The Whole Body and Posture
While we use our Lungs to power the production of our sound, our whole body needs to be engaged to help create the most supported sound and accurate pitch. Our posture will help determine just how much we can do with our voice. While we performers often have to include movement while we sing, it is important to use our good neutral, solid posture while we are building technique and learning new music. This will help make sure our body is using the most healthy technique possible as we build muscle memory during learning. Here are some good elements to building the strong singer posture:
Grounded Feet - Our feet should be evenly set beneath the widest part of our bodies in order to evenly distribute all of the body’s weight across all of the feet.
Relaxed Knees - Both knees need to line up evenly between the ankles and hips. However, it is imperative that the knees keep from locking back. If the knees lock it can limit the blood flow and cause tension throughout the legs.
Tucked Tailbone - Tucking the tailbone allows to for the pelvis to be leveled. This can help relax the lower back muscles and creates more space for the last ribs to be able to expand open throughout the back. This also allows the abdominal muscles to be able to engage fully and create the necessary support to keep the rib-cage as open as possible during phonation.
Engaged Core - Being able to engage the lower abdominal/core muscles can help release the breath and manage how it flows through vocalizing. Maintaining this core strength will keep the rib-cage from closing quickly and rushing air. This will help send the air out evenly for longer passages.
Open Ribs - The breath really should begin from the opening of the rib cage. If our rib cage is restricted by hands or arms being placed in front or in back of the body can limit how widely the ribs can expand. We need our hands to stay relaxed at our sides so that the ribs can have as much space as possible to be able to expand all of the rib cage.
Relaxed Shoulders - Keeping the shoulders in a neutral space can also help keep the rib cage open and the neck relaxed. If the shoulders are too tight, too forward, too back, they will compromise the rib cage's ability to expand formally. If they tense and cause tension throughout the neck, those tense neck muscles around the larynx will restrict the larynx and cause tension to gather there as well.
Level Dropped Jaw - Keeping our head level so that our top jaw can remain level to the ground. This will help our bottom jaw to be able to hang loosely from the Temporomandibular joint. The relaxed jaw will allow us to create the necessary space within the mouth.
