Ken, for what reason you pushing down the shoulders? Explain please.

MichaelS

Ken in Singing Classics, /for example  Singing Classics1 - Balroom Bltz (at 0.30, 0.33. 0.38) / you push down your shoulders quickly. And you do this movement a lot on another songs. Explain please, for what reason you do this? 

Ken Tamplin

Hi Michael.

I am glad you asked this question.

I get many e-mails saying the exact opposite. "Ken why do you lift your shoulders, my local vocal teacher told me that is wrong".

As you have seen in my videos,  I have demonstrated the importance of maintaining rib cage expansion with diaphragmatic support..

One person sees the shoulders "come up" and thinks it's wrong.

You saw the shoulders come down and "re-set" for rib cage expansion and diaphragmatic support.

This is precisely what I am doing. Re-setting my posture, straightening my spine (not tipping forwards, backwards or sideways), and re-setting my whole abdominal support structure.

If I were to leave the shoulders in a raised state, it would not allow for "belly breathing". So what I and doing is filling my lungs very quickly to about 1/2 full and THEN quickly taking my diaphragmatic breath.

If the camera were to have shown what was happening in my whole torso it would have sequenced like this, (very fast).

Quick rise in the shoulders for 50% air expansion in the lung, a quick drop in the shoulders (not collapsing the lung but holding it in an expanded state), re-setting the spine, and then BAM, taking in a quick belly breath and using that belly breath all the way to my next phrase.

This takes time and quite a relaxation response in the chest neck and throat so as not to build tension, but once you get it, you will how more power than you ever thought possible.

 

 

 

 

MichaelS

@Ken Tamplin:

Thanks for the answer, I understood. I'll have to try. :^)

@cgreen:

Yes, you was right. But thanks to Ken`s answer we can see the full picture. It`

MichaelS

It`s - i mean - it`s great, i want to say.