Musicademy is pleased to announce the launch of our new Worship Music site. Rather than do a lengthy e-newsletter this month we thought we’d just invite you to browse the new site, especially the blog which is crammed full of the kind of articles we normally put in the newsletter.
The site features:
- An interactive blog featuring loads of free resources and worship related info
- Musicademy “Video Shorts”
- free clips, demos and lessons for guitar, keys and singing
- Simplified purchasing processes in the store
- An integrated membership login for our store, members area and blogexisting store members just need to click for a password reset to get access
- Local shipping rates for customers in both the US and UK
The content will be changed on a very regular basis so do be sure to check back regularly. If you sign up to the blog you’ll be sent an email each time we post a new item.
This month the blog features:
- Live seminar footage on using string sounds on keyboards
- Video Short on playing in tenths on guitar
- Video Short on choosing keys for women worship leaders and small congregations
- Steve Weeks’ “Chord of the Month”
- Worship planning rota – free tool from Google to make your worship admin easier
- Worship team dynamics – the phases every team goes through
- Worship admin – keeping everyone happy
- Using a high strung guitar
- Musicomedy – worship drummer on fire
- Practical guitar and keyboard tips
- Plus loads more
Take a look at www.musicademy.com/blog
And do email to let us know what you think of the new website (and also if you find anything that looks broken!). We want to make this one of the most useful worship sites on the web – your ideas and feedback will help make that happen.
Thanks for being with us on the journey.
Andy Chamberlain and Marie Page Musicademy
P.S. The website design and programming has been masterminded by Kris Morris at toomuchgravy
4 Comments
With regards to the vocal warm-up exercises CD you are selling, you do realise that the diaphragm has nothing to do with the voice, and its movement cannot be altered in any way? The lower abdominal muscles are the ones that need exercising (and should have roughly the same feeling as when you cough or laugh) and the ribs and back can assist in singing professionally. I just don’t like to see members of the public being misled to believe the age old myth that singing is all in the diaphragm.
Both things are true. The diaphragm can be strengthened by the supporting muscles! If you don’t learn to expand your diaphragm though you won’t ever use full air capacity or sustain air flow! Some people don’t expand their diaphragm fully at all! They use their chest and shoulders..in which case supporting muscles or not..they’ll run out of breath and only ever have limited capacity! Also when you cough and laugh the diaphragm moves correctly! The body naturally uses what is`right. That causes movement and your muscles kick in to help!
If your diaphragm never expanded you’d die! You need to work on both.
Nicki Rogers, Musicademy vocals coach
I didn’t say that the diaphragm doesn’t move, everyone knows what happens when we breathe. What I am saying is a singer cannot make the diaphragm physically move anymore than it already does, the lower abdominal muscles are the support network, and these are the ones that should be concentrated on. So telling an amateur singer to concentrate on strengthening the diaphragm that cannot physically be affected, is giving them false information.
Signed,
Catherine Hartley
Conservatoire trained professional opera singer, and singing teacher.
Both of you are correct - I think this simply boils down to a matter of wording!
The diaphram is the muscle in charge of inhalation. When we breathe in, it flattens from its natural dome shape and sucks air into this lungs. This is all involuntary, however singers need to work on letting their stomachs relax and expand as you they breathe in (what its wired to do naturally) rather than squeezing it in.
It’s worth noting that the diaphragm is not solely in control of exhalation (breathing out). It only controls the pace at which we exhale… and this is when our abs kicks in. We need those muscles to speed up/slow down oxygen release.
Vocal anatomy is complex and involves a lot of things working together - but thankfully our bodies know what to do all by themselves and our responsibility is simply to develop and strengthen all those appropriate muscles and techniques - just like one would do at the gym with other muscles!!