10 Steps Towards a Perfect Vowel
Every vowel must be a perfect vowel. Perfect with a capital P. Otherwise, it won't be beautiful, and if it's not beautiful it's not bel canto.
Margaret Harshaw taught me this. This is what I believe. This is what I teach. This is what is simple to understand but hard to execute. Why? Americans speak these vowels either in the throat or in the nose.
Think of the TV show "The Nanny." It's a perfect example of speaking in the nose. Bring to mind Bob Dylan, and you'll have a perfect example of singing in the nose and throat together. Yes, he received a Nobel Prize, but that was for his lyrics, not singing.
If you want to sing with a bel canto tone, master this concept. It's an auditory idea that relies on a canny use of vowels and the power of the ear to apprehend Italianate tonal values. Here are some hints for creating it:
Speak the vowels before singing them.
Call each vowel like you are seeing a dear friend across the street for the first time in 10 years.
Graft the vowel that isn't working onto the one that is.
EE tends to be throaty. Use AY to open it. When it is right, EE will be alarmingly buzzy and far forward in the face.
Pure and perfect vowels are Radical Vowels: OO is the hardest for most students to understand because it is throaty in English. An Italianate OO needs the openness of AH and the resonance of EE.
All the vowels must lead to the creation of a compound tone above and behind the soft palate that surrounds the head like a halo.
All the vowels must be clear at the front of the mouth.
Consonants can be your friend. Use them to jumpstart the process. But they must be quick.
If you omit the consonant, watch your breath and the attack. Start where you are going—in the mask. Hear the open throat (AH) from the mask.
Hold your breath and let the tone fly.
This is one of the principles of the old Italian school of singing.
I write this post in honor of my father, Elmer Shigo, who left the planet seven years ago today. He was a carpenter, artisan of fine jewelry, steelmaker, and collector of Tiffany Lamps who also created worthy reproductions. More than anyone I know, he knew and appreciated the uncompromising nature of the craft, which is part and parcel of the creation of beauty.