4 - Working with the voice

Cambridge Books Online http://ebooks.cambridge.org/ Drama Techniques A Resource Book of Communication Activities for Language Teachers Alan Maley, Alan Duff Book DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079 Online ISBN: 9780511733079 Paperback ISBN: 9780521601191 Chapter 4 - Working with the voice pp. 69-98 Chapter DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge University Press 4 Working with the voice The human voice is a wonderful instrument, and it obviously plays a critical role in communication. The more clearly and expressively we speak, the more effectively we convey our messages. What we say is often less important than the way we say it. The voice is also a badge of identity, and an infallible indicator of mood and attitude. In a very real sense, we are what we speak, and others make judgements based on the way we sound. If we are uncertain of ourselves, our voices will ‘tell on’ us. If we are tired, our voices will betray that fact. If we are in a bad mood, our voices will let it be known! We can, however, work on our voices to strengthen them and to make them more sensitive instruments of communication. Voicework can help build confidence in our ability to express ourselves in a clear, vibrant, natural voice. And this is surely an important part of being able to use a foreign language (or even our own) well. Some people are fortunate in having a naturally good voice, but for most of us, it can only be acquired through hard work. The good news for language learners is that they get a double benefit: acquiring good voice habits while acquiring the foreign language. The activities in this chapter apply to language learning some of the very wide range of techniques which actors use. For those interested in going further into this field, there are references to some books on voice at the end of the book. Preparing for voicework In this section we shall suggest some physical activities for relaxation and warming up. Our voices work better when we are in a state of relaxed alertness and are physically ‘centred’. If we are tense or ‘off-centre’, this will have a negative effect on our voices. These activities also offer valuable opportunities for reinforcing vocabulary (especially related to parts of the body and movement) and for practice in listening comprehension through the repetition of instructions. 69 Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 4.1 Relaxation Procedure Standing relaxation See instructions for Activity 1.17. Semi-supine 1 If you have a suitable surface, or even exercise mats, ask students to lie down as in the illustration. They should have their knees raised and feet flat on the floor, forming a triangle with the floor. They may use a book or pillow to support their head. They should feel their back gradually spreading on the floor. 2 Play some music softly (Baroque or New Age music is best). Tell students simply to breathe slowly, with eyes closed, and to visualise their body one part at a time, starting at the crown of their head and working down towards their toes. There is no need for them to do anything except visualise. The relaxation will happen without forcing it! Shoulder lifting The shoulders and neck are one of the main sites of muscular tension in the body. Unless they are relaxed, breathing is inhibited and this has a knock-on effect on voice quality and power. 1 Students work in pairs. They face each other. One student takes hold of the upper arms of their partner, just below the shoulders. They then lift their partner’s shoulders, and let them drop back into place. It is important that the one whose shoulders are being lifted allows this to happen, and neither tries to resist it, nor tries to ‘help’ by raising their own shoulders. Students then change places. This simple exercise has the effect of leaving the shoulders in a ‘normal’ relaxed position. 2 If there are cultural taboos on touching, students can do the activity alone, by raising their shoulders as high as possible, and then letting go. This is, however, less effective than the pairwork. Drama Techniques 70 Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 Shoulder and head rolling Students stand. They roll first the right shoulder, then the left. Five rolls toward the front, and five rolls toward the back on each shoulder. For the head rolls, students should start by letting the head drop forward so that the chin rests on the upper chest. Then, very slowly, and without straining, they bring the head up towards the right, as far back as is comfortable and back round to the starting position, all in a smooth rolling motion (see illustration above). It may help them to visualise their head as resting on a ball bearing at the base of the skull. They should do five head rolls to the right and five to the left. See also 1.13 Feeling your muscles, 1.16 Just relax, 1.17 Directed relaxation. 4.2 Physical warm ups Procedure Pushing up the sky Students stand in the balanced position. They raise their right arm with the palm facing upwards (see illustration at the top of page 72). They take a deep breath. As they release the breath, they push their hand upwards as far as possible in a series of short movements. It may help if they visualise themselves pushing up the sky. They do this five times with the right arm and five with the left. This exercise has the effect of stretching the muscles along the sides of the body, and opening up the area between the bottom of the ribcage and the hip bone. This is the area we breathe into. Working with the voice 71 1 2 3 4 5 6 Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 Rocking and rolling your pelvis Students stand in the balanced position. They slowly rock their pelvis from side to side by shifting the weight from one leg to the other (see illustration 1). They do this five times, then come back to the balanced position. They then rock their pelvis from front to rear – again five times (see illustration 2). Finally, they stand in the balanced position with hands resting lightly on their hips. As they breathe in, they roll their pelvis to the right, then breathe out as they return to the starting position. They do five rolls to the right and five to the left. It is important that only the pelvis moves, not the shoulders and head (see illustration 3). The base of the spine is another site of tension which needs to be relaxed and warmed up if we are to be centred and ready to breathe well. Drama Techniques 72 2 31 Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 The diver Students take up a position as if they were preparing to dive into a pool: knees slightly bent, arms stretched out in front. As they breathe in, they lean forwards and throw their arms backwards. They then breathe out, bringing their arms back to the front again (see illustration). They do this five times, then return to the balanced standing position. See also 1.14 From seed to plant. 