Singing bodies: reconsidering and retraining the corporeal voice

Abstract

This article aims to answer the questions: how can the voice be reconsidered as being in and of the body/mind, forming part of an expressive, relational, embodied whole; and how might this view augment voice training, particularly in conservatoire settings? The article argues that the paradigms embedded in classical training reinforce a dichotomisation of voice and body/mind, reflecting historical pedagogical and philosophical trends which recall or perpetuate Cartesian dualism. The article describes how this dualism emerged during two interdisciplinary theatre performance projects that involved classically trained singers in physical devising, and how it was addressed by focusing rehearsals towards developing awareness of what is referred to here as the ‘corporeal voice’. This experience impelled a shift in philosophical orientation towards the voice. Physiovocal practice is contextualised against those of various pedagogies and companies, before exemplar exercises are described. These are presented as sites of interplay between the approaches and ideas of practitioners and nascent practice. The article concludes by exploring how notions and practices of the corporeal voice might be developed in such a way that complements the classical training model typically encountered by singers.

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