Mixology

Head Voice, Chest Voice and the Mix

Nikki Blackmer, Faculty

Region 13, SET 2015

What are we going to cover?

• What is the mix voice?

• What are qualities of chest voice? What are qualities of head voice?

• What are some troubles we have mixing?

What makes a great Mix?

• No discernable break or flip

• One pleasing, consistent voice throughout range

• Appears to sing naturally and effortlessly

• Cones, Rings and Blends without fading in/out

• Total command of voice

• Uses voice artistically to enhance the emotion of lyrical line

Voice Registers

• Chest Voice WOMEN: C-F

• Chest Voice MEN: F-C

• Mix Voice WOMEN: Middle F – D

• Mix Voice MEN: A-F

• Head Voice WOMEN: High D and Up!

• Pure Head/Falsetto MEN: A and Up!

Qualities of Chest Voice Our Lowest Notes

Lives in Mouth, Rumbles in Chest

Forward Direction

Slightly Lowered Palate

Tongue a Little Raised

Speech Like Singing

Powerful

Sensation of Low Notes

Qualities of Head Voice • Our Highest Notes

• Sensation in Forehead

• Light, Pure, Hooty

• Lifted Palate

• Palate Sections 1,2,3 & 4

• Tongue Flat and Out of Throat

• “Julia Child” like Singing

Sensation of High Notes

Qualities of the Mix Voice

• Used by All Barbershop Voice Parts

• Qualities of Both Chest and Head Voice

• Palate Moves

• Tongue Raises and Lowers

• Sensations Move Around

• White and Black Paint Smeared Together

Sensation of All Notes

The Perfect Mix

James Bond Martini:

• 3 measures Gin

• 1 measure Vodka

• ½ measure Kina Lillet

• Shaken, not Stirred

• Lemon Garnish

Your Perfect Mix

• Are you Ascending or Descending?

• What is the Emotional Color of those Notes?

• Do I have to Cone on that Note?

• Identify What is Going to Have to Change in your Mix

• Create Sound that is Powerful AND Effortless

Head vs. Chest

• Divide skull into top half and bottom half

• Above mustache is Head Voice

• Below mustache is Chest Voice

Baby Cry

• Mix Voice lives in the space between

• Mustache line

• Baby Cry – wah, wah, wah

• Exercise: 1-2-3-2-1 on Wah

• Exercise: 1-2-3-2-1 on Nyah

• Feel where the baby cry lives

Descending Exercise

• GOAL: Mix Head Voice All the Way Down

• Start on a High Note on a Pure, Tiny, Whistle Shaped OO (head voice OO is owl)

• Slowly Slide Down

• As You Enter the Break, Release Pressure and Go Even Slower

• Keep in Head Voice Until the Lowest Notes Possible (chest voice OO is roadkill)

Ascending Exercise • GOAL: Sing Everything in Chest Without

“Breaking”

• Three Notes Up and Down

• As Slow as You Need to Go to Ensure NO Break in the Voice

• Exercise: 1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2-1

• As you go through break, try to put sound in baby cry (mustache area)

The Perfect Mix

• A Great Mix Voice is a Balance of Head and Chest at All Times (but the ratio can change)

• Likewise it is a Balance of Ring and Space at all Times

• It is Always Supported with Breath

The Mix in Action

As you Ascend…

• Your Palate Will Lift

• Your Tongue will Flatten

• Sensation of Notes will Follow Curve of Head Upwards

• Add more white paint as you ascend

As you Descend…

• Your Palate will Lower

• Your Tongue will Raise Slightly

• Tones go Forward and Far Away (imagine a staircase leading out and away from you)

• Becomes Smaller in the Mouth

• Almost No Sensation in the Mouth

• Add more black paint on descent, but never send sound backwards

Visual Reminder

Neither Head nor Chest

• The Key to a Well Mixed Voice is that You don’t Solely Stay in Head Voice or Chest Voice

• You Mix 99% of the Time

• You Choose Head or Chest Quality to Make Bigger Emotional Impact to Lyrics

• You Don’t Give in to Your Break.

• You Exercise it Daily and Work Through It

Tags

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Summary

o Shared our ideas of mix voice

o Shared our concerns when singing in the mix

o Discussed identifying qualities of the chest, head and mix voice

o Exercises of chest, head, baby cry, descending and ascending

o Kept Lehman's graphic of the notes in our head first in our minds while singing in the mix