At every NEWZATS conference we offer our Full Members an opportunity to present their voice and voice-teaching research findings to the delegates. These occur at 1pm each day, halfway through the lunch hour.
Wednesday 15 APRIL, 1pm - Stephanie Acraman
Lecturer in Voice at University of Waikato
Enabling Success for our Young Singers
"My study across recent years has been in regards to how we teach our singers of today, what our culture of singing teaching is, and how we can enable young artists to be the very best young people they can be, and as a result, the very best performers, communicators and often teachers of singing. Too often we see the culture of the performing arts as strongly competitive, in a highly negative way, which hinders our talented young artists from finding a deeper confidence in themselves, and their abilities.
When singers find a deeper assurance in who they are, how to support their colleagues, travel the long journey of learning and discovery growing a hunger for knowledge and development, they learn how to ‘fail’ and gain from these experiences. They learn about healthy competition, and constructive criticism, rather than negative and defensive approaches to their colleagues. They learn, and we as their teachers learn that perfection cannot be the goal."
Enabling Success for our Young Singers
"My study across recent years has been in regards to how we teach our singers of today, what our culture of singing teaching is, and how we can enable young artists to be the very best young people they can be, and as a result, the very best performers, communicators and often teachers of singing. Too often we see the culture of the performing arts as strongly competitive, in a highly negative way, which hinders our talented young artists from finding a deeper confidence in themselves, and their abilities.
When singers find a deeper assurance in who they are, how to support their colleagues, travel the long journey of learning and discovery growing a hunger for knowledge and development, they learn how to ‘fail’ and gain from these experiences. They learn about healthy competition, and constructive criticism, rather than negative and defensive approaches to their colleagues. They learn, and we as their teachers learn that perfection cannot be the goal."
Thursday 16 April, 1pm - Flora Edwards
Founder of NEWZATS
La Voce Chuisa - What Kind of a Voice is That?
"That was a question that was left unanswered for a very long time despite my asking it of several leading teachers of singing at international conferences. The term literally means a closed voice which to most of us seems counter-intuitive to the way we are accustomed to think of the human voice. Surely it should be free, open to the air and our tone ringing out forward? But when the leading teachers used the term voce chiusa, it was obvious that they were describing a vibrant timbre complete in every aspect of vibrato rate and balanced formants. Voce Completa, yes, but Voce Chiusa, surely not? I finally found a definition which described Voce Chiusa as a half forgotten bel canto technique to adjust the vocal tract so that the larynx was positioned lower and all vowels could be produced from there without destructive muscular tension to vocal timbre. The breathing coordinations of the appoggio system were also an integral part of the technique. I formulated the idea that the larynx was “en-closed” in a lengthened tract that gave the vibrations from the folds access to increased resonating spaces."
La Voce Chuisa - What Kind of a Voice is That?
"That was a question that was left unanswered for a very long time despite my asking it of several leading teachers of singing at international conferences. The term literally means a closed voice which to most of us seems counter-intuitive to the way we are accustomed to think of the human voice. Surely it should be free, open to the air and our tone ringing out forward? But when the leading teachers used the term voce chiusa, it was obvious that they were describing a vibrant timbre complete in every aspect of vibrato rate and balanced formants. Voce Completa, yes, but Voce Chiusa, surely not? I finally found a definition which described Voce Chiusa as a half forgotten bel canto technique to adjust the vocal tract so that the larynx was positioned lower and all vowels could be produced from there without destructive muscular tension to vocal timbre. The breathing coordinations of the appoggio system were also an integral part of the technique. I formulated the idea that the larynx was “en-closed” in a lengthened tract that gave the vibrations from the folds access to increased resonating spaces."
Friday 17 April, 1pm - Tessa Romano
Newly appointed Lecturer in Western Classical Voice at the University of Otago
The Vocal Effects of Testosterone Therapy - Working with the Transgender Singer
"In the social shift from the perception of a gender binary to a greater understanding of a gender continuum within European-derived cultures, the discipline of singing finds itself in a period of rapid evolution. This shift has brought about the emergence of new voices: those of trans gender and gender queer people. As vocal professionals, it is the job of voice teachers to understand how to work with every voice. The topic of this poster paper is rooted in this necessity and focused specifically on the vocal challenges presented by the use of testosterone therapy for some trans masculine and non-binary singers."
The Vocal Effects of Testosterone Therapy - Working with the Transgender Singer
"In the social shift from the perception of a gender binary to a greater understanding of a gender continuum within European-derived cultures, the discipline of singing finds itself in a period of rapid evolution. This shift has brought about the emergence of new voices: those of trans gender and gender queer people. As vocal professionals, it is the job of voice teachers to understand how to work with every voice. The topic of this poster paper is rooted in this necessity and focused specifically on the vocal challenges presented by the use of testosterone therapy for some trans masculine and non-binary singers."
