Hey singers!
Did you know that I can sing a dozen notes at the same time?
You don't believe me?
Well if I can't do it then I'll buy you a coffee.
Let's find out...
♬
Hello you glorious singers!
I'm Justin Stoney the founder of New York Vocal Coaching
joining you for Episode 117 of Voice Lessons To The World.
Today's question comes from Julius M. in Makati, Philippines.
Julius writes, "Dear Justin, I keep hearing this word formant all the time.
Can you help me understand it?"
Well Julius a resounding YES!
I'm glad to!
You're right, Julius.
The word formant has been sweeping through
the world of vocal pedagogy for some time now.
Leaving a trail of devastatingly awesome possibilities.
But only if we know what the heck is going on.
So today we're going to explore, what are formants?
Why do we care?
And how can we use them for vocal glory?
But first we had a little wager, didn't we?
I promised you to sing a dozen notes at the same time.
♪
Now what I'm about to say is gonna sound like a miracle,
and it probably is.
But it's one hundred percent true.
Whenever we sing a note we're not just singing that note,
but a series of notes that stretch up heavenwards.
Yep, check it out.
If i sing this note right here...
♪ AH ♪
Take a look at all those other notes that I'm singing at the same time.
Those are called "harmonics".
Now take a listen to them one by one...
♪ AH ♪
♪♪♪
Absolutely stunning!
It's like there's a choir of angels singing above the note that I'm singing.
Harmonics are about as insane as
flinging a trillion galaxies into outer space.
But nevertheless, they're real and they're spectacular.
Musical instruments have them and voices have them.
And harmonics are what give us the potential to
enhance our sound in so many ways.
And when a human voice does this kind of enhancement,
what do we call it?
Formants!
♪
To say it really plainly, a formant is a resonance boost created inside your head.
What's resonance?
Well it's why we love to sing in the shower.
When those sound waves go pinging and ringing
off of those steamy ceramic tiles,
our voices become even bigger and more complex.
That's resonance.
But our heads are much more sophisticated than a shower.
Sound waves are produced by air moving through the vocal folds
then those same sound waves go pinging and zinging
off of chambers inside our face.
The larynx, the pharynx, nasal cavity, and mouth.
In other words, your face is helping certain members
of that choir of angels to "sing out Gabriel!"
Sometimes we might help out the basses...
♪ DOOM ♪
Or other times we might help out the sopranos...
♪ MEE ♪
Or maybe I can spread a little love across the entire choir...
♪ EE-AY-AH-OH-OO-OH-AH-AY-EE ♪
So you can see, literally see, that formants are ways
NOT to amplify the note we are singing,
but the notes above what we are singing.
Well that's some really fascinating stuff, Justin.
But why should I care?
How does it help my singing?
Well I'll tell you!
♪
Why do we care about formants?
Well, it’s simple really.
Formants have a huge impact on whether our sound is going to be
strong or flexible, bright or dark.
Ever notice that certain vowels are easy to sing
and other vowels you crack on?
Well that’s because of formants!
Let’s start with the EE Vowel.
What do we know about an EE Vowel?
We did a whole episode on it if you’d like to check that out!
We know EE is a “flexible vowel.”
Or, in other words, it encourages us to move to
lighter and headier registers earlier in our range.
Why?
Well, because it has a low first formant.
It’s way down here...
♪ EE ♪
But, we also know it is the brightest vowel.
Why?
Because it has a second formant that’s way up here...
♪ EE ♪
So, that makes EE a perfect vowel for adding
lighter and brighter qualities to our voices.
How about the OO Vowel?
Again, there’s a whole episode for you to check out if you'd like!
We know that OO helps to get into our lighter registers
just like EE.
Again, that’s because OO has a low first formant.
♪ OO ♪
But, OO is different from EE because it’s a “dark vowel.”
Why dark?
Because it amplifies lower harmonics.
♪ OO ♪
So, OO is a helpful vowel for us if we feel like our
voices are getting too bright or too shrill.
Finally, let’s take a look at the AH Vowel.
We’ll do an episode on that one sometime,
but for now this one should help you out!
AH is very different from EE and OO
because AH is a strong and open vowel.
