kiai #2

[kendokamax]

I have a very weak kiai and it comes straight from my throath!

I think I really need to work on this particular point of my kendo right now.

So what are your tips on getting a good kiai?

What exercices can I do to improve it?
Should I try to scream the hardest possible even if at the begining it's not from the "hara"?


what do you think?

[iwatekenshi]

Well I had a teacher tell me that it was just like singing. He said a singer does not sing from the throat they sing by using their diaphragm muscle under their lungs. A good strong kia is doing the same thing. Also another good thing to take notice is if your voice has gone rough after practice. If it has then you have been doing your kia from the throat.

[Jerry Wellbrock]

I have been following the different posts on kiai's and must admit that I didn't know there was such variety in sounds and pitch....I am more interested in the how's and why's of kiai in kendo technique and competition....my background is in traditional karate and I am well versed in karate kiai technique and use in both training and competition.....anyone who would like to reply on technique of producing their kiai and reasons for use in both developing technique and use in keiko...I appreciate your reply
Jerry:confused:

[taiwnezboi]

Jerry,

at my Kumdo dojang, I noticed that a lot of the dan-ranked and higher-kyu members have a really high-pitched kiai. It's supposed to startle the opponent (the opponent freezes for a split-second) and that is when you strike them. You might say that you don't get startled but you should hear their eardrum-shattering kiais. =P

[saki_wooah]

well max, i agree that your kiai needs some improving... lol ;) Maybe if you have the "musical magic touch" you could try to kiai a specific note because your kiai is a bunch of unknown blabing with a wide variety of sounds that don't have a good connection between them (my opinion). If you really like the basic words of your kiai, keep them but you should clear all the background sounds that bothers you and clear your voice. Ergh, my explanation makes no sense...

I'll give an exemple. If you listen to the radio and you hear some noisy "scrrrr"/"zztt" background, you play with the buttons because you want to hear a clear voice/music. In a kiai case, the buttons are the level of air that passes through your throat. Try to control that and your kiai will be much better... anyway, if you don't understand at all what I am saying, just ask me before practice. And don't forget my game.... >_< I hope this will help you

[Confound]

The first time I did keiko in the new budokan, practice stopped. They weren't used to such loud kiai, let alone long ones.

May I suggest that you imagine someone doing something that gets you really annoyed? One a more serious note, the tip about doing it from the diaphram helps too. it's easier if your back is straight too, clearer path from the bottom to the top, so to speak. the best way to learn to do kiai if you're shy about it, if to just scream out the point you're hitting (men, kote, dou), or to imitate the kiai of someone else.

eventually you'll get it. if all else fails, pretend you're a lion.

c

[Hyaku]

The kiai like everything else will improve when you get pushed to your limits. Just like you have to summon up that last bit of energy to raise up your arms that very last kiai you have left comes from deep within.

Like iwatekenshi says its like singing. Many years ago it was planned that I should take up the profession. Im sure that voice and lung training has helped.

Hyaku

[munenmuso]

well i guess that every kiai is unique. you might be using the same method but the result is always different for every kendoka which means that every kiai,whether loud or not so loud, may have a similar but not the same resonance it might produce.well as long as every kiai posseses the spirit it requires, the bearing will always be there.anyway most kendoka out of shyness or being naive initially produces a soft kiai.for every experience he gains his spirit increases and same goes for his kiai.if you practice more often you will notice that your kiai in some point of time is starting to sting your opponent unwittingly as you finally develop a stable and strong kiai that can strike fear into the hearts of your opponent.

[Raiza]

A way that helps me do a kiai by using my diaphragm is to make a low "Haaaa" sound ("a" as in father) that resonates through your whole body. If I can make another sound that has the same resonance, then I'm pretty sure the kiai is coming from the right place.

Switching over from karate kiai (short, explosive) to a kendo kiai (long, measured) is still a work in progress for me...