Find Your Sacred Voice: The Connection Between Yoga and Singing

Beginner Workshop Syllabus*

Instructor: Izolda Trakhtenberg, 301-437-2730, instructor@workinharmony.org

Warm-ups (to be done before every time you sing)

1. March in place (2 minutes) (Singing uses muscles that must be warmed up to function at their peak)

2. Deep breathing (three-part breath) preparing lungs and maintaining a column of air

3. Yawning (opening breathing passages, preparing for breath and full, open column of air)

4. Stretching:

a. Shoulder roll (five on each side)

b. Half neck roll (left side to front to right side and back)

c. Neck stretch to the back

d. Neck stretch (head to the side with the ear toward the shoulder. Pull down with the opposite arm.)

e. Arms above head stretch (lift both arms and stretch the right arm up lengthening your ribs and then follow with the left arm) (into Palm)

f. Shake out hands

g. Face scrunch, Face big (Lion pose)

i. Horse noise, Yawn, Yawn with “Ah”

5. Posture (preferable to stand when singing so you can keep an uninterrupted column of air)

a. Practice standing to sing. Stand with both feet shoulder width apart, your knees slightly bent and your spine straight. Pretend is tugging at the very top of your head and is pulling it upward slightly. Jaw is loose and breathing is relaxed. (Mountain pose with inner and outer spiral)

b. Warrior I. Asana to feel the warrior spirit come forth

c. Open chest with fingers interlaced behind back and Warrior II

d. Sit comfortably upright with your torso resting on your sit bones. Sit in an uplifted way with your feet flat on the floor and your gaze at a comfortable level with your eyes and jaw relaxed.

Exercise Set 1. Correct Breathing technique/Building vocal facility

1. Deep breathing correctly. Your stomach is relaxed and expanding out on inhalation. Your ribs are relaxed and expanding and your shoulders are relaxed and down. (You’ll find when you sing that [usually because of nervousness] that your shoulders start to ride up and get tense around your neck. Consciously lower and relax them whenever you notice this.

a. Inhale and exhale full deep breath five times. (Three-part breath)

b. Inhale a full, deep breath using good technique and exhale on a whispered “Ah.” (Five times). Beginning of Ujaaia breathing. Horse noise is great for finding where you are using your breath.

c. Inhale and exhale on a closed-mouth low “Mmm.” (Five times)

d. Inhale and exhale on an “Ah” sound.

e. Yawn an “Ah” sound. (five times)

2. Begin to work with making a tone on a vowel (Two finger rule [you should be able to put two fingers between your teeth during any vowel being sung])

a. Ah, b. Eh, c. Ee, d. Oh, e. Oo, f. Ah Eh Ee Oh Oo (Om. Universal sound. Music comes from within.)

3. Sing with adding consonants

a. mah meh mee moh moo (nah, tah, lah, sah, kah, etc.) Do all exercises with different consonants.

b. voice/non-voiced, p/b, t/d, f/v, ch/j, sh/zh, k/g (find the others)

4. Build facility with speaking

a. Minimal Animal, Unique New York

Exercise Set 2. Supporting tones

1. Supporting tone with your breath

a. Ahhhhh

b. Eeeee

c. Ehhhh

d. Ooooo

e. ee, eh, ah, eh, ee (up scale, half-steps)

f. vee, veh, vah, veh vee (up scale, half-steps)

g. vree, vreh, vrah, vreh, vree

h. ah, eh, ee, eh, ah (do re mi re do)

i. mah, meh, mee, meh, mah

Exercise Set 3: Vocal quality

1. Pitch: difference in vibrations (Use face, e.g. eyebrows, smile. Tricks & hints.)

a. Pitch matching

b. Intervals

c. mee meh mah moh moo (do re mi re do)

b. ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah (do re mi fa so fa mi re do)

2. Resonance: head, chest, falsetto (resonators: larynx, pharynx, bronchials, sinuses, nose, neck, chest cavity, cranial cavity)

a. Placing voice and where you imagine it (ahs)

3. Listen to yourself (Stand with one hand held out about four inches away from your mouth. Point your palms slight to one side and then on that side, place your other palm next to your ear.

4. Dynamic quality (importance of breath when singing quietly) (Outer/Inner spiral and using abs to breathe)

Exercise Set 4: Singing with Others

1. Blend

a. Circle exercise focus in and listen to each other. Sing to a common focus. (Meditation solo/group)

Exercise Set 5: Intro to harmony

1. Intro to harmony

a. Connection exercise and move groups to sing other pitches while some hold.

b. Moving notes (group a. G, F#E F#. Group b. D A D. Group c. D B A)

Exercise Set 6: Caring for your voice

1. Caring for your voice

a. Most important: support your voice with your breath. Don’t overdo. Gargling. Drink lots of water. Slippery Elm Bark tea. Drink hot water with lemon & honey

Sing and Rejoice Sing and rejoice Sing and rejoice Let all things living Sing and rejoice Tara Om Tare Tu Tare Ture Haida Haida haida hai di di dai da haida haida haida Haida hai di di daida Haida Haida Haida Om Shanti Om Shanti Shanti Shanti Om Laksmi Maha Laksmi Na Mos Tu Te

May We All Fly Like Eagles May we all fly like eagles Flying so high Circling the universe On wings of pure light O witchi tai ya O witchi tai yay O witchi tai ya O witchi tai yay Neesa Neesa, neesa, neesa, Neesa, neesa, neesa, Neesa, neesa, neesa Gaiweo We Are the Flow We are the flow We are the ebb We are the weavers We are the web

Find Your Sacred Voice and Work In Harmony © Izolda Trakhtenberg 2001. No part of this work may be copied or used without the author’s written permission.