Editing Singing (section)

== Vocal pedagogy ==
{{Main|Vocal pedagogy}}
[[File:Lorenzo Costa - Un concerto (National Gallery, London).jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|right|[[Ercole de' Roberti]]: Concert, {{Circa|1490}}]]

'''Vocal pedagogy''' is the study of the teaching of singing. The art and science of vocal pedagogy has a long history that began in [[Ancient Greece]]<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.worldhistory.org/Greek_Music/|title=Ancient Greek Music|encyclopedia=World History Encyclopedia|access-date=2017-06-19}}</ref> and continues to develop and change today. Professions that practice the art and science of vocal pedagogy include [[vocal coaches]], [[choral music|choral directors]], [[Music education|vocal music educators]], [[List of opera directors|opera directors]], and other teachers of singing.

Vocal pedagogy concepts are a part of developing proper [[vocal technique]]. Typical areas of study include the following:<ref name="Titze2008">{{cite journal
 |author=Titze Ingo R
 |year=2008
 |journal=[[Scientific American]]
 |volume=298
 |issue=1
 |pages=94–101
 |pmid=18225701
 |doi=10.1038/scientificamerican0108-94
 |title=The human instrument
|bibcode=2008SciAm.298a..94T
 }}</ref><ref name="Titze1994">{{cite book
 |author=Titze Ingo R
 |year=1994
 |title=Principles of voice production
 |publisher=[[Prentice Hall]]
 |pages=354
 |url=http://ncvs.org/bookshop/index.html
 |isbn=978-0-13-717893-3
 |access-date=20 June 2008
 |archive-date=2 January 2011
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110102211754/http://www.ncvs.org/bookshop/index.html
 |url-status=dead
 }}</ref>
* [[Anatomy]] and physiology as it relates to the physical process of singing
** Vocal health and [[voice disorders]] related to singing
** Breathing and air support for singing
** [[Phonation]]
** [[Vocal resonation]] or [[Voice projection]]
** [[Vocal registration]]: a particular series of tones, produced in the same vibratory pattern of the vocal folds, and possessing the same quality, which originate in laryngeal function, because each of these vibratory patterns appears within a particular range of pitches and produces certain characteristic sounds.
** [[Voice classification]]
* Vocal styles: for classical singers, this includes styles ranging from [[Lieder]] to [[opera]]; for pop singers, styles can include [[belt (music)|"belted out"]] a blues ballads; for jazz singers, styles can include Swing ballads and scatting.
** Techniques used in styles such as [[sostenuto]] and [[legato]], range extension, tone quality, [[vibrato]], and [[coloratura]]

=== Vocal technique ===
[[File:Morphometric-Differences-of-Vocal-Tract-Articulators-in-Different-Loudness-Conditions-in-Singing-pone.0153792.s004.ogv|thumb|[[Real-time MRI]] of a [[vocal tract]] while singing]]

Singing when done with proper vocal technique is an integrated and coordinated act that effectively coordinates the physical processes of singing. There are four physical processes involved in producing vocal sound: [[Breathing|respiration]], [[phonation]], [[vocal resonation|resonation]], and [[Place of articulation|articulation]]. These processes occur in the following sequence:
# Breath is taken
# Sound is initiated in the [[larynx]]
# The vocal resonators receive the sound and influence it
# The articulators shape the sound into recognizable units

Although these four processes are often considered separately when studied, in actual practice, they merge into one coordinated function. With an effective singer or speaker, one should rarely be reminded of the process involved as their mind and body are so coordinated that one only perceives the resulting unified function. Many vocal problems result from a lack of coordination within this process.<ref name="Appelman" />

Since singing is a coordinated act, it is difficult to discuss any of the individual technical areas and processes without relating them to others. For example, phonation only comes into perspective when it is connected with respiration; the articulators affect resonance; the resonators affect the vocal folds; the vocal folds affect breath control; and so forth. Vocal problems are often a result of a breakdown in one part of this coordinated process which causes voice teachers to frequently focus intensively on one area of the process with their student until that issue is resolved. However, some areas of the art of singing are so much the result of coordinated functions that it is hard to discuss them under a traditional heading like phonation, resonation, articulation, or respiration.

Once the voice student has become aware of the physical processes that make up the act of singing and of how those processes function, the student begins the task of trying to coordinate them. Inevitably, students and teachers will become more concerned with one area of the technique than another. The various processes may progress at different rates, with a resulting imbalance or lack of coordination. The areas of vocal technique which seem to depend most strongly on the student's ability to coordinate various functions are:<ref name="McKinney 1994" />
# Extending the [[vocal range]] to its maximum potential
# Developing consistent vocal production with a consistent tone quality
# Developing flexibility and agility
# Achieving a balanced [[vibrato]]
# A blend of chest and head voice on every note of the range<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ramseyvoice.com/singing-techniques/|title=10 Singing Techniques to Improve Your Singing Voice|website=Ramsey Voice Studio|date=24 June 2020|first = Matt|last = Ramsey}}</ref>

==== Developing the singing voice ====
Singing is a skill that requires highly developed muscle reflexes. Singing does not require much muscle strength but it does require a high degree of muscle coordination. Individuals can develop their voices further through the careful and systematic practice of both songs and vocal exercises. Vocal exercises have several purposes, including<ref name="McKinney 1994" /> warming up the voice; extending the vocal range; "lining up" the voice horizontally and vertically; and acquiring vocal techniques such as legato, staccato, control of dynamics, rapid figurations, learning to sing wide intervals comfortably, singing trills, singing melismas and correcting vocal faults.

Vocal pedagogists instruct their students to exercise their voices in an intelligent manner. Singers should be thinking constantly about the kind of sound they are making and the kind of sensations they are feeling while they are singing.<ref name="Appelman" />

Learning to sing is an activity that benefits from the involvement of an instructor. A singer does not hear the same sounds inside his or her head that others hear outside. Therefore, having a guide who can tell a student what kinds of sounds he or she is producing guides a singer to understand which of the internal sounds correspond to the desired sounds required by the style of singing the student aims to re-create.{{citation needed|date=November 2016}}

=== Extending vocal range ===
An important goal of vocal development is to learn to sing to the natural limits<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://visihow.com/How_much_can_a_singer_sing_before_they_reach_their_limit|title=Is it good to take natural cough syrup to sing|website=VisiHow}}</ref> of one's vocal range without any obvious or distracting changes of quality or technique. Vocal pedagogists teach that a singer can only achieve this goal when all of the physical processes involved in singing (such as laryngeal action, breath support, resonance adjustment, and articulatory movement) are effectively working together. Most vocal pedagogists believe in coordinating these processes by (1) establishing good vocal habits in the most comfortable tessitura of the voice, and then (2) slowly expanding the range.<ref name=Vennard />

There are three factors that significantly affect the ability to sing higher or lower:

# The ''energy'' factor&nbsp;– "energy" has several connotations. It refers to the total response of the body to the making of sound; to a dynamic relationship between the breathing-in muscles and the breathing-out muscles known as the breath support mechanism; to the amount of breath pressure delivered to the vocal folds and their resistance to that pressure; and to the dynamic level of the sound.
# The ''space'' factor&nbsp;– "space" refers to the size of the inside of the mouth and the position of the palate and larynx. Generally speaking, a singer's mouth should be opened wider the higher he or she sings. The internal space or position of the soft palate and larynx can be widened by relaxing the throat. Vocal pedagogists describe this as feeling like the "beginning of a yawn".
# The ''depth'' factor&nbsp;– "depth" has two connotations. It refers to the actual physical sensations of depth in the body and vocal mechanism, and to mental concepts of depth that are related to tone quality.