4.3 Breathing In order to use our voices well, we need plenty of air to support them. Breathing is something we all do, yet many people take only shallow breaths into the upper chest. This kind of breathing may seem ‘normal’ but it does not support a strong sustained use of the voice. Procedure Give yourself a hug Students stand in the balanced position. They hug themselves tightly by putting their left hand round the right shoulder and the right hand under the left armpit. Holding themselves as tightly as possible, they take a deep in breath, then release slowly. They do this five times. Then another five times with right arm on left shoulder and left hand under right armpit. In this position, the bottom of the back is being held open, making it easier to breathe more deeply. Working with the voice 73 Breathe IN Breathe OUT 1 2 3 Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 The great conductor Students visualise themselves as a great orchestral conductor. They stand in the balanced position. They breathe in deeply as they raise arms to shoulder height, wide apart. They look to the right and the left to show the orchestra they are ready to begin. They breathe out slowly. Suddenly, someone in the audience gets a call on their mobile phone! They drop their hands to their sides in a gesture of annoyance, and at the same time take a very deep breath. Blowing out candles Students visualise a row of twelve candles in front of them. They take a deep breath and blow out all the candles one by one. This means they have enough breath in reserve for the last one! For students who are not too old(!), they can visualise a number of candles corresponding to their age. Drama Techniques 74 FRONT BACK 1 2 Breathe IN then – OUT Breathe IN Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 The car tyre Students visualise a car tyre. First, they have to pump it up by taking very short breaths and making short pfff, pfff, pfff sounds as they inflate the tyre. Then they visualise it as having a puncture: they take a very deep breath and release the breath as slowly as possible on a long PFFFFFFF sound. See also 1.11 Breathing. 4.4 Warming up the voice Just as athletes need to warm up the body, actors need to warm up their voices. All of the following activities are useful for this purpose. They should all be approached with an attitude of fun. Students usually enjoy them a great deal. Procedure Bouncing the sound Students stand in the balanced position. They then flop over from the waist so that their head and upper body is hanging loosely down. They then unwind slowly on an in breath till they are standing erect again. Once they are standing erect, they release a touch of sound huh, then again huh, from as deep inside as possible. It may help if students visualise the sound bouncing off their diaphragm. If they place a hand lightly on their middle, they should feel the movement when they make the sound. Working with the voice 75 Huh! Huh! Breathe IN Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 Humming into your palms Students stand in the balanced position. They raise their arms level with their shoulders to the side, with palms upwards. They then take a deep breath and start to hum on a very low note. They should visualise the sound waves running from their centre into their hands. Continue for at least two minutes. After a time, most people do indeed start to feel a faint vibration in their palms. Mouth and nose Students hum vigorously till their lips start to vibrate, perhaps even tickling. Then ask them to add a vowel to the end on the mmmmmm of their humming, e.g. mmmmmmmah, mmmmmmee, mmmmmmmoo, mmmmmmoy, mmmmmmmeh, etc. Repeat the process starting with a nnnnnnnn sound, where the sound comes out of the nose. Again, students play with adding vowels. Finally, let them try nnnnnnnnngg, adding vowels to that too. Slipping and sliding 1 Students pretend to be a cat making a miaow sound. They start very high in their voice range and slowly slide down on the out breath. They should do this as slowly as possible, making a smooth curve of sound with no breaks. They do this several times. 2 Divide students into two equal groups, which face each other from different ends of the room. They imagine they are on opposite sides of a valley and are calling to one of their friends on the other side. After a deep breath, they call Hi! to a student at the other end of the room. They start very high and slide down the scale till they reach the bottom. Drama Techniques 76 m m m m m m Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 3 Standing in the balanced position, students let their head fall back as far as is comfortable, so that their face is parallel with the ceiling. They take a deep breath, then imagine they are spraying the ceiling with sound as they make the sound aaaaaah, starting at the top of their voice and ending at the bottom. They do this several times. See also Chapter 11, Warming up. 4.5 Preparing the articulators Procedure Various A rapid run through some of these exercises will ensure that the organs of articulation – tongue, lips, jaws, soft palate and throat – are ready to go. 1 Face muscles: students make exaggerated grimaces, clench their face as small as possible, then stretch it as far as possible. 