Date: April 24, 2000

Only 4 Rehearsals before the Show. Do you believe it? There are only four more rehearsals before the show. Alan Kenley tells me that the hall is spectacular and I know PLATINUM will be extraordinary.

We have proved that we can be extraordinary, too, and we have just about nailed down all the songs. We absolutely have to be off the paper on everything by next Monday, so that Rob can work his polishing magic.

It only takes a little extra work to make sure all the words and notes are there for every song. Let's do it!

Bring in the money for your tickets and advertising for our Annual Show/Concert. Our show for 2000, "Beginning to See the Light," will be on Saturday, May 20 in Salle Claude Champagne at Université de Montréal featuring PLATINUM, the 1999 Silver Medallist Quartet and the 1998 Harmony, Inc. International Champion quartet, Blue Champagne. This will be Blue Champagne's final performance. More than half the tickets are gone!

The Afterglow is confirmed for Le Buffet Dynastie de Chine and it will cost $14.00. This will be a fun part of the show, where we can unwind, and listen to the show quartets.

Advertising is an important part of the program, so ask your dentist, barber, mechanic, suppliers… We need to sell $8,000 worth of ads. Let's do it! Besides, if we don't, the costume deposit will have to be that much larger.

Christmas CD in the works The Chapter Board authorised the production of a Christmas CD with the other Barbershop Choruses and quartets in the Montreal Area. This will include South Shore Saints, Sweet Adeline's West Island Chorus, and Greater Montreal Chorus and Montreal Chapter of Harmony, Inc. and their quartets..

2. Breathe Silently

[This is the second in a series of 5 parts to help us improve our singing. Enjoy. : ED]

Think of a garden hose, quietly channelling water to your garden. Now recall what happens when you step on, or kink the hose; the water makes noise. The constriction in the hose produces turbulence in the flowing water. This turbulence makes noise.

The principles in this hydraulic example apply to our aerodynamic system. In our airway, as with the garden hose, we breathe in and out silently. It is the constriction at the lips, tongue, throat, soft palate and vocal folds, which produce turbulence and result in varied sounds. We employ this principle on exhalation, to produce voice and to shape that voice into speech sounds.

The problem in singing is that if we do not remove these constrictions on inhalation, they continue to produce noise. These inhalation noises distract an audience and detract from the chorus' artistic delivery.

Silent breathing will contribute to our goal of continual improvement. It needs to be a chorus skill acquired and consistently used by all members.

As mentioned in the past, breathing is a passive process. Raising the ribs and relaxing the abdominal wall, as you lower the diaphragm, will produce the increase the air space. The resulting negative pressure will automatically draw the air into your lungs. Some barbershoppers act as if they think that they can take in more air, faster, if they "suck it in." In fact, this puckered "sucking" action restricts the amount of air that can be taken in and constricts the airway, producing noise.

Solution: de-constrict your airway on inhalation and the air will automatically and silently rush in to equalise the negative pressure in your lungs. To minimise constriction, inhale using a vowel position and rib elevation.

As an individual, this silent breathing is like an accordion; silent inhalation (recharging the lungs) and musical exhalation. Many groups sing with set breathing points; like a large accordion.

If you want to make a "physical restatement" or "energy step", it is far better to do it at an appropriate point in the song, not just when you happen to inhale. Aside from a specific song interpretation, there is no reason to focus the audience's attention on when we inhale.

If the chorus uses staggered breathing (within sections); they can function like the bagpipes, recharging their collective lung while still singing.

Using the above suggestions, a chorus can develop the appearance of:

• breathless singing (constriction free breathing)
• seamless singing (staggered breathing within sections)
• invisible breathing (no breath reset or shoulder movement)

1. Do open your lips and make a vowel position (de-constrict)

2. Do raise your ribs

3. Do relax your gut

1. Don't suck in the air

2. Don't raise your shoulders on inhalation

3. Don't reset with each breath

Practice breathing silently using the above DO's & DON'TS

Practice is something we do at home, every day, between rehearsals!

Rehearsal is where we reinforce what we have been practising every day!