Impulsive Incantations - Voicing Migraine

Abstract

When migraine arrives, not only the body suffers. The voice too is impacted by a condition that introduces itself with such great force. As a migraine-suffering singer I notice these changes and become fascinated by the aesthetics of a failing voice in a failing body. This exposition reflects upon the relevancy of Migraine Music as an aesthetic phenomenon and by focusing on the specific area of the vocal and the sonant, I project the issue into a broader context of language, speech and communication. First, I find the migraineur’s voice to be missing as it is silenced by society. Then, I study the failing of the voice when constricted by intense physical pain and I turn to the voice as it is transformed by migraine-specific symptoms. I study these deficiencies of the voice on a theoretical level in order to approach them through my artistic practice as a migraining singer. The artistic work accompanying this research is entitled Impulsive Incantations, and aims at voicing the migraine body through evocative text, vocal improvisations and a migrainous singing technique.