 All
incoming majors (freshmen, transfer students
and graduates) must be heard for
assignment to a studio. STUDIO PLACEMENT
AUDITIONS are held the first week of school each August.
Detailed information is available from the Dr. heila Allen, Chair of the Voice Division (s.allen@tcu.edu). Each student should
prepare one piece
of
classical repertoire to be sung from memory.
An accompanist will be provided for these
auditions. Sign-up lists will be posted
on the Voice/Opera Board, ELH south second
floor stairwell.
Music minors and electives who have not
taken studio voice previously at TCU must
audition for acceptance in the voice area
as well as for studio assignment.
Studio space is limited. Secondaries should
be aware that acceptance is competitive
and prepare their audition accordingly.
THE JOHN LARGE VOCAL ARTS LABORATORY
The TCU Vocal Arts Laboratory provides the
opportunity to enhance studio instruction
with scientific tools fostering both the
art and artistry of singing and the understanding
of the physiological and acoustical processes
involved. Although the vital acuity of the
teacher’s ear and expertise remains
the core of the learning process, the Kay-Elemetrics
Computerized Speech Lab, like the mirror,
cassette tape, and video camera, provides
information that can help the singer overcome
technical problems more quickly and effectively,
allowing time for confidence and artistry
to develop. In the Vocal Arts Laboratory,
students learn the acoustic parameters of
pitch control, fundamental frequency and
harmonic partials that determine vocal timbre,
vowel definition, the presence of vibrato,
legato, and linguistic accuracy by listening
to and observing phonations from their own
lessons and performances as well as by studying
live phonations in the laboratory.
TCU joins many colleges and universities,
including the Oberlin Conservatory prototype,
Westminster Choir College, Belmont University,
the Voice Institute of West Texas at Abilene
Christian University, Stetson University,
UT Austin, and the Vanderbilt Voice Center
(which employs several TCU Speech Pathology
graduates) in incorporating this powerful
technology into the development of vocal
artists.
With the laboratory’s real-time spectrography,
the voice professor and the applied voice
student, the voice therapist and the patient,
the actor, and the instrumentalist have
numerous analytical tools for understanding
the complex acoustical data of spoken, sung,
and played sound. A classically trained
singer’s spectrogram has unique features
that are easily visible: the singer produces
not just a single note, but a simultaneous
sounding of selective overtones which define
the vowel and allow the voice to carry over
a large orchestra in a 3,000 seat performance
hall. These features can be observed, as
can the consistency of richness and color
through the dynamic and pitch range of the
voice.
The student or patient has several options
in using the laboratory:He/she may bring
in a previously recorded cassette, DAT tape
or video cassette of his/her own phonations
to study.
He/she may record him/herself in the laboratory,
making adjustments while watching real-time
spectrography.
He/she may study recordings in any form
of professional singers recommended as desirable
(or undesirable) models.
Visible read-outs of the spectrogram include:
Frequency (cps or Hertz)
The vertical axis shows the fundamental
frequency and all the overtones (partials)
generated by a single tone. The horizontal
axis shows time. Real-time spectrography
graphs the sound patterns exactly as they
are produced by the singer or speaker.
Acoustic Energy
Acoustic energy is measured from light
to dark, with dark tracings representing
higher
acoustic energy. Patterns of acoustic
energy display the balance of tonal color,
vowel
definition, clarity of sound onset, and
the presence of the ìsingerís
formantî constant between 2800-3500
Hertz in sound with the carrying power necessary
for success in performance. The ìring
and warmthî characteristic of great
voices including Jussi Bjoerling, Renata
Tebaldi, and Luciano Pavarotti can be
analyzed. The student of singing learns
that formant
balance rather than sheer muscular effort
produce increased Decibel output. Extraneous
muscle tension only dampens or inhibits
sound.
Continuance (Legato)
Legato, the seamless sung vocal line without
noise or interruption, is easily visible
when the student produces a spectrograph
without stops or inconsistencies, full of
contiguous lines of similar acoustical data.
For both singers and speakers, vowel and
consonant duration can be observed with
great clarity, immediately drawing the student's
attention to the common (and frequently
unconscious) pattern of forming the consonant
prematurely.
Vibrancy (Vibrato)
Regularity in cycle and pitch excursion
of vibrato are easily discerned through
spectral analysis. Vibrato rate and straight
tone can also be immediately discerned.
Registration/Vowel Modification
Acoustical data of all singing registers,
chest, head, and falsetto, are easily apparent.
To control consistency of timbre across
registration events, the student can check
to see if the formants remain in a consistent
pattern.
Speech vs. Singing
The student can notice the enormous differences
in the acoustical energy and duration of
the singing and speaking voice. In some
instances the speech of a singer exhibits
greater acoustical energy than the singing
voice. This immediately shows the student
that certain modifications must take place
to correct the imbalance.
Vowel Definition
Split screen audio-visual allows the performer
to see both him/herself shaping an English
or foreign language phoneme and the resultant
spectrogram, which demonstrates the accuracy
of the effort. The vowel chart mode, which
displays 1st and 2nd formant positions also
helps both singers and speakers with vowel
clarity and assists in dialect reduction.
Posture
The video camcorder is an invaluable tool
for improving body alignment, extraneous
movement of the head, jaw, shoulders, lips,
and neck. Dramatic skills, facial expression
and stance, can also be improved through
the use of the camcorder in the studio and
the laboratory.
Sign up for individual appointments in the
Vocal Arts Laboratory on the door to ELH
233. Direct any questions to Dr.
Sheila Allen.
For further information about the TCU Vocal
Program, contact:
Dr. Sheila Allen
Division Chair, Voice
Texas Christian University
TCU Box 297500 -
Fort Worth, Texas 76129
1.800.TCU.7134
817.257.6627 Fax: 817.257.7344
music@tcu.edu
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