What actually is resonance? It means that the quality of the sound singers make is deep, full and carries through the venue without amplification. Please note it doesn’t mean to sing as loud as possible neither does it mean to force the sound. Resonance contains a ring, a mellowness as well as brilliance and depth. So you can see that this is a difficult topic to put into words and make clear. Resonance is also very personal as each person’s vocal apparatus is different.
How do you achieve a resonant sound? Resonance is a result of all of what I have discussed in earlier weeks working well for you and all the individuals in a choir.
Resonance depends on:
A good warm up for brain, body and voice
Your intake of breath is preceded by a relaxed abdomen and placed low in the lungs
you control the escaping breath so that it provides a consistent column of air
your throat and jaw being relaxed
your soft palate being raised – think internal smile or drinking lemon juice
your words being clearly enunciated and your vowels being clear and long
your listening to the other singers
your following the MD for entries and cut offs
Each note we sing isn’t just made up of that note. Each note is made up of subtle overtones (extra notes that we aren’t consciously aware of ) within one note.
Overtones are higher notes produced alongside the note you actually are attempting to sing, which creates your voice’s unique timbre making it something intensely personal. Overtones can be visually displayed by using a special recording device so you can see which notes are contained within the note you are singing.
Exercise
Listen carefully during the next rehearsal and try to listen for moments of good resonance within your self and the choir as a whole. When they do occur it is quite special to experience and worthy of attempts to create them again and again. Can you work out at which point in a song they are most likely to occur and why this might be?
