Vocal tips?

[suzumebachi]

So, anybody got any tips for someone who's just starting out as a really terrible singer? I think I've got potential, but to give you an idea of how clueless I am, I don't even know if I'm like a bass or soprano or... whatever.

But I have patience, and access to mics and gears, and a brain overflowing with infinity terrible song ideas.

Halp. I need somebody. Halp. Not just anyb

[Dr. Rod]

Vocal training from scratch is pretty complex....but to help you out from the jump, answer these few questions:

Well, for the most basic questions, are you male or female? If you had to compare your voice to that of a popular celebrity, who would you most resemble? Have you ever heard your voice played back to you?

[suzumebachi]

1) Male. Clearly (see the ugly dude with the grody fumanchu in my sig? yeah that's me).

2) Umm... I honestly don't know who I sound like. I don't listen to a lot of mainstream musics.

3)Ahem... yes (though I honestly wasn't trying very hard-- plus I don't really know my range yet, I've literally been singing for 2 days).

[Dr. Rod]

ok.......sounds like u have some decent talent (more than me, lol). Do u think u have a good range?

[Dr. Rod]

After playing ur sample back a few times, it seems like u work pretty well as a mellow, relaxed singer (as opposed to the more aggressive, voice-pumping singers). Your sound works pretty well in that song, I would mainly suggest you focus on putting more clarity in your voice at some of the higher notes (it sounds like your forcing that high area around ~34 seconds a little bit). Are you singing parallel to some1 else in your song?

[Alexis]

Hi, not a vocalist, but I'm a music ed major, so I'm just going to reiterate some of the basic stuff that I'm told helps...it helped me a little, but I'm still not that great of a singer...but anyways...

3 Aspects to Produce a Good Tone

Posture - basically you need to be in a posture where you can breathe in a full breath comfortably, either sitting upright or standing. The whole thing about sitting on the edge of the chair is bull crap, sit where you're comfortable and can breath.

Breathing - you want to be able to control your breath as you exhale, so breathing exercises can help with this. Things such as breathing in for four counts and exhaling for eight are helpful.

Embouchure- (The shape of your mouth) This affects the way your tone sounds. Think of the roof of your mouth being curved, and your mouth in the shape of an oval. However, the curved soft palette is generally used for more classical music, so this may not be what you want. There are ways to manipulate the shape of your mouth to get different sounds for different styles of music, of which I don't know.

It also helps to sing frequently, everyday if you can, so you can get used to how it feels. If you sing something and it sounds good, figure out what you did physically to create that sound, and try to recreate it. Sing in the car or something on the way to work, and look like an idiot, who cares? Eventually you'll get something that you're happy with. It might also help to look up a vocal teacher, even just for one lesson, so they can find any problems you might be having. Good luck!

[Hale-Bopp]

Are you in college by chance? If so, I'd join choir. I learned a ton while being in choir. The experience of singing in harmony, warming up and just singing often really helped me develop myself a lot.

I'd also recommend private vocal lessons if something like that is available at college and if you're able to afford a semester or two. Again, it's great experience and really gets your mindset in the right place for developing your abilities.

One thing I enjoy doing often for practicing at home, since I have the proper set up now, