Practical Studio Pedagogy Incorporating Recent Onset Research

Objective: Recent research presented at The Voice Foundation Annual Symposium has shown when bel canto singers begin tone with the vocal folds closed, without using excess air pressure and/or muscular tension, they gain over 2 dBs of overall (grand mean) spectral energy. Further, singers gain significant energy in the upper partials, particularly in the area of the Singer’s Formant. Therefore, the purpose of this workshop is to offer a progressive pedagogical method to teaching Onset Type 3, historically coined as the coup de la glotte, using recent scientific data as evidence for its studio application.

Methods/Design: This workshop will put these objective data into pedagogical practice, offering a progressive method to incorporate onset type 3 into students’ approach to singing in the bel canto style. Student volunteer singers will be led through voice building exercises specifically targeted to achieving mastery of the onset concept. Instruction will include training one’s ear to listen for onset type 3 and ensure its use by singers. Special attention will be given in the workshop to avoiding injury as it relates to the onset. Singers will also be asked to sing excerpts from their repertoire for further instruction on applying the onset to their performance.

Results: Using examples from standard bel canto repertoire student singers will demonstrate the spectral energy gains obtained by using onset type 3 on vowel initiate words. It is expected that full closure of the vocal folds prior to initiation of air by the volunteers will facilitate a subjectively fuller, more robust sound throughout their musical phrases.

Conclusions: The data is clear, but pedagogical confusion still exists for studio teachers and singers. This workshop will provide a path for singers and singing teachers to apply the recent acoustic discoveries to how they teach and perform the onset, and illustrate how a type 3 onset can move singers forward in their technique and their artistry.