JOS On Point

Vocal Trills: 18th-Century Performance Practice Considerations

Author Eric Laine’s article, “Vocal Trills: 18th-Century Performance Practice Considerations Viewed Through the Lens of 19th-Century Practical Vocal Methods,” featured in the May/June issue of the Journal of Singing, holds that while the trill was considered “an essential ornament” during the 18th century, “ modern singers seem less adept at trilling.” Laine considers four 19th-century vocal methods and practice plans for how to master the trill, utilizing Mozart’s opera Così fan tutte as a case study. Musical examples from each role are complemented with links to modern recordings of well-produced trills.

JOS-080-5-2024-519.pdf (application/pdf, 2102.2 K) posted at 12:24 AM, June 17, 2024

Vocapedia Reborn: A True Wiki Resource for Voice Teachers

Vocapedia, NATS’ online information resource, is featured in the “Practical Science” column in the November/December issue of the Journal of Singing. Author John Nix explains how Vocapedia, in existence since 2014, has recently undergone an extensive transformation into a true wiki format. Nix reviews the history of Vocapedia, discusses its new format, and urges voice teachers, collaborative pianists, choral directors, speech language pathologists, voice researchers, and others who enjoy and study the voice to not only consult this resource, but also to contribute to it in order to refine and update its content.

JOS-081-2-2024-193.pdf (application/pdf, 699.2 K) posted at 2:01 PM, November 25, 2024

Voice Pedagogy for the 21st Century: The Summation of Two Summits

An important special report, “Voice Pedagogy for the 21st Century: The Summation of Two Summits,” authored by the Voice Pedagogy Interest Group’s Writer’s Group cochairs Amelia Rollings Bigler and Katherine Osborne, along with several others, appears in the September/October issue of the Journal of Singing. More than 70 consensus statements from two summits of the VPIG resulted in a position paper that codifies the expanding competencies necessary for a contemporary teacher of singing and presents a vision of the ideal singing teacher’s education.

JOS-078-01-2021-11.pdf (application/pdf, 1245.1 K) posted at 3:39 PM, September 10, 2021

Voice Pedagogy for the 21st Century: The Summation of Two Summits

An important special report, “Voice Pedagogy for the 21st Century: The Summation of Two Summits,” authored by the Voice Pedagogy Interest Group’s Writer’s Group cochairs Amelia Rollings Bigler and Katherine Osborne, along with several others, appears in the September/October issue of the Journal of Singing. More than 70 consensus statements from two summits of the VPIG resulted in a position paper that codifies the expanding competencies necessary for a contemporary teacher of singing and presents a vision of the ideal singing teacher’s education.

JOS-078-01-2021-11.pdf (application/pdf, 1245.1 K) posted at 3:38 PM, September 10, 2021

Voice Pedagogy: Reframing Bel Canto in the Twenty-First Century: Dovetailing Tradition with Science-Informed Pedagogy

In the Voice Pedagogy column of the March/April issue of the Journal of Singing, author Matthew Hoch explores the meaning, context, and viability of the term “bel canto” in “Voice Pedagogy: Reframing Bel Canto in the Twenty-First Century: Dovetailing Tradition with Science-Informed Pedagogy.” Hoch uses James Stark’s seminal 1999 book Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy as a basis for reflecting upon the nexus between the classic master–pupil tradition and the modern science-informed era, and suggests an expansion of Stark’s definition of “bel canto,” adapted to the modern voice pedagogue.

JOS-080-4-2024-417.pdf (application/pdf, 460 K) posted at 2:05 PM, March 1, 2024

Voice, the Muscle of the Soul: Finding Yourself Through Finding Your Voice

Distinguished Frank C. Shattuck Professor of Music at Lawrence University and noted voice pedagogue Kenneth Bozeman’s May 2018 Honors Convocation address at the university appears as a Guest Editorial in the January/February issue of Journal of Singing. In “Voice, the Muscle of the Soul: Finding Yourself through Finding Your Voice,” Bozeman asserts that the voice is a sacred asset, crucial to how one connects with others, how one impacts the community, and how singing, a special form of voice, is an expression of the soul.

