When: Sunday April 28 , 2013, 10 AM – 4:30 PM
Where: Can June Training Centre, Taipei
Chinese version of this post can be found here
Learning throat singing in Teeli, Tuva, 1993. Photo by Mark van Tongeren.
Contents of the workshop
The workshop introduces a number of basic exercises that allows singers and non-singers to develop a different attitude towards making sound and listening to sound. At the beginning, a number of exercises prepares us for breaking new musical ground. They deal with four themes: breath, resonance, silence and the interconnectedness of sound, body & mind. Gradually we focus more on listening to and singing our own harmonics.
Focus for today
On this day we will pay extra attention to throat singing techniques, as practised in Tuva and Mongolia. Throat singing is a particular variant of overtone singing (but we might as well say the reverse: that modern types of overtone singing are particular varieties of the older throat singing techniques from Central –North Asia). Throat singing requires special attention to the use of pressure on the vocal chords, necessary to obtain that powerful, distinct sound quality that makes throat singing unique among the world’s vocal techniques. Mark’s method assures that no one gets hurt.
For whom?
Every one-day workshop of overtone singing by Mark van Tongeren is a sound journey. Participants from very different backgrounds are gently led to discoveries that suit their own needs. The starting point is your own path as a musician, a speaker, a communicator or simply as a human being. Everyone is invited to participate and share. No previous is required, but familiarity with Mark’s Voice of Dao lessons will give you an advantage.
About the teacher
Mark van Tongeren is a musician and holds a PhD in music. He has traveled to Tuva to study with throat singers since 1993, and has worked with musicians from all other traditions as well (Mongolia, Altai, Khakassiya, Tibet, Bashkortostan, Sardinia, South Africa, in addition to avant-garde pioneers like Michael Vetter). He makes obscure vocal techniques and insiders’ knowledge available and accessible through lively examples, structured exercises, and explanations that reveal a profound understanding of the field of harmonics and overtone singing as a whole.
Tuvan throat singer and composer Andrei Öpei sings ina yurt. Teeli, 2000. Photo by Mark van Tongeren.
Registration and fees
Please register by sending an email to Una Kao: unakao@yahoo.com.tw (in Chinese or English) or to Mark van Tongeren: mark@fusica.nl (English only).
The fee for the one-day workshop is 3000 NT$, to be paid before the beginning of the workshop on the day itself. There is a discount if you bring a friend: then you pay NT$ 5000 instead of NT$ 3000. Those who have attended concerts, workshops or several weekly Voice of Dao sessions, may also be eligible for a discount. Please write us for the conditions or if you have any questions.
Chinese version of this post can be found here at Hansuna’s blog.
Thresholds of the Audible 