Singing and voice training workshop:
Helping singers and non-singers to
sing by KeyToSong pedagogy.
Ava Numminen
D.Mus, psychologist, singing teacher
************
How can singing belong to everyone?
International Symposium on Singing in
Music Education April 23rd - 27th, 2014 Budapest, Hungary
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Ava Numminen, D.Mus., singing teacher, licensed
psychologist, principal of the KeyToSong Singing School,
Helsinki, Finland.
- 25 years of experience in teaching singing.
- Recently involved in studies about how people with
memory disorders benefit from music and singing (Särkämö et
al. 2012: Music, emotion, and dementia: Insight from neuroscientific and
clinical research. and Särkämö et al. 2013: Cognitive, Emotional and
Social Benefits of Regular Musical Activities in Early Dementia:
Randomized Controlled Study.
- A well-known lecturer and writer, has given several
interviews to press and the main channels of Finnish
television and radio.
- Works now as an occupational health psychologist in a
medical health care company.
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Why don’t we sing enough today?
• Perhaps, because in rural societies singing
was often related to physical labour, e.g.
caring of cattle. There were no professional
models which to compare one’s own singing
with because the modern media did not
exist.
• The singing test system was widely applied at
primary schools and the tradition may
continue today. Musicality was (is) linked to
an ability to sing. If you failed in a singing
test, you were not encouraged to play the
piano…
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• A singing ability is often seen as an innate,
permanent skill, which some people have or do
not have.
• There seems to be a lack of knowledge among
music and singing teachers on how to proceed
with children or adults who have problems to
sing in tune. Tuition is not automatically offered
to those either.
• However, music and singing activities are part
of regular curriculum of every child.
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Why is singing so important?
A modern research and profound experience
shows that singing has vast physiological,
psychological, and social benefits such as:
Development of vocal performance, body
posture, breathing, self-expression and
performance skills.
May release neurochemical transmitters and
hormonal changes in the brain and body, which
make one “feel good”.
Therapeutic aspect and spirituality; alleviation of
stress and depression.
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Strengthening of social bonding.
Assisting people suffering from neurological
conditions such as different memory disorders,
Parkinson’s Disease and Aphasia.
Supporting language learning, concentration, and
co-operation skills among children. Especially
beneficial for children with attention deficit
problems.
A possibility to experience enjoyment, wellbeing,
mindfulness > we may cause less climate and
other environmental problems when feeling happy
with our own mind-body.
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Music,
the food of
neuroscience?
Playing, listening to and
creating music involves
practically every cognitive
function. Robert Zatorre
explains how music can
teach us about speech,
brain plasticity and even
the origins of emotion.
Robert Zatorre and
James McGill 2005,
NATURE|VOL 434.
The study
behind the
KeyToSong
method
In the academic
dissertation
(Numminen 2005,
Sibelius Academy)
”Helping adult
poor pitch singers
to sing in tune”
singing was
brought up
holistically from the
four standpoints:
4. Singing skills
as they are
understood in a
culture
3.
Cognitive
processes
Ten poor-pitch
singers were
taught to sing in a
group (average
37,3 hrs/a person)
and individually
(average 7,5 hrs/a
person).
2. Subjective
experiences
1.
Physiological
processes
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The nature of the
participants’
problems were
classified under
three dimensions:
Difficulties in
differentiating tone
Perceptual frequencies while
singing; uncertainty of
blocks the correctness of the
outcome in singing.
Production
blocks
A narrow singing
range; problems in
shifting to upper
register from the chest
register.
Emotional and belief
system blocks
® Key to Song/Helsinki Finland
Feelings of anxiety
when trying to sing;
misgivings about
their general
musicality.
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Results briefly (Numminen 2005):
• All the participants made remarkable progress >
Singing is a skill that can be helped in adult
years from any initial level. Instead of ”poor-pitch
singing” the concept ”developing singer” (Welch
1996) is suggested.
• Sensory and motor domains continuously
interact in brain > To develop better “musical
ear”, start singing!
• A singing skill is not something that one either
have or doesn’t have but instead is deeply
connected to tradition and concepts of singing
which prevail in a given cultural context.
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Today at the KeyToSong school
• We have weekly circa 140 students (individuals,
groups and choirs) in Helsinki.
•Occasionally, we train professionals in the health
care sector, as well as school and kindergarten
teachers. There are singing groups for people
suffering from Parkinson’s disease and stroke
patients. In the autumn we’ll start a singing group
for COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
patients.
•The method is continuously developed by our
teachers, feedback from our clients and following
international singing research.
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Feedback :
Building
confidence
Enabeling
atmosphere:
safe, relaxed,
focus on
students’
needs
Versatile
training
Group
teaching –
Togetherness
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Zone of Proximal Development (Vygotsky 1978)
The actual development level is a level where a
child manages independently to complete a
given task.
