Say NO to #jawjam

I joke with my students all the time that I run a rehab for choral singers. Don't get me wrong, I'm a giant geek when it comes to choral music. It was my first love and I've missed it terribly throughout the COVID shutdown. However, despite many directors best intentions, singers often translate directions like OPEN YOUR MOUTH to the extreme, creating all sorts of long term vocal issues. In the "open your mouth" instance, I see a lot of students with what I call the "Jaw Jam" - an over opening that pulls the entire vocal tract out of alignment and creates unnecessary tension and stress. Instead, we must change our ideas of creating more space by dropping the jaw as far as it will go (i.e. "jaw jam"), to instead lifting the top of the head OFF of the jaw. One can find the proper jaw position by giving a "gentle chew" - a technique learned from Maestro David Jones - then, get the space you need by lifting the head and soft palate... I like to think of it as lifting, or stretching up. Hope this helps! #saynotojawjam