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Habit #2 Consonants short and energized

In vocal music, vowels carry the sound, consonants communicate the meaning of

the text. If we are to effectively communicate to our audience we must create clean,

clear and vibrant consonants.

Never elongate the sound of consonants. Doing so will create unpleasant sounds.

(for example, sustain these consonantsl, r, wand notice the obnoxious sound

produced) and compromise the clarity and crispness of the vocal line. All consonants

must be shortin duration.

In speech, consonants need not be emphasized but in singing they must be. This

will enhance intelligibility and give the music structure. All consonants must be

energized.

To form consonants, we use the hard palate and articulators: the lips, the teeth, the

tip of the tongue.

There are two types of consonants: untuned and tuned.

Untuned (also called voiceless)

These consonants cannot be tuned to a particular pitch

The sound can be whispered

These consonants require a blowing of air

Ex.t, p, f

Tuned (also called voiced)

These consonants can be tunedto a particular pitch

These consonants can be sustained(though this is undesirable)

The sound cannot be whispered

Ex.m, z, w

For every untuned consonant there is a corresponding tuned consonant that is formed

using the same parts of the embouchure.

Untuned Tuned

t d

f .. v

p . bk . g (as in go)

th (as in thin) th (as in thine)

s (as in see) . z

sh (as in shine) .... s (as in measure)

ch (as in cheer) j (as injoy) and g (as in George)

wh (as in what) w (as in wise)

h (no corresponding sound)

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Some tuned consonants have no corresponding untuned sound: r, m, n, ng (as in sing),

l, y (as in you)

General rules for singing consonants

1. Unless the consonant is silent (spelled but not sounded, as the k in know and hin hour) it must be sounded. Often, combinations of consonants can be

cumbersome [consider the consonants sounded when these two words are sung

consecutivelyLord bless(d+b+l)] but, all consonants must be sounded.

2. All consonants should be sounded quickly. With some consonants, this is not a

challenge because they can onlybe sounded quickly (t, p) but others (tuned

consonants) canbe elongated (s, v, r, z) but must not be.

3. The amount of emphasis placed on consonants should be regulated by the

dynamic level of the music. For instance, if a phrase being sung pianissimo

(softly) ends with the word night the final t will be softer than if the phrase

ends forte(loudly).

4. All consonants should be created in the front of the mouth, not in the back near

the throat. For instance, sense the difference between an [L] produced in the

back of the throat and one produced near the front teeth. Think: tip of the

tongue, the teeth, the lips when forming consonants.

5. Do not interchange tuned and untuned pairs. For instance, when singing the final

consonant in the word Lord, dont substitute a [t] for the [d].

6. A tuned consonant should be tuned to the same pitch as the vowel that follows.

This is particularly important to do when a word begins with a tuned consonant

because it will eliminate the scooping sound that can be made by singing thetuned consonant to one pitch and then singing a different, higher, pitch on the

vowel.

Rules for sounding [r]

1. When singing in English, vocalist can produce the [r] using the common sound

used in speaking (called the American R), or can flip the [r] as the British do

(imagine a Brit saying very sorry), but do not trill the [r] as in Spanish or Italian.

2. When an [r] occurs before a consonant either omit it or greatly minimize it. (This

rule applies when the [r] is followed by a consonant in the same word and when aword ends with an [r] and is followed by a word that begins with a consonant.)

When an [r] is sounded before a consonant it creates an unpleasant sound.

For instance, sing these words and sound the [r]. Then, sing the words

and omit or minimize the [r] and notice how much better the word sounds.

Lord, heart, bird, mercy

3. Always sing [r] before a vowel.

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Ex. spirit, arise, pray

Practice singing these words:

[r] before a consonant: Lord, heart, park, march, farm, cork

[r] before a vowel: ring, fire, care, Mary

Rules for sounding [L]

1. The consonant [L] must be sounded quickly; if it is sustained it distorts the

sound and produces a throaty, swallowed sound. [L] is a tuned consonant so

it canbe sustained, but must not be. For instance, sing all and sustain the

final consonant and notice the unpleasant sound. Therefore, always flip the

consonant [L].

2. When a word ends in [L], be careful to not add an extra vowel sound; instead,

flip the [L]. For instance, when singing the word feel do not sing fee-luh.

Practice singing these words: Lord, still, soul, light, land, fill, love, will, call

Rules for final [b], [d], and hard [g]

1. When one of these consonants occurs before a consonant or before a pause, a

light vowel sound (ih) should be added; otherwise they will not be heard. For

instance, try to sing the words web lord and dog without adding an extra

vowel sound; the words lose their meaning.

2. The added vowel sound should be very shortand sounded on the same pitch of

the word ending in [b], [d], or hard [g].3. Do not add a vowel sound to these three consonants when they follow a word

beginning with a vowel. Instead, these consonants become the beginning of the

new word. Ex. Lord is is sung Lor.dis

Practice singing these words: bed, died, throb, herb, snub, drag, flog, snag