My Voice Analysis
Before the exercises
Before doing a vocal warm up I find that stumble over my words slightly which causes me to struggle with articulation. For example in Man of Mode Sally mentioned that I am becoming lazy with my 'th' sounds and I need to be aware about this. This is something that I need to be working on this week to help me with my character and in everyday conversation. I think that I find being round my friends I pick the habits up from them. From my 13 feedback Sarah talked about that I speak on the out breath which is something I will improve on. In road my feedback consisted of projection as in some rehearsals I could not be heard. From hearing myself speak I feel like I speak too fast as I am either nervous or not as confident on the words therefore I find my voice difficult to use. I think my voice is low voice between the options of high and low. If I am tired my voice is sometimes mumbled and my pace is slowed down. My posture is the worse out of all the characteristics of my voice as my shoulders are always hunched forward and my back is not in alignment with my head. Also I have noticed my neck is always stretched because of my height bending down to talk to people.
What exercises will help me develop my voice this week?
The exercises that I am going to do this week are:
Tongue twisters-Theodore thought it was his birthday but instead he went to the cathedral.
Repeated five times.
The 'th' sound is the making between the tongue and the teeth as shown by the picture above. I struggle to make this sound as I can sometimes be lazy and say the 'f' sound instead. By doing the tongue twister regularly it will train me to stop saying the 'f' sound. The difference between 'th' sound and 'f' sound is that it is different part of the lips.Circle the tongue round the mouth clockwise and anticlockwise
Circling the tongue allows to strengthen the tongue and warms up the mouth.
Opening the mouth as wide as you can such as a silent scream scenario wakes up the lips and mouth muscles. The image on the left shows a example of the big stretch that you can make with the mouth.
Rubber chicken- Waking up my body
Although warming up the voice is a key important part of a vocal warm up. Waking up the body allows the body to find your balance and freedom and flexibility. Working with the body releases personal, habitual posture, the actor opens up the possibilities of what they may play both physically and vocally. Rubber chicken gets the heart rate up and makes the body feel more energized.
Controlling the breath
Controlling my breath- My diaphragm and ribs are responsible for breathing in. They form the floor and walls of the chest cavity. As my breathe in my diaphragm moves down and my ribs move out. From the diagram you can see clearly how the breath flows in and out and what happens inhaling and exhaling.
Alexander technique
The Alexander technique provides a natural curve in the small of the back so this area will not be flat on the floor. Bending the legs helps to lengthen the lower back and so will avoid any excess arching. You need to put enough books under the head so that your chin is slightly lower than your forehead. This helps the back of the neck to lengthen. By imagining different parts of the body releasing unnecessary tension. For example imagine your toes uncurling and spreading makes you release tension which helps the voice physically.
Week One Of trying the exercises
Circling my tongue clockwise and anticlockwise
Knowing my weakness and wanting to improve I believe that these exercises are working for me can I am freeing up my voice as I am going round my mouth clockwise and anticlockwise. I think the reason why this is working is because I feel that I am opening up my mouth more than I once however it needs to be improved. On the other hand I will keep on doing this exercise as it is working after a week so with another week my articulation will get better as the weeks move on.
Opening my mouth to to make it wider
This is week is all about articulation which means opening the mouth more. I feel that this has made loads of progress with my voice because I opening my mouth wider which makes the pronunciation more clearer. I can hear the sound in my voice the way it is improving because of making that stretch which is helping the mouth open up more.
Rubber chicken
Waking up the body makes me feel energized ready for the day and makes more feel more awaken and warm up the resonators in my voice. For example I start of with a monotone voice just to keep on a simple level then I warm the chest resonators by using a rugby voice. After that a young children to warm up the head resonators.
Controlling my breath
Controlling the breath helped with my pace and my relaxation. It felt that I was warming the breathe by breathing normally by controlled. This exercise helps stop breathing on the out breathe because I am breathing in a steady pace.
Alexander technique
Alexander technique was the relaxing part of the whole routine as it releases unnecessary tension and helps your alignment which is improving as when I lie down I am perfect alignment. I also feel so relaxed after the exercise but my body feels free and that I can concentrate. Whilst I was doing it I felt my hips falling to the floor because my hips were holding tension.
Tongue twisters concentrating with the 'Th' sound
Honestly I haven't noticed many changes to my voice with this exercises. However maybe I need to try out this exercise more than the others as I am not seeing a change as such so this week I need to concentrate more on that exercise.
To conclude this week I think the exercises are helping my voice but I need to repeat these exercises to see a difference.
Week 2 Repeating the same exercises
This week has been a stressful week which the vocal warm ups have really helped me relax and warm me up ready for the day ahead.
Circling clockwise and anticlockwise
This exercise is so familiar that that it flows with my vocal warm up. This week I have really noticed the difference because I have felt the stretching of the mouth which is in important for the voice. Also this exercises prepares you mentally as it allows you to think about how many times you are going round in your mouth. I can also feel that my cheeks have widened slightly to allow a stretch which is useful because it allows me to open my mouth more in things such as articulation.
Opening the mouth wide and making it small
This exercise this week has been very useful as I have seen a difference of the opening of the mouth. Opening the mouth is really exercising my jaw as I find a lot of tension in my jaw so this is helping my vocal technique.
Controlling the breath
Breath and support makes the body at ease. This week I have noticed that my joints are loosening and I can feel that my spine is lengthening and my muscles relaxing more. With all the oxygen being inhaled it allows the body to be waked up and because of this I feel more refreshed. Doing this exercise my frequently I am able to breathe out longer that I did previously as I am using my diaphragm more.
