What Every Singer Needs to Know About the Body

What Every Singer Needs to Know About the Body, Third Edition gives singers and teachers a Body Mapping resource - from anatomy and physiology to body awareness - that helps them discover and correct misconceptions about how their bodies are designed and how they function. This book provides detailed descriptions of the structures and movements necessary for healthy and efficient body awareness, balance, breathing, phonation, resonance, articulation, and gesture. Many voice books focus on the anatomical facts, but leave singers asking, "How can I apply this to my singing?" What Every Singer Needs to Know About the Body helps to answer that question, providing practical exercises and detailed illustrations.For the third edition, the authors have updated and expanded the content throughout the book. Some specific additions include:Updates and extensions throughout in response to reader feedback.Additional recommended resources and websites for further reading.Audio and video recordings of the exploratory exercises available on a PluralPlus companion website.This book provides the technical foundation for singers of all styles.The authors do not espouse a single method or attempt to teach singing techniques or styles. Rather, they describe the movements of singing with accuracy and detail so that singers may experiment on their own and communicate with each other in a common language.In the words of Lynn Helding, Associate Professor of Practice in Vocal Pedagogy at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music and author of the "Mindful Voice" column in the Journal of Singing:"What sets this book apart are the detailed exercises designed to inculcate accurate kinesthesia in singers. This facet of the book is critically important, because it is not sufficient to simply possess 'declarative' knowledge of voice physiology. Singers must develop 'body sense' on how to marshal all the components of the five systems of the voice (respiration, phonation, resonation, articulation and cognition) to work together to create efficient, artistic singing."

Table of Contents:
Introduction by Barbara ConableHow to Use this Book by Melissa MaldeMultimedia ListAcknowledgmentsChapter 1. Body Mapping, Kinesthesia, and Inclusive AwarenessMaryJean AllenChapter 2. The Core of the Body and the Six Places of BalanceMaryJean AllenChapter 3. The Singer's BreathMelissa MaldeChapter 4. Creating a Singing SoundMelissa MaldeChapter 5. Resonating the VoiceMelissa MaldeChapter 6. Singing as Communication: Mapping the Structures of ArticulationKurt-Alexander ZellerChapter 7. Physical Expression for SingersKurt-Alexander ZellerAppendix A. What to Do About Performance AnxietyBarbara ConableAppendix B. The Scientific Basis of Body MappingT. Richard NicholsGlossaryIndex

About the Author :
Melissa Malde, DMA, is a licensed Andover Educator and performs regularly in opera, concert, recital and musical theatre. She holds degrees from Oberlin College and Conservatory, Northwestern University, the College-Conservatory of Music of the University of Cincinnati, and the Hochschule fur Musik in Munich, where she studied under the auspices of a German Academic Exchange grant. While in Munich, she won first prize in the Kulturforum Competition. Other honors include winning CCM's Concerto Competition, the Sudler Oratorio Competition and a Farwell Award in Chicago, and the Brice-Gooter Award at the NATSAA competition. She has presented academic papers, lecture recitals and clinics nationwide and is a Professor of Voice and Vocal Pedagogy at the University of Northern Colorado.MaryJean Allen is a licensed Andover Educator, has taught Body Mapping since 2001, and is also a certified Alexander Technique Teacher. MaryJean has taught Body Mapping and Alexander Technique at young artist programs, universities, colleges, high schools, and churches throughout the United States. Many of her voice students sing professionally in classical, music theatre, or pop venues, while others teach voice or choral music. MaryJean holds a Master of Music and Artist Diploma in vocal performance, with a minor in piano performance. Allen has performed leading roles in opera and operetta throughout the United States and was competitively selected to sing in two Art Song Festivals, coaching with Dalton Baldwin, Elly Ameling, Gerard Souzay, and others.Kurt-Alexander Zeller, DMA, is a licensed Andover Educator and has presented Body Mapping workshops at regional, national, and international conferences. He currently serves as Director of Opera and Vocal Studies and as Coordinator of the Division of Music at Clayton State University in suburban Atlanta, Georgia. He is an active performer of early music and concert repertoire but especially enjoys working as a singer and director in all forms of music drama. Dr. Zeller holds undergraduate degrees in Music and Theatre from the Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University and earned his graduate degrees at the College-Conservatory of Music of the University of Cincinnati. He has completed further studies at the Seattle Academy of Baroque Opera, the Early Music Institute of Indiana University, and the 1995 National Association of Teachers of Singing Internship program.