Saluting the Sun

Greetings.

Today we really delved into the Yoga section of our class. Last time was apparently just a 'taste' (lol). Aside from the fact that we did about 6 repititions (and soon started feeling it) and are expected to eventually do 12 (in actuality 24: one is considered a rep of left and right), I still was completely psyched! Maybe I'm just some sort of weirdo exercise freak lady, but I really enjoy when I get to stretch and listen to my body.

Aside from the extensive physical portion, we moved onto using our mirrors.

"Why on earth would you need a mirror for a voice and articulation class?" you ask.




Well, duh, so you can see your mouth as you speak! It's funny how much we don't pay attention to how we move our mouths (or in some cases not move our mouths) in order to say words we use all the time.

For instance, "Hi, how are you today?" or, "I love Monday's. They are the best day ever."

(For the record, Mondays are not the best day ever in my opinion...)


Anyway, you get the idea. Small observations or variations in how we speak can make a big difference. Like, say, oh... talking with a cork in your mouth. It does sound yucky, and counter-productive, but it really does work!

I'll explain:

See it's like running with ankle or wrist weights. If your body can adapt to the motion of running or walking with the weight, then it can perform even better without the weight. Speaking with a cork in your mouth may impede your speech or that moment, but once you remove it: VOILA! You sound like a pronunciation guru. (Don't quote me on that...)

One more thing that I really did enjoy was this new 'exercise' we learned to help clear the sinuses and/or resonators. It's called the Y-BUZZ. It's a combination of a humming noise and a loud 'ee' sound made through puckered lips. This is done is different positions including beding over and shaking the clasped hands. It felt really good, but I hadn't been able to tell if it loosened up any phlegm or not... yeugh... :-/

lol.


A Few Words for Thought:

Glottal
Diaphram
Sun Salutation
Y-Buzz

/ˈyoʊgə/

Greetings!

That there is IPA! Get used to it folks, because I'm going to have to start using it on the regular. (lol) By the way, that word is yoga in IPA format.

"What on earth is IPA, anyway?" I hear you cry.

IPA:

International Phonetic Alphabet

 

noun

the set of symbols and modifiers designed, principally on the basis of articulatory considerations, to provide a consistent and universally understood system for transcribing the speech sounds of any language: devised by the International Phonetic Association.

 by

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/International+Phonetic+Alphabet

So there. Now you know what on earth I'm talking about. We didn't do much with IPA  on Wednesday. Except the end of the class, where we reviewed some words we wrote on the board, we hardly touched the topic. But what we did get alot of was

YOGA!



We didn't actually do this pose... Thank heavens...



Yup. It was exciting. I haven't done yoga in a few semesters. Actually, since I've started at GPC, I won't lie. But thank God, I have been stretching regularly or else that would have been painful. :/

We discovered how stretching (and nutrition) could supplement our voices and help with the overall health of our speaking abilities. I quite enjoyed it. I was relaxed and, oh, the breathing part was my favorite.

I've disovered:

• I've missed yoga
• How stretching affects my breathing: it brings breath to the forefront and makes you pay more attention.
• About the Respiratory System (how breath affects speech)
• How posture affects the speech
• How to maintain good vocal health regualrly

A Few Words for Thought:

Larynx

Oscillator

Resonator

See ya on the flip side! ;D

First Day

Greetings.

Oh, don't be offended. I didn't say that you had a big mouth. I'm just saying. Well, technically that's the gist of what Sally was saying. Oh, yeah, Sally is my totally cool-tastic professor for this class: Voice and Articulation. It's a theatre class offered for the actors voice, the performer's voice, orator's voice, or anyone's for that matter.

In our first session, I pulled three main components from our discussion. Basically, we needed to/ would cover the following points:

• Breathing
• Pronunciation
• Understanding/Comprehension 

They seemed pretty simple outside of the class, but when we put them together as a concept for the class it was pretty profound. I practiced most of these things on a daily basis, but hardly ever all at once. Of course there would be some writing, reading, and testing done throughout the semester. But the class, from what I gleaned, would primarily be focusing on cultivating my voice and the overall impact/effectiveness of it.

I got pretty excited when she started talking about the materials we would need for the physical portion of the class.

• Yoga mat
• Hand Towel
• Small mirror
• Wine Cork
• Tote bag

The wine cork idea reminded me of "The Great Debaters".  :D



Anyway, we're supposed to use this journal to record observations of our voice and the voices of other. I hope I got that right. As of now....

My personal observation is... I'm pretty ok...

At least I think so. Now to listen to the recording....