Re: Body mods for singers

From: Ken Meyering (kenmeyering@yahoo.com)
Date: Mon Apr 08 2002 - 01:21:20 MDT


Check out this one:

http://www.visualizationsoftware.com/gram/gramdl.html

It has a pitch detector mode and provides realtime feedback.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Emlyn O'regan" <oregan.emlyn@healthsolve.com.au>
To: <extropians@extropy.org>
Sent: Sunday, April 07, 2002 10:58 PM
Subject: RE: Body mods for singers

>
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: spike66 [mailto:spike66@ATTBI.com]
> > Sent: Monday, 8 April 2002 2:48 PM
> > To: extropians@extropy.org
> > Subject: Re: Body mods for singers
> >
> >
> > Emlyn O'regan wrote:
> >
> > >Hi all,
> > >
> > >I had some wild'n'crazy ideas over the weekend about some
> > modifications
> > >specifically for singing. Here they are in all their glory.
> > >
> > >-----
> > >1 - Visual cue to pitch
> > >-----
> > >Now, I came across an intriguing contraption recently
> > online, the MidiVox...
> > >
> > >http://www.healingmusic.net/MidiVoxFrame1Source1.htm
> > >
> > >...I think that if you trained with something like that
> > >for a few weeks, you'd achieve perfect pitch.
> > >
> > Emlyn it takes years to develop perfect pitch, if ever. This device
> > might help, but a few weeks is surely a stretch.
>
> It takes years to develop perfect pitch because we don't have the right
> tools. If you could hum a note and see it, you'd be well on your way. You
> can learn perfect pitch, it's all about feedback and practice, as far as I
> can see.
>
> Maybe a few weeks is a stretch.
>
> Actually, I guess I could try this by setting up a mike and feeding the
> signal into something which would visualise it for me, then practising in
> front of a monitor. Anyone know any good software for this?
>
> >
> > >-----
> > >2 - Voice mod drugs
> > >-----
> > >
> > >More interestly, near the end of the period, the top of my
> > range came back,
> > >albeit a bit wobbly, and the new bottom stayed. It's gone
> > now that the
> > >cold's cleared up, but for a few days I had almost 2 and a
> > half octaves of
> > >usable range, including the ability to reach to a full basses' range.
> > >
> > We already know that breathing helium makes ones voice sound funny.
> > I was at a band concert and wondered what would happen if one were
> > to breathe helium and play a saxophone. Any guesses what happened?
> >
> > It made the sax high pitched. {8-]
>
> It's ok for sax players, you can just go get an alto sax if you want to
play
> high. Singers are more restricted.
>
> Ideally I'd like to not use helium; not a healthy choice.
>
> >
> > >-----
> > >3 - External lung
> > >-----
> > >
> > >This is my craziest idea, in my opinion. I've been thinking
> > about the need
> > >for singers to breathe. While breath is one of my personal
> > strengths, I
> > >nevertheless look at the ability of other wind instrument
> > players to perform
> > >tricks such as circular breathing, and think "why can't we do that"?
> > >
> > The reason singers cant do that is that circular breathing on a sax
> > requires one to puff ones cheeks, close the throat and inhale quickly
> > through the nose while keeping the tone playing by collapsing the
> > cheeks. Does not apply to singers.
>
> I know that Spike :-) But the key is that the breath stream to the sound
> production equipment is continuous; harder to do with singing.
>
> >
> > >This leads me to the idea that creating another path into
> > the lungs, into
> > >which air could be pumped, would be an excellent
> > modification for a singer.
> > >
> > OK tenors, line up here, have a hose punched into your bronchial tube.
> >
> > Tenors?...
>
> How about a baritone?
>
> I'm (semi) serious about this idea. Wouldn't an automatic air injection
> system for humans be useful for quite a variety of fields?
>
> >
> > {8-] Emlyn I have toyed with the idea of having an air tube in
> > the corner of the mouth while playing the sax, but the problem
> > is a good player controls the tone by shaping of the resonance
> > chamber, which is the back of the throat, and controls the pitch
> > to a certain extent by the pressure of the air column, which is
> > driven by the diaphragm. I setting my air compressor regulator
> > down low enough to be sure I wouldn't give myself air embolism,
> > then tried breathing the air from the compressor. I learned the
> > air in the compressor tank has an oily taste. {8-P
> >
> > I didn't get as far as trying it with the sax.
> >
> > This might be a fun experiment, one which I would repeat if
> > someone could suggest a way to get clean air and a reliable
> > method of controlling the pressure without risking blowing
> > a hole in my lungs. {8-]
> >
> > spike
> >
>
> Let me know how you make out with this.
>
> Can you create a tube with a valve which will open once pressure gets to a
> certain level, spilling out excess air?
>
> Emlyn
>
>
>
>
>
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