The zone of proximal development is the
distance between the actual development
level as determined by independent problem
solving and the level of potential development
as determined through problem solving under
adult or more capable peer guidance.
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• When a person is acting in the
zone of proximal development,
she/he is very vulnerable.
• So, sense of safety in the group
forms a precondition for an
effective learning environment.
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Enabeling – “you can make it” atmosphere
• A teacher must honestly believe that students can
learn to sing regardless of their initial skill level. If
a teacher has doubts about the learning potential
of the students, they know it intuitively.
• Help students to be patient; to learn to sing is a
process, whereby one sometimes succeeds very
well, and sometimes almost not at all. To be
unsuccessful is part of the normal process.
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•
•
•
•
•
Versatile training
A fundamental principle is that all the warm-ups
and exercises can be done perfectly well without
needing to sing correctly in tune.
Different kinds of improvisations, vocal whines,
singing games etc.
Moving and movements included in voice
production.
When singing, different aspects of well known
songs are varied: text, loudness, rhythm,
feelings etc.
There is no strict borderline between a person’s
singing voice and physiological voice.
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Twinkle, twinkle little star,
how I wonder what you are.
Up above the sky so high
like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle little star,
how I wonder what you are.
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Row, row, row, a boat
gently down the stream.
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,
life is but a dream.
*******
Bruder Jakob, Bruder Jakob,
schläfst du noch, schläfst du noch?
Hörst du nicht die Glocken,
hörst du nicht die Glocken?
Ding dang dong, ding dang dong
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These kinds of exercises
• Help to connect breathing and voice production
in a natural, relaxed way; increase voice range
and flexibility of voice production.
• Are energizing, creative, and very often funny.
Students learn to use their voices in different
expressive ways.
• Familiarize a student with her/his own voice
without any precise criteria of right of wrong.
She/he gets positive experiences with singing
which probably leads to a positive self image
“I am a singing person”.
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Climate change
• There is a solid scientific proof that climate change
is real and that it is endangering nature, economy
and culture globally.
• The Storm Warning Association (Finland, and
Sweden) works for energy saving, cleaner and
safer technology.
• Musicians are excellent messengers! A Finnish
a cappella singing group Rajaton with Kuusisto
violin brothers just made a fantastic concert tour
Two degrees.
• Join The Climate Reality Project/Al Gore. Google
Singer & Song Writer
Jason Mraz.
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References:
• Anderson, S., Himonides, E., Wise. K., Welch, G., Stewart, l.
2011: Is there potential learning in amusia? A study of the
effect of singing intervention in the congenital amusia. Ann.
N.Y. Sci. 1252 (345-353).
• Bruner, J. 1996: The Culture of Education. Harvard University
Press. USA.
• Cohen, A.,J. (editor) 2011. psychomusicology: music, mind &
brain. Special double issue, Singing and Psychomusicology.
Vol 21, 1&2.
• Clift, S. & Hancox, G. 2010: The significance of choral singing
for sustaining psychological well being: findings from a survey
of choristers in England, Australia and Germany. Music
Performance Research, Vol 3 (1) Special Issue Music and
Health: 79-96.
• Knight, S. 2011. Adults identifying as “non-singers” in
childhood: Cultural, social, and pedagogical implications.
• Levitin D. 2007. This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a
Human Obsession.
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• Numminen, A. 2005: Helping adult poor pitch singers
learn to sing in tune. A study of stumbling blocks
confronting developing singers and means of
surmounting them. Doctoral Dissertation. SibeliusAcademy (Published in Finnish, Abstract in English).
• Ries, A. 2004:The child singing voice as a social
construct: Physiological, pedagogical and sociological
perspectives
• Small, C. 1998: Musicking. The Meaning of Performing
and Listening. Wesleyan University Press. USA.
• Sacks, O. 2008. Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the
Brain.
• Särkämö, T., Laitinen, S., Tervaniemi, M.,
Numminen,A.,Kurki, M., and Rantanen, P. Music,
Emotion, and Dementia: Insight From Neuroscientific
and Clinical Research. Accepted in Music and Medicine.
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• Vygotsky,L., S. 1978: Mind in Society. The Development
of Higher Psychological Processes. Edited by Cole,
Michael & John-Steiner, Vera & Scribner, Sylvia &
Souberman, Ellen. Harvard University Press.
Cambridge, MA.
• Wan, C. Y., Rüber, T., Hohmann, A., & Schlaug, G.
2010: The therapeutic effects of singing in neurological
disorders. Music Perception, 27, 287–295.
• Welch, G., F. 1985: A Schema Theory of How Children
Learn to Sing in Tune. Psychology of Music. 13, 3 - 18.
• Welch, G., F. 1996: The Developing Voice. ASMEConference Papers and Abstracts.
http://www.roehampton.ac.uk/education/asme/confs/hed.
asp
• Whidden, C. 2009: The Adult Non-Singer: Connection,
Context and Culture. University of Calgary, Alberta.
• www.keytosong.fi
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