It is now well understood that skilled motor behavior is affected by performers' focus of attention. This effect has been demonstrated in numerous and varied motor tasks, from golf-putting to piano playing. I conducted two experiments with college-aged singers to test the extent to which trained singers' vocal tone is affected by their focus of attention while singing. In Experiment 1 (N = 11) participants sang a 3-note sequence and an excerpt of a well-learned melody under six different focus conditions. In Experiment 2 (N = 20) participants sang 3-note sequences in both high and low vocal registers, a well-learned melody, and an unpracticed, familiar melody under seven different focus conditions. Focus of attention affected participants' vocal tone in all of the singing tasks. The results of the two experiments are consistent with the results of related investigations of attentional focus in motor skill performance. Singers' tone was rated most highly and described most positively by expert listeners when singers' focused their attention on external rather than internal targets. Focusing on distal targets (i.e., targets that were far removed from the vocal mechanism) in particular was associated with high ratings and positive descriptions of vocal tone. / text

Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to examine SLPs' preparation to work with singers by examining their knowledge and training levels regarding vocal hygiene, assessment and treatment for singers, vocal pedagogy and competency in working with singers. Method: A 66-item survey designed to address the research questions was distributed via email to possible participants found through American Speech Language Hearing Association's (ASHA) "Find a Professional" service. Each email contained a password-protected web link to the survey, which was hosted on Survey Monkey. Results: The majority of participants reported low amounts of academic and clinical exposure to singers. The largest percentage demonstrated adequate knowledge of vocal hygiene, but had difficulty with knowledge items regarding assessment and treatment considerations for singers and vocal pedagogy. The majority expressed low levels of competency in working with singers. However, these effects appeared to be mediated by voice specialization. Voice specialists (VS), a subset of the total participants, were found to have received significantly more total hours studying voice and had significantly more voice clients, including singers, than non-voice specialists (NVS). A combination of academic and clinical exposure at the graduate level was found to lead to continued study regarding voice disorders and vocal function for singers. VS also reported higher levels of training in vocal pedagogy and performance and demonstrated significantly higher knowledge levels regarding assessment and treatment considerations for singers and vocal pedagogy than NVS. Similarly, they also reported higher overall competency in working with singers than the NVS. Conclusions: This preliminary data suggests that overall preparation to work with singers is somewhat lacking in most graduate programs. The majority of SLPs appears to retain information regarding vocal hygiene, but does not appear to remember some basic facts about the treatment of voice disorders. Improvements towards education in voice would serve as a worthy goal in improving SLP's service delivery in general to voice clients and singers. Additionally, providing more opportunities to work with voice clients and singers would also help better prepare SLPs as a whole to work with singers. Finally, a structured accreditation process to become a singing voice specialist (SVS) is sorely needed to ensure optimal service delivery to this unique population. / text

The use of imagery and movement to affect vocal tone has long been a part of choral pedagogy. These often used, yet little explored tools, are employed by choral directors on all levels. The present study sought to determine if the use of imagery, metaphor, motion, and a combination of the three, as pedagogic tools to affect vocal tone, could be perceived by outline listeners. Three singers - an untrained singer, an undergraduate in choral music education, and a graduate student in vocal performance - were asked to perform a melody under a control and three research conditions: metaphoric-image, motion, and dual modality (a combination of metaphoric-image and motion). Participants were randomly assigned to listen to one of the three singers. Participants were asked to rate each condition on tone color, tension, and preference and were directed to ascribe a color to the tone they heard for each condition. Results indicated that respondents could indeed perceive a difference in tone over the different conditions. For the metaphoric-image condition, the singers were asked to "sing the line as if it were yellow." Overall, respondents rated this tone brighter than any others across singers and conditions. The majority of respondents also ascribed the color yellow to the metaphoric-image tone across singers and conditions. Overall data indicated that respondents rated the dual modality condition as darkest and most relaxed while the metaphoric-image condition was rated as brightest and most tense. These results were consistent with the expected pedagogic intent of the conditions as well as the researcher's hypothesis. A chi-square test performed on the color ascription data revealed statistical significance in the expectation of response. The data seem to indicate that specific color ascription to vocal tone is consistent across respondents and conditions.

