Mezza di voce/"transcending tone" exercise

[DukeOfBoom]

 

Are there any other exercises that help find the mix since I'm just belting on this one.

 

 

yes, the messa di voce is the holy grail of mixed voice exercises. if you're just belting you're not doing it right. You should blend the two registers not just switch from one to the other when doing this exercise.

[staticsound]

what happened in the lesson with Vendera? Did you guys go over the messa di voce? Did he provide any tips? Did Vendera tell you anything that lit a lightbulb for you during the lesson?

 

We mainly went over lower/middle grit, kinda touched on the "transcending tone". He's big on visuals, he said basically picture a triangle, the point of the triangle being your starting tone, at a volume level of 1, and the core resonance in your head. As you swell, imagine moving down the sides of the triangle and picture your resonance moving from your the top of your head, down through you until your chest is buzzing and you're at a volume of 10 without shouting. Once you're able to do this perfect, your mix voice should sound like full voice because your chest, throat, and head resonators should all be buzzing. This exercise is a bitch...even when you can do it flawless. Jaime cracked several times demonstrating it.

 

By far, I like his method best. It just focuses on 3 main exercises to build power and range. Plus he has a grit exercise.

[DukeOfBoom]

By far, I like his method best. It just focuses on 3 main exercises to build power and range. Plus he has a grit exercise.

 

the isolation trifecta? 1) the falsetto slide, 2) messa di voce and 3) octave sirens? Which one is supposed to work on grit? The sirens?

[staticsound]

 

the isolation trifecta? 1) the falsetto slide, 2) messa di voce and 3) octave sirens? Which one is supposed to work on grit? The sirens?

 

 

That's the trifecta. The grit exercise is separate...I guess the best way to describe it is by making a gargling sound (think chewbacca) in the soft palette, and move that sound up and down your chest range until it's comfortable enough to add in with a note. He said the key to it is to really push down in your lower abdomen and maintain the sound with an open throat while focusing it in your soft palette.

[grace_slick]

Ok, I'm lost now. lol

[jvardon]

lol. I can do the trifecta, but how does it help??

[WaterMoc]

he said basically picture a triangle, the point of the triangle being your starting tone, :

 

LOL, so now I'm wondering, right triangle? isosceles?? But I think I know what he means anyway..

[jvardon]

LOL, so now I'm wondering, right triangle? isosceles?? But I think I know what he means anyway..

 

LOL

[grace_slick]

REALLY lost now!! Triangle?! WHAT THE!?

[jvardon]

 

He's big on visuals, he said basically picture a triangle, the point of the triangle being your starting tone, at a volume level of 1, and the core resonance in your head. As you swell, imagine moving down the sides of the triangle and picture your resonance moving from your the top of your head, down through you until your chest is buzzing and you're at a volume of 10 without shouting. Once you're able to do this perfect, your mix voice should sound like full voice because your chest, throat, and head resonators should all be buzzing.

 

 

So we should be thinking like this?

[staticsound]

 

So we should be thinking like this?

 

 

Just a visualization tool, but yeah, that's the about the gist of it. This is from the book :

[jvardon]

So there's should be a larger percentage of mix than chest or head voice??

If only I had my mix.

[DukeOfBoom]

 

So there's should be a larger percentage of mix than chest or head voice?? If only I had my mix.

 

 

 

what? it's all about choice. If you want to belt a g4 thats cool, if you want to sing it in mix, that's fine too. whatever works best for its tonal properties. the {censored} you like is all mix. the {censored} I like is mostly belting, with some mix for freddie mercury and all that.

[jvardon]

Belt to a G4? I wish, that's just about where my head voice stops being comfortable. I can muster an A4 sometimes but I've lost my B4 completely and with it, the little glimmer of a C5.

I can belt.........actually. I have never tested my top belt notes. Probably E4 or maybe F4. But as you said, most of stuff I like is mix. There are a few belts that I'd be glad to be able do though.

[DukeOfBoom]

 

Belt to a G4? I wish, that's just about where my head voice stops being comfortable. I can muster an A4 sometimes but I've lost my B4 completely and with it, the little glimmer of a C5. I can belt.........actually. I have never tested my top belt notes. Probably E4 or maybe F4. But as you said, most of stuff I like is mix. There are a few belts that I'd be glad to be able do though.

 

 

what do you mean? are you a bass? most baritones can belt an f4 with little to no training - the g4 belt is only a little bit of extra work past that, a few weeks of range work.

 

your falsetto/head should easily hit c5?

[jvardon]

I think I sound quite bassy at times but I'm most people tell me I'm baritone. I've even gotten a few tenors thrown at me.

I can belt to an F4 on a good day. I've been warming for the last half hour and can only manage an E4 right now.

 

Falsetto gets to C5 easily, head voice not so much. I even have to warm up alot these days to do a good G4.

 

I desperately need and want training. There's just about no people here who do. Not with a modern approach anyway.

[DukeOfBoom]

 

I think I sound quite bassy at times but I'm most people tell me I'm baritone. I've even gotten a few tenors thrown at me. I can belt to an F4 on a good day. I've been warming for the last half hour and can only manage an E4 right now. Falsetto gets to C5 easily, head voice not so much. I even have to warm up alot these days to do a good G4. I desperately need and want training. There's just about no people here who do. Not with a modern approach anyway.

 

 

the modern approach is simply based on the operatic approach. they just use different "buzz words" like "covering" instead of "mixed voice" and {censored} like that. it's more or less the same thing with the exception of the new, cool-sounding buzz words.

[davie]

jvardon, judging by your voice, you seem like a lower voice, bass or baritone.

 

in the yellow submarine recording, you seem to be singing in the "bass octave". The regular key is actually in the baritone range. That C# is actually middle C#.

 

Modern approach? Do you mean speech-level singing? I have some classical/operatic training, and feel okay doing various styles.

[jvardon]

I guess I'm a low baritone then.

Yeah, I do mean speech-level. Classical training? your part of Yellow submarine definitely did not give that away. I mostly just don't want the really sound that operatic voices have and I'm not a huge fan of the vibrato either. You don't seem to have all that though. So I guess I'll give more classical training a chance. I just need to find a coach first.

[WaterMoc]

 

use the pavorotti one (that one also has females doing it to) as your guide, not the kevin richards one.

 

 

OK to me it sounds like she's going from loud head voice to quiet head voice at C#5. I was trying to go from full chest voice to mid to head on a note like E4 or F4 where my registers overlap.

 

I can sorta do it but there is still some wavering at the end.

[DukeOfBoom]

 

OK to me it sounds like she's going from loud head voice to quiet head voice at C#5. I was trying to go from full chest voice to mid to head on a note like E4 or F4 where my registers overlap. I can sorta do it but there is still some wavering at the end.

 

 

So you go chest -> mix -> head, right? You can do that on notes you can sing full chest on, or just go chest-heavy mix -> head on the higher ones you can't do full chest.

 

It's also easiest to start a few notes below your register overlap. You can still sing head on these notes too.You can always pull head down, but chest doesn't really go up.

[WaterMoc]

So you go chest -> mix -> head, right? You can do that on notes you can sing full chest on, or just go chest-heavy mix -> head on the higher ones you can't do full chest. .

 

Yeah, that's exactly what I can't do. Loud head voice to soft, yes. Can't do full chest to soft head voice even at E4. But I can work on it..

 

Loved all the Pavarotti stuff linked at YouTube..