2 Jaws: students make exaggerated chewing movements of the jaw. They gently use the first three fingers of each hand to massage from the jaw joint (just below the ear), moving down with circular movements to the chin. 3 Lips: students push their lips forward as far as possible in a pout, then spread them as wide as possible in an exaggerated smile. They then expel air through the lips in a brrrrrrr sound. Then with a voiceless prrrrrr. 4 Tongue: students stick their tongue out as far as possible, then curl it back until the tip is touching the soft palate. Repeat this five times. 5 Soft palate and throat: ask students to yawn – a really big yawn. Then let them yawn while keeping the lips tightly shut. This opens up the throat aperture, which is where the sound has to come out. Students then release air from their throat by flapping open the soft palate with the sound khaaaa. Let them try reversing this by drawing air in on the same khaaaa sound. They should feel the small explosion of air each time it passes the soft palate. ABC 1 Students sit in a circle facing outwards. One student starts by saying A. The one on his right says B, the next one C, and so on round the circle. They should keep up a fast pace. Run through the alphabet once in this way. 2 Then tell students that every alternate letter will be spoken loudly, every other letter very softly, e.g. A (very loud), B (very soft), etc. Working with the voice 77 Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 3 This time, every alternate letter will be spoken on a very high note, the others on a very low note, e.g. A (very high), B (very low), etc. 4 This time, every alternate letter will be long and drawn out, the others short and clipped, e.g. A (very long), B (very short). 5 When students have got the idea with letters, give each student one word, and repeat the process. This works even better when the words are from the same sentence, e.g. for a group of ten, you might use this sentence: Nobody sitting here knows how old our teacher’s dog is. 6 The same activity can also be done using numbers, days of the week, months of the year, colours, parts of the body, etc. 4.6 Volume Here are just three ideas for developing (and controlling) volume. Procedure Voice arrow Divide students into two equal groups, standing at opposite ends of the room (the bigger the room, the better). Tell students to visualise their voice as an arrow which makes a curve in the air before falling to its target. Give a word, e.g. No, Tomorrow, Friday, and tell them to shoot their word high so that it hits someone at the other end of the room. Crescendo 1 Students work in groups of three. Each group has a different sentence (or line from a play). Students take it in turns to speak their sentence, starting very softly and building up to very loud by the end, e.g.: It is not that I care aboutyou,butIdocareaboutourmother. 2 Students then reverse the process, starting very loud and fading away to very soft. 3 If you prefer, let students work in the same way with short texts (see 9.1 Mini-texts for possible texts). Off the wall This activity is best done in a large hall or outdoors. Students have a line or sentence to speak. They stand one metre away from a wall, and speak their line. They then move back a metre and speak it again. They continue to do this till they are ten metres or more away from the wall. In order for their Drama Techniques 78 Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 voice to reach the wall, they must increase volume progressively as they move farther away. Working with the voice In this section we offer a range of activities to develop confidence in using the voice, and to extend vocal range and expressivity. 4.7 Thinking about my voice Aim To raise students’ awareness of how they sound, and other aspects of the way they use their voices Focus Vocabulary to describe voice quality: high, low, sweet, clear, rough, etc.; language of discussion: expression of opinion, agreement/ disagreement, etc. Level Intermediate and above Time One class hour Preparation Every student will need a copy of the questionnaire in Box 9. Procedure 1 Students work in groups of three. Distribute copies of the questionnaire – one per student. Allow up to 15 minutes for students to complete it. 2 Students then compare their answers in their groups. They note down items where they seem to agree, and any especially interesting answers. 3 In a whole-class session, collect feedback on the questionnaires. Encourage discussion on the answers to each question. How much agreement was there? How many unusual facts emerged? Follow-on Encourage students to bring recordings of some of their favourite English voices for a future class. Notes 1 We take our voice very much for granted. This activity is not itself drama but it helps students become more conscious of how they use their voices. This is a necessary preliminary to developing or changing the voice. 2 The questionnaire usually leads to lively discussion, especially question 13. Working with the voice 79 Downloaded from Cambridge Books Online by IP 202.45.33.1 on Tue Oct 02 08:49:53 BST 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733079.005 Cambridge Books Online © Cambridge University Press, 2012 Box 9 Me and my voice1 1 How many different ways have I listened to my own voice? • in my own head, when I speak? • on my answering machine? • on a tape or video recording? • as an echo? • as a ‘silent’ voice in my head when I am thinking? • any others? ......................................................................................... 2 Do I usually speak fast or slow in my own language? ................................................................................................................... 3 What times do I speak faster, and when slower? ................................................................................................................. 4 Do I speak faster or slower than others in my family? ................................................................................................................... 5 Do I