Week 3
This week I decided to change some of the exercises that I am doing as I thought that some other exercises may help me with my vocal technique. The techniques are:
Hanging with my upper body bent forward
By doing this it helps not just my voice to relax but my body as well. This is very important as I need to wake up the body and make sure that my back doesn't have unnecessary tension.
More tongue twisters
Unique New York
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
By doing these tongue twisters I will make me get into the habit of putting all of my facial muscles to the front of my mouth. Tongue twisters such as Unique New York they really get all the muscles to the front because sounds in the uni in the unique has to make the "u" sound which means making a duck face to get that sound.
Opening the face and making it as small as possible
I am repeating this exercise this week as this exercise is helping me with my articulation and it is working because in my ADR assessment I felt that I was opening my mouth more and I could hear myself more with my articulation.
What did you feel this week with the new exercises?
Bending my upper body
With the new exercises I felt that my body was my body relax as I find bending my lower body comfortable and my breathe sending the oxygen to other parts of my body. I felt that my back was my relaxed as my posture is becoming poor but with this exercise it is not letting the bad posture happening.
Tongue Twisters
I feel that the tongue twisters are helping me with my articulation and that the 'u' sound is helping me send my facial muscles all to the front of my mouth which is good.
Opening my mouth wide and small
Repeating this exercise for a few weeks now I have felt not difference about from the previous that I have had which I have noted in previous weeks.
Circling my tongue clockwise and anticlockwise
Knowing my weakness and wanting to improve I believe that these exercises are working for me can I am freeing up my voice as I am going round my mouth clockwise and anticlockwise. I think the reason why this is working is because I feel that I am opening up my mouth more than I once however it needs to be improved. On the other hand I will keep on doing this exercise as it is working after a week so with another week my articulation will get better as the weeks move on.
Opening my mouth to to make it wider
This is week is all about articulation which means opening the mouth more. I feel that this has made loads of progress with my voice because I opening my mouth wider which makes the pronunciation more clearer. I can hear the sound in my voice the way it is improving because of making that stretch which is helping the mouth open up more.
Rubber chicken
Waking up the body makes me feel energized ready for the day and makes more feel more awaken and warm up the resonators in my voice. For example I start of with a monotone voice just to keep on a simple level then I warm the chest resonators by using a rugby voice. After that a young children to warm up the head resonators.
Controlling my breath
Controlling the breath helped with my pace and my relaxation. It felt that I was warming the breathe by breathing normally by controlled. This exercise helps stop breathing on the out breathe because I am breathing in a steady pace.
Alexander technique
Alexander technique was the relaxing part of the whole routine as it releases unnecessary tension and helps your alignment which is improving as when I lie down I am perfect alignment. I also feel so relaxed after the exercise but my body feels free and that I can concentrate. Whilst I was doing it I felt my hips falling to the floor because my hips were holding tension.
Tongue twisters concentrating with the 'Th' sound
Honestly I haven't noticed many changes to my voice with this exercises. However maybe I need to try out this exercise more than the others as I am not seeing a change as such so this week I need to concentrate more on that exercise.
To conclude this week I think the exercises are helping my voice but I need to repeat these exercises to see a difference.
Week 2 Repeating the same exercises
This week has been a stressful week which the vocal warm ups have really helped me relax and warm me up ready for the day ahead.
Circling clockwise and anticlockwise
This exercise is so familiar that that it flows with my vocal warm up. This week I have really noticed the difference because I have felt the stretching of the mouth which is in important for the voice. Also this exercises prepares you mentally as it allows you to think about how many times you are going round in your mouth. I can also feel that my cheeks have widened slightly to allow a stretch which is useful because it allows me to open my mouth more in things such as articulation.
Opening the mouth wide and making it small
This exercise this week has been very useful as I have seen a difference of the opening of the mouth. Opening the mouth is really exercising my jaw as I find a lot of tension in my jaw so this is helping my vocal technique.
Controlling the breath
Breath and support makes the body at ease. This week I have noticed that my joints are loosening and I can feel that my spine is lengthening and my muscles relaxing more. With all the oxygen being inhaled it allows the body to be waked up and because of this I feel more refreshed. Doing this exercise my frequently I am able to breathe out longer that I did previously as I am using my diaphragm more.
Week 3
This week I decided to change some of the exercises that I am doing as I thought that some other exercises may help me with my vocal technique. The techniques are:
By doing this it helps not just my voice to relax but my body as well. This is very important as I need to wake up the body and make sure that my back doesn't have unnecessary tension.
More tongue twisters
Unique New York
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
By doing these tongue twisters I will make me get into the habit of putting all of my facial muscles to the front of my mouth. Tongue twisters such as Unique New York they really get all the muscles to the front because sounds in the uni in the unique has to make the "u" sound which means making a duck face to get that sound.
Opening the face and making it as small as possible
I am repeating this exercise this week as this exercise is helping me with my articulation and it is working because in my ADR assessment I felt that I was opening my mouth more and I could hear myself more with my articulation.
What did you feel this week with the new exercises?
Bending my upper body
With the new exercises I felt that my body was my body relax as I find bending my lower body comfortable and my breathe sending the oxygen to other parts of my body. I felt that my back was my relaxed as my posture is becoming poor but with this exercise it is not letting the bad posture happening.
Tongue Twisters
I feel that the tongue twisters are helping me with my articulation and that the 'u' sound is helping me send my facial muscles all to the front of my mouth which is good.
Opening my mouth wide and small
Repeating this exercise for a few weeks now I have felt not difference about from the previous that I have had which I have noted in previous weeks.
Feedback on my voice after the exercises
For my Greek project I have really focused on my vocal plan by rolling my tomgue between my teeth clockwise and anticlockwise. Opening the mouth and closing the mouth. Karen noticed that I have had clear diction in my performance. This was because my vocal programme is working and those exercises are comfortable for me which improves my voice.