JOS-075-3-2019-245_-_Voice_the_Muscle_of_the_Soul_-_Bozeman.pdf (application/pdf, 336.3 K) posted at 11:44 AM, January 22, 2019

What a Shame! Limited Understanding of the Effects of Shame on Voice

In the May/June issue of the Journal of Singing, Elisa Monti and Lynn Maxfield, co- associate editors of the “Mindful Voice” column, discuss research about how the emotional state of voice users can impact voice quality and production, with a particular emphasis on shame. They note that there is “evidence that shame is rarely correlated with improved performance, much less learning,” and recommend that singing teachers “learn from other fields and work to mitigate their teaching practices that are likely to invoke shame in singers.

JOS-080-5-2024-585.pdf (application/pdf, 508.1 K) posted at 8:44 PM, June 24, 2024

What Science Is and What it Is Not

In the September/October issue of the Journal of Singing, co-authors David Meyer and John Nix explore questions of science — and crucially, why singers should care to know — in the first installment of their new “Practical Voice Science” column entitled “What Science Is and What it Is Not.” Their column is dedicated to making voice science concepts “understandable, relevant, and actionable for singers, singing teachers, collaborative pianists, opera directors, and choral conductors.” They aim to ignite the reader’s curiosity and demonstrate how science can transform the training of singers by enhancing teachers’ experience and intuition by applying scientific developments in the optimal function of the singing voice. Their new column is pitched to singers of all expertise levels.

JOS-080-1-2023-057.pdf (application/pdf, 194.7 K) posted at 2:36 PM, October 23, 2023

Who Believes What? Singers’ Belief in Vocal Health Information and Misinformation

Although evidence-based recommendations for voice care are available, misconceptions still abound. In their article, “Who Believes What? Singers’ Belief in Vocal Health Information and Misinformation,” published in the November/December issue of the Journal of Singing, Julia Edgar and Deirdre Michael report on an earlier survey of belief in vocal health practices. The authors conclude that voice teachers must become judicious consumers of information, examining their believe and how those are conveyed, in order to provide an environment of solid factual information to student singers.

JOS-078-02-2021-197.pdf (application/pdf, 436.5 K) posted at 4:32 PM, December 13, 2021

World Voice Day - Be Kind With Your Voice

Each year, the March/April issue of Journal of Singing marks World Voice Day, an annual event to celebrate the phenomenon of voice. The commemoration occurs on April 16, and the theme for 2019 is “Be Kind With Your Voice.” Both NATS President Karen Brunssen, in her “From the President” column, and Editor in Chief Richard Sjoerdsma, in his “Editor’s Commentary,” specifically address the provocative imperative. Brunssen writes principally from a pedagogic, performance, and collegial perspective, while Sjoerdsma wrestles with the theme in terms of its unity and humanity implications, especially in a culture where kindness is not only seldom practiced but often ridiculed as weakness. Implicitly and explicitly, both writers argue that artists who do not practice kindness end up destroying themselves.

JOS-075-4-2019-389_-_World_Voice_Day_-_Be_Kind_With_Your_Voice_-_Brunssen-Sjoerdsma.pdf (application/pdf, 472.2 K) posted at 11:09 AM, March 18, 2019

World Voice Day 2021

April 16 marks the annual commemoration of World Voice Day, and the WVD 2021 theme is “One World, Many Voices.” The Journal of Singing continues its tradition of celebrating this event on the cover and some continuing columns of the March/April issue. Among the latter is NATS President Carole Blankenship’s “From the President” column, in which she ties the theme to the new Diversity and Inclusion statement of the Association. Additionally, in his “Editor’s Commentary” Editor in Chief Richard Sjoerdsma examines the WVD theme from several perspectives, including song literature, vocal performance, and voice pedagogy.

JOS_March-April_21_pages_465-468.pdf (application/pdf, 145.9 K) posted at 11:26 AM, April 8, 2021

WVD and MO

Since 2002, resulting from an initiative by the American Academy of Otolaryngology, April 16 has been designated World Voice Day. Each year carries its own discrete theme, and the theme chosen for 2020 is “Focus On Your Voice in 2020.” In his “Editor’s Commentary” for the March/April issue of Journal of Singing, Editor in Chief Richard Sjoerdsma explores the metaphoric implications of the theme, particularly in terms of present sight, hindsight, and foresight.

JOS-076-4-2020-381.PDF (application/pdf, 345.7 K) posted at 12:26 PM, April 7, 2020

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