Contents
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Agata and Jadwiga from the University of Adam Mickiewicz, Poznan, Poland
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Bristol ASM 2008 ASM Feedback Summary
(Evaluations from delegates)
‘Physical Presence’ led by Pete Bailie
The Bristol ASM got off to an impressive and active start on the Saturday morning with an Interactive Workshop on ’Physical Presence’ led by Pete Bailie, voice specialist at the Bristol Old Vic School.
The activities began with walking in a circle, then ‘as if observed’: what difference did that make?
Moments of meeting followed:
shaking hands, saying ‘yes’ in various ways, eye contact; in pairs saying 1-2-3, clap -2-3, clap -2-stamp, clap-touch (brief) -stamp. Sounds were associated with various areas of the body and the effects of ‘leading’ with
head/nose, chest, hips etc on overall body awareness were explored. Different centres of gravity could link with various emotions or characteristics, such as intellectual or sensual. Lively utterances and responses, related to national or contextual features, produced a vibrant party atmosphere. Pete drew attention to effects on breathing,
pace and voice texture, eg crisper/slurred.
‘Looking with the whole body’ was natural for children, much less so for adults. However, the workshop participants (chocophiles mostly) got their teeth, tongues and salivary glands into noisily relishing favourite foods.
Movement and gesture added shape, texture and rhythm to the experience. Various exercises drew attention to the
effects of shifting weight on balance. Pete Bailie concluded by listing and illustrating four essential elements of physical presence:
- contact with the floor
- suspension
- awareness
- pleasure
Participants were very appreciative of the organisation, stimulation and skill demonstrated in this lively session.
Mike Hendy
‘Vocal Clarity and Dynamics’ led by Gary Owston
Gary Owston declared he was approaching his workshop on ‘Vocal Clarity and Dynamics’ on Saturday morning with trepidation in the face of so
many voice ‘experts’ but he succeeded by emphasising his own particular context at the Bristol Old Vic School dealing with problems of voice and expression encountered by his students.
His text was the statement: “Every word is a valuable part of your character’s argument and should be heard by every member of the audience, whatever the spatial environment.” The audience should tune in to what not how and text should always sound ‘natural’.
Gary gave examples of vowel sounds, including dipthongs and tripthongs, open and voiced to carry the sound out into space. Illustrating these from the text of the Prologue from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, he also showed that consonants need to be economic and precise, avoiding the dangers of de-voicing, consonant omission and falling energy at the end of lines and phrases.
Exercises dealing with these hazards through intoning and isolating the consonants might not be valued by drama students at first, but Gary said
that for most of them a Damascus Road moment of realisation – that every part of every word was significant – would come sooner or later. Then they
could begin to sound natural, make eye contact and be comfortable with their space. Dynamics, he added in conclusion, involved intonation and also ‘primary resonance balance’ with the ability to shift tone between the nasal,
pharyngeal and oral areas. Gary Owston’s particular expertise brought something new for all those attending this session.
Mike Hendy
Christina Shewell
We are all familiar with Christina Shewell’s excellent and highly practical talks from her original background as an SLT and her precise work on Vocal Profile Analysis.
Her paper “Imagery in Voice Work: Art and Science”, given at the Bristol ASM, was a new departure, although she herself has been trying to bridge the gap since enrolling on the Central Voice Teachers’ course 20 years ago. She has developed this theme in researching and writing her new book
and feels that is the core focus of her work. She did admit that on this occasion she was preaching to the converted!
“Imagination triggers physical response”: we began with a practical demonstration; asked to close our eyes and imagine a piece of lemon in the mouth, most of us reported a tingling sensation and a flow of saliva. Christina then went on to show how the use of imagery in stimulating emotion can bring about physical changes in voice use. She quoted from a
wide range of references (fascinating future reading for us all) and a practical example from her own book.
She recalled a television programme in which a brain scan of Alan Yentob showed limited response to music he found boring or unpleasant, but a piece with emotional associations caused both sides of the brain to glow dramatically.
Finally she reminded us that the smile can work from the outside inwards.
Roz Comins
Agata and Jadwiga from the University of Adam Mickiewicz, Poznan, Poland
In the final ASM session on Sunday, Agata and Jadwiga told us about the voice situation in Poland, then encouraged us to join them in practical work. Exercises for resonance, registers and intonation aimed for good posture, deepening breathing, strengthening the muscles involved in voice production, “painting” sound with “colours” and making Big Hungry bear groans to centre the voice.
They have developed these exercises for their students who attend a three year Teacher Training College that leads to a degree in English language teaching in Polish primary, middle and secondary schools. During the three years students are subject to 120 hours of pronunciation instruction and 30 hours of voice work.
We were impressed to learn that the medical profession in Poland recognise the need for voice care. Also, that every four years all teachers are obliged to attend for an examination
of their larynx, and that free medical care is in place. Together with the Labour Health Care Centre in Pozna they offer voice courses to teachers in schools. These courses consist of
three workshops: the first is a medical presentation by an MD and next two are lead by Agata or Jadwiga.We were pleased to hear that during workshops they use the 6 minute video “Anatomy of Voice” which VCN has supplied to its members for many years.
Roz Comins
Bristol ASM 2008 ASM Feedback Summary
(Evaluations from delegates)
1. 96% felt the ASM ‘largely’ or ‘completely’ met their expectations
2. The items in the programme that people gained most from were:
(1) Pete Bailey
(2) Christina Shewell
(3) Gary Owston
3. It was felt that the balance needed adjusting on the session on childrens’ voices. Many people wanted to hear Lesley Hendy for longer (30-40
minutes)
4. A largemajority thought the overall programme at the ASM was reasonably well balanced
5. However, a number were critical of the poetry section (interesting, but unfocused) although highly appreciative of the poetry readings after dinner!
Thanks to all those who volunteered to read.
6. It was appreciated bringing the AGM forward into the main body of the day.
7. The Chairman’s clarity was noted by one long serving member, who was not able to hear the contributions from a number of other members
during some discussions without microphones.