It encourages us to NOT thin into lighter registers, but stay strong instead.
Why?
Again, formants!
This time it’s because the first formant happens quite high up.
And the second formant is right next doo r.
♪ AH ♪
See that?
So, I think it’s pretty clear now why formants matter.
They impact just about everything that we do as singers.
But how we can use vowels and formants to attain vocal glory?
♪
Alright! ‘bout to hit you with the practical!
Let’s try some exercises!
For Exercise #1, you're going to hear your own formants
without even singing a note.
How?
By getting Slap Happy!
♪
I want you to get a little slap happy with me.
Like this...
[Demonstrates]
Go ahead - try it!
Good!
That’s nice!
Whoa!
Now, don’t hurt yourself!
So what’s the point of that?
Well, you’re hearing your own formants.
Notice how you hear the pitch going up and down?
But you’re not even singing.
You’re hearing those resonance boosts we talked about.
Those notes above the notes...
Those formants.
Next, as an exercise - let’s play favorites!
♪
Ask yourself this question: What is my favorite vowel to sing?
Really important question.
Because your answer will open Pandora’s Box for your vocal technique.
So, what’s your favorite?
If you chose a closed vowel like EE or OO,
I’d like you to spend a week practicing open vowels
like like AH, AA, or AW.
Or if you chose an open vowel - do the opposite.
If you chose a dark vowel like OO or UU,
spend a week practicing bright vowels like EE or AA.
And if you chose a bright vowel - do the opposite.
Practicing vowels that are contrary to our tendencies
is a good idea.
It’s kind of like our friend Miles Davis.
He said...
“Do you know why I quit playing ballads?
Because I LOVE playing ballads.”
That just means - if you want mastery, you’ve got to practice the opposite
of what comes easiest to you sometimes.
But, we’re also going to make formants our friends…
♪
Of course, we’re not just going to fight your favorite vowel.
We’re going to use it!
As a friend!
Let’s say EE is your favorite vowel and AH is your least favorite.
Here’s what I want you to practice...
♪ EE-AH-EE-AH ♪
Or maybe AH is your favorite and OO is your least favorite.
Here’s your exercise:
♪ AH-OO-AH-OO ♪
Let's practice this together.
So get those vowels in your mind!
♪♪♪
Alright guys are gonna be down here,
and ladies up here.
Let's give it a try!
♪ EE-AH ♪
Very good!
♪
That's right, alternating.
♪
Right on.
♪ AH-OO ♪
Great.
♪
That's it!
♪
Way to make friends!
♪
Keep it moving...
♪
That's it!
♪ EE-OO ♪
Aha!
♪
And a few more!
♪
Last one...
♪ EE-AH ♪
♪♪♪
Awesome job!
Pairing two vowels in this way shifts the formants back and forth
and gets your voice used keeping the pitch the same
while the resonance is moving.
Great thing to practice!
Okay, stay tuned because in a moment,
I’ll give you your vocal benediction.
But first - here are some more things that I hope make your vocal journey...
RESOUND!
Sing Like Never Before is the new book by Justin Stoney.
Get ready for a singing book that is truly like no other.
For more information visit SingLikeNeverBefore.com.
For voice lessons or Skype lessons with the NYVC staff
visit us at NewYorkVocalCoaching.com.
If you'd like a vocal course that you can do at home,
check out the Voice Lessons To The World Vocal Course.
This 12 part program takes you on a singing journey
from beginner to master level vocal exercises.
You can find it at VoiceLessonsToTheWorld.com.
Or if you'd like free vocal tips sent to you each day,
sign up at DailyVocalTips.com.
And now here's Justin with this week's vocal benediction.
Alright, so it looks like I don’t owe you a coffee.
But, we proved something today.
Right?
That there are notes that are happening up above us
and all around us when we sing.
Many of us have sung for our entire lives not even KNOWING about these notes.
And if that’s true of our singing - why not our lives?
When we stay kind when the world is vicious,
or we stay hopeful when we’re in our darkest place,
whose to say that doesn’t have ripple effect that we can’t even see?
In any case, don’t let anyone stop you from singing.
Because when you sing,
you’re guaranteed to stretch beyond what you can see.
♬