McKinney says, "These three factors can be expressed in three basic rules: (1) As you sing higher, you must use more energy; as you sing lower, you must use less. (2) As you sing higher, you must use more space; as you sing lower, you must use less. (3) As you sing higher, you must use more depth; as you sing lower, you must use less."<ref name="McKinney 1994" />

=== Posture ===
The singing process functions best when certain physical conditions of the body are put in place. The ability to move air in and out of the body freely and to obtain the needed quantity of air can be seriously affected by the posture of the various parts of the breathing mechanism. A sunken chest position will limit the capacity of the lungs, and a tense abdominal wall will inhibit the downward travel of the diaphragm. Good posture allows the breathing mechanism to fulfill its basic function efficiently without any undue expenditure of energy. Good posture also makes it easier to initiate phonation and to tune the resonators as proper alignment prevents unnecessary tension in the body. Vocal pedagogists have also noted that when singers assume good posture it often provides them with a greater sense of self-assurance and poise while performing. Audiences also tend to respond better to singers with good posture. Habitual good posture also ultimately improves the overall health of the body by enabling better blood circulation and preventing fatigue and stress on the body.<ref name="Vennard" />

There are eight components of the ideal singing posture:

# Feet slightly apart
# Legs straight but knees slightly bent
# Hips facing straight forward
# Spine aligned
# Abdomen flat
# Chest comfortably forward
# Shoulders down and back
# Head facing straight forward

=== Breathing and breath support ===
Natural breathing has three stages: a breathing-in period, breathing out period, and a resting or recovery period; these stages are not usually consciously controlled. Within singing, there are four stages of breathing: a breathing-in period (inhalation); a setting up controls period (suspension); a controlled exhalation period (phonation); and a recovery period.

These stages must be under conscious control by the singer until they become conditioned reflexes. Many singers abandon conscious controls before their reflexes are fully conditioned which ultimately leads to chronic vocal problems.<ref name=Sundberg>{{Cite journal
 |last=Sundberg
 |first=Johan
 |date=January–February 1993
 |title=Breathing behavior during singing
 |journal=The NATS Journal
 |issn=0884-8106
 |oclc=16072337
 |volume=49
 |pages=2–9, 49–51
 |url=https://www.nats.org/_Library/Kennedy_JOS_Files_2013/JOS-049-3-1993-004.pdf
 |url-status=live
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190529203123/https://www.nats.org/_Library/Kennedy_JOS_Files_2013/JOS-049-3-1993-004.pdf
 |archive-date=29 May 2019
}}</ref>

=== Vibrato ===
[[Vibrato]] is a technique in which a sustained note wavers very quickly and consistently between a higher and a lower pitch, giving the note a slight quaver. Vibrato is the pulse or wave in a sustained tone. Vibrato occurs naturally and is the result of proper breath support and a relaxed vocal apparatus.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Complete Idiot's Guide to Singing|page=64|first1=Phyllis|last1=Fulford|first2=Michael |last2=Miller |year=2003|publisher=[[Penguin Books]]}}</ref> Some studies have shown that vibrato is the result of a neuromuscular tremor in the vocal folds. In 1922 Max Schoen was the first to make the comparison of vibrato to a tremor due to change in amplitude, lack of automatic control and it being half the rate of normal muscular discharge.<ref name="Stark2003">{{cite book|first=James|last=Stark|title=Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rVFQdViY7jAC&q=max+schoen+vibrato+neuro+muscular+tremor&pg=PA139|year=2003|publisher=University of Toronto Press|isbn=978-0-8020-8614-3|page=139}}</ref> Some singers use vibrato as a means of expression. Many successful artists can sing a deep, rich vibrato.

=== Extended vocal technique ===
[[Extended vocal technique]]s include rapping, screaming, growling, overtones, [[guitar slide|sliding]], [[falsetto]], [[yodeling]], [[belt (music)|belting]], use of [[vocal fry register]], using [[sound reinforcement system]]s, among others. A sound reinforcement system is the combination of microphones, signal processors, amplifiers, and loudspeakers. The combination of such units may also use reverb, echo chambers and [[Auto-Tune]] among other devices.