Toning is the creation of extended vocal sounds on a single vowel in order to experience the sound and its effects in other parts of the body. No melody, no words, no rhythm, and no harmony – just the sound of the vibrating breath.
It’s a simple, yet powerful, technique, accessible to everyone regardless of vocal ability or training. Through toning, you can immediately experience the effects of sound on your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
By literally massaging body and mind from the inside out, meditative toning can help you focus and relax; release negative emotions; reduce stress; and improve stamina and concentration.
Toning synchronizes the brainwaves and helps relieve tension within a few minutes. Toning is also a wonderful technique for developing your voice-ear connection and enhancing your power of listening to everything around you.
Most of all, toning restores balance and harmony to the mind and body. It can help you awaken and deepen your sense of self, and align you to the deepest vibrations of soul and spirit. On the path of toning, you move towards the source of your own inner balance, creativity, well-being, and freedom.
Since the early 1980s, thousands of people have discovered toning, and found it useful for their own health and mental clarity. Doctors, nurses, psychologists, therapists, body workers, teachers, and business professionals have affirmed the benefits of toning in their lives and work.
The power of toning lies in the vowels (like “a-e-i-o-u”). They are much more important to toning than the “pitch” (high or low). The vowels are also intimately related to the body’s major energy centers.
These energy centers are called chakras. The sacred teachings of both East and West describe them, and correlate them with specific thought patterns and archetypal effects.
As we investigate and explore the relationship of the vowels and the chakras, we enrich our understanding of the broad spectrum of energies and emotions within ourselves. Toning connects us with our own inner vibrations.
Try this for starters: Let your intuition choose a vowel for you. Spend several minutes toning it. Begin in the comfortable middle of your vocal range. Then try a lower pitch, then higher, always with moderate volume and without straining.
If the vowel feels physically or vocally “wrong” right now, leave it and choose another. Be open to inner experience and sensation, without seeking a specific “result”. Explore the sensations of each of these vowels and their total effect on you.