in a lowerlaryngeal position. In a post-hoc experiment including 6 of the subjects, body posture was studied by digital video recordings, revealing that the two inhalatory modes were clearly associated with postural changes affecting laryngeal position. The “paradoxical” inward movement of the abdominal wall was associated with a recession of the chin toward the neck, such that the larynx appeared in a lower position in the neck, for reasons of a postural change. The results suggest that the laryngeal position can be affected by the inhalatory behavior if no attention is paid to posture, implying that instructions from clinicians and pedagogues regarding breathing behavior must be carefully formulated and adjusted in order to ensure that the intended goals are reached. </i>Martin Berggrenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09015025825598248479noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-47327813094555854512009-11-22T00:16:35.391-05:002009-11-22T00:16:35.391-05:00When I first read your post, I was incredulous, bu...When I first read your post, I was incredulous, but after experimenting with it, I am enjoying it. It adds a definition to onsets that otherwise are more vague in nature. You know that I dislike imagistic teaching, but it really feels to me like the ship of my breath system is dropping an anchor which provides a solid base for the onset. Do any of the old treatises talk about the pelvic floor, and if so, can you refer me to the citations? I'd like to see how it all goes together. Thanks!D. Brian Leehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04002227755207212545noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-16446563152704558242009-11-21T18:28:55.869-05:002009-11-21T18:28:55.869-05:00Thank you Arachne for sharing your experience.
A ...Thank you Arachne for sharing your experience.<br /><br />A point of precision is an order. One of my students had a difficult time activating the core muscles via PC contraction. I had been reading that Pilates promotes isolation of the PC in exercise.<br /><br />I have also noticed that along with the PC muscle, the perianal musculature that participate in stopping defacation is also active in accessing core strength.<br /><br />One of my students who does Pilates explained to me today that it is in fact the contraction of the perineum (the region between the legs beneath the pelvic diaphragm)that contributes directly to core access.<br /><br />In short "holding it all" gives credence to the Italian school, which suggests that the feeling associated with resisting urination "and" defecation does indeed help in breath support. Contraction of the entire pelvic floor seems necessary to accessing the core contraction, which provides a firm base against the expansion of the air-sack.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-3423242225550268422009-11-19T16:36:57.976-05:002009-11-19T16:36:57.976-05:00Thank you for this information. I read your post t...Thank you for this information. I read your post this morning, and thought about it a lot during my aerobics cum pilates class. Then I tried out conscious engagement of that PC muscle during my practice session this afternoon, and I can report that it worked wonders for me, especially in the problematic upper-middle voice zone. I immediately felt a sense of security and increased stamina. It's great to be able to focus on just a single set of muscles for a change. It's something to remember on those low-energy days when support is lacking and coordination is poor!Arachnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11163718181739583114noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6919674981128634746.post-24548833996801161632009-11-18T22:55:14.933-05:002009-11-18T22:55:14.933-05:00It seems this core activation is key to many Class...It seems this core activation is key to many Classical Schools. You mentioned Ballet in addition to Singing above, and after hearing an excellent explanation of the Riding Seat this week, I can almost absolutely say that we can add that Classical School to the list, too!Opera Organicallyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14710656534217184278noreply@blogger.com