Thomas Pasatieri is a prolific American composer of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Although Pasatieri is best known as an opera composer, he has composed in many different genres, and his numerous art songs have often been overlooked. This study evaluates Pasatieri's currently published song catalog and divides it into three groups of songs that correspond to the varying pedagogical needs of students. The first group presented in this document addresses the needs of the beginning vocal student. The songs are harmonically tonal, textually accessible, rhythmically uncomplicated, and metrically stable. The second group is more appropriate for the intermediate singer. The songs are highly chromatic and their harmonic progressions do not necessarily follow the rules of functional tonality; the texts are longer and more complex, the rhythmic and metric content are likewise more difficult, and the melodies are more disjunct, often exploring the extremes of the vocal range. The third and final group is most suitable for the advanced singer. The harmonies are challenging and explore an array of organizations, the texts are esoteric, the melodies are often unified through recurring motivic gestures, and the songs rarely contain any formal repetition. These groupings are intended to help teachers and students choose repertoire from Pasatieri's oeuvre that suit each individual student. This study includes a discussion of representative songs from each group within the chapters and a catalogue of all of Pasatieri's published songs arranged by group in the appendices.

The purpose of this study is to assemble information needed to assess, understand and hopefully correct muscular hyperfunction that is related to tongue tension in singing and speech which inhibit freely, efficiently, and comfortably produced beautiful singing. This text will include a definition of freely produced, fully resonating tone for beautiful singing, major components of vocal technique, physiology related to singing and speech production, hyperfunctions associated with tongue tension, tongue involvement in the articulation of the four major singing languages, and will present exercises for training the muscles of coordination in a manner conducive to singing and speech.

Researchers of historic voice pedagogy texts have generally focused their objectives towards reviewing the recommendations of historic voice teachers pertaining to the physiological, acoustical, and musical elements of training singers; however, researchers have given less attention to the evidence of humanistic pedagogical elements presented by historic teachers of voice. This study aims to examine historic resources of vocal pedagogy for qualitative data representing exemplification of or advocacy for character strengths for voice teachers. Additionally, this study explores practical applications of character strengths within the context of the modern applied voice studio. In this context, character strengths are defined as the positive attributes of a personality that influence how a person thinks, feels, and behaves. In this document, historic pedagogical resources (N = 80) represent works published between 1811 and 1975. Using the scientifically validated VIA (Values-in-Action) Classification of Strengths, the relevant data extracted from these resources were categorized first into six virtues – wisdom, courage, humanity, justice, temperance, and transcendence. These data were further divided into the subcategories of character strengths based on descriptions located in seminal resources in character strengths research.

Professional voice users such as singers and teachers are at high risk for vocal injury. A literature review was conducted to understand the prevalence of voice problems and the effectiveness of vocal hygiene education. The findings of the review suggested that in order to reduce the impact of voice disorders, it is imperative that the education of singers and teachers include how the voice functions and how to best take care of it. The purpose of this study was to discover what students on a collegiate level know about vocal anatomy, physiology, and vocal hygiene issues. It was hypothesized that graduate students who had taken a pedagogy course, were more knowledgeable about vocal anatomy, physiology, and vocal health than undergraduate or graduate students who had not had such a course. A survey was administered to voice students at a large university music program to ascertain the level of student knowledge. An analysis of the survey results provides educators with insight into specific areas of student deficiency and current collegiate pedagogical needs. The findings from the study survey were applied to recommendations for undergraduate and graduate vocal pedagogy curriculum, with an emphasis on anatomy, physiology, and preventative care of the voice. Course descriptions, objectives, and assessment methods were included for each vocal pedagogy course. The study recommended that all voice students receive information that allows them to make educated decisions regarding voice care and prepares them to be leaders in teaching singing based on voice science. In addition to anatomy and physiology of the voice, vocal hygiene is an important topic to be included in pedagogy curriculum. Issues and resent research in vocal hygiene were discussed including: speaking habits, hydration, reflux, medical management, etc. and how these contribute to or detract from efficient voice use.

Denna studie syftar till att utveckla kunskap om hur professionella klassiska sångare förbereder sig och hanterar scenframträdanden. Studiens frågeställningar har varit hur klassiska sångare uppfattar vikten av mental förberedelse inför scenframträdanden och vilka funktioner de uppfattar att mental träning och scenisk beredskap har inom sångutbildning på olika nivåer. För att få svar på mina frågeställningar använde jag mig av kvalitativa intervjuer med fyra professionella klassiska sångare.Resultatet visar att informanterna lägger stor vikt på instuderingsprocessen i sin mentala förberedelse inför ett scenframträdande. Instuderingen ska påbörjas i god tid innan en konsert och genomföras metodiskt med fokus på teknik, text, musik och scenisk utformning. Studien visade också att informanterna hade tydliga rutiner under konsert-/föreställningsdagen. Det som mentalt skulle hanteras för att lyckas med ett scenframträdande var att kunna vara i nuet och att omvandla nervositet till en kreativ energi. / The purpose of this study is to develop knowledge about how professional classical singers prepare for and handle performances. The questions of the study have been what classical singers regard about the importance of mental preparation before a performance, and what functions mental training and stage preparation have at different levels in vocal education. To find the answers to these questions I interviewed four professional classical singers.The result shows the importance of an accurate learning of the music, technique and expression prior to performance. The study also demonstrated that the informants had well- developed routines for the day of their performance. To make a mentally well-controlled performance, the informants had to be present on the stage, and be able to transform stage fright into creative energy.

É comum observarmos entre os cantores a ideia de que o corpo é o instrumento de sua arte. Apesar de vivermos num momento onde entender a vida e nossas experiências por uma perspectiva sistêmica deveria ser algo já difundido, perpetua-se um modelo de entendimento do canto compartimentalizado e desconectado da vida do cantor. Tentando entender esse problema, nesta pesquisa de natureza qualitativa questionamos se os cantores líricos identificam o seu corpo como seu instrumento, ou como locus da performance. E, nesse sentido, qual é o papel das práticas motoras (práticas corporais e de atividade física) no seu desenvolvimento e na sua performance. Sabendo que essas questões são aspectos importantes das práticas de Educação Somática, propusemos interlocução entre esse tipo de prática corporal e as experiências com cantores líricos. A investigação foi organizada em três etapas: 1) Prática de Educação Somática associada a aulas de canto individuais, por um ano; 2) Prática de Educação Somática associada a aulas de canto em grupo, em dois encontros; 3) Entrevistas semiestruturadas com 3 cantoras e 2 cantores que possuem experiência com Educação Somática. Durante os encontros práticos, foi tomado nota das impressões, percepções e relatos dos estudantes num caderno de campo. O material, constituído das conversas e das experiências práticas, foi analisado por uma perspectiva somaestética, disciplina filosófica proposta por Richard Shusterman. Fica evidenciado que, para os participantes da investigação, a prática de Educação Somática permite que eles sintam e conheçam a si mesmos de maneira ampliada e fica claro como corpo e voz se tornam indissociáveis. Também há a compreensão de que o corpo que atua, o que canta e o que ensina são os mesmos. Apesar de haver uma percepção do corpo subjetivado quando relatam suas experiências, a ideia de corpo como instrumento é aceita pelos participantes dessa investigação / It is common to find among singers the idea that the body is the instrument of their art. Although we live in a time where to understand life and our experiences from a systemic perspective should be something widespread, an understanding of singing as something compartmentalized and disconnected from the singers life is perpetuated. Trying to understand this issue, in this research of qualitative nature we ask if classical singers identify their bodies as their instrument, or as locus of performance. And, in this regard, what is the role of motor practices (bodily practices and physical activity) in their development and their art. Knowing that these issues are important aspects of Somatic Education practices, we intended to make an interlocution between this type of bodily practice and the experience with classical singers. This inquiry was organized in three stages: 1) Somatic Education practices associated with individual singing lessons, through a whole year; 2) Somatic Education practices associated with group singing lessons, in two meetings; 3) Semi-structures interviews with 5 singers who are experienced in Somatic Education. Along the practice meetings, impressions, perceptions and reports were written down as fieldnotes. The data, constituted of conversations and practical experiences, was analyzed through a somaesthetic perspective, a philosophical discipline proposed by Richard Shusterman. It becomes evident that to the participants of this inquiry, the practice of Somatic Education allows them to feel and know themselves in an expanded way and it becomes clear how body and voice become inseparable. There is, also, the understanding that the acting body, the singing body and the teaching body are all the same. Although there is the comprehension of a subjectified body when they report their experience, the idea of body as an instrument is accepted by the participants of this inquiry

The problem with which this investigation is concerned is that of developing a theory in vocal pedagogy, voiception, which could provide teaching techniques with tangibility for gaining control of both voluntary and involuntary functions of the singing act. This study appears to show that feeling tone and cognition are innately involved with singing, since the vocal instrument is actually a part of the singer. Analysis of the sung vowel through the singing sensation is the connecting link for gaining control of involuntary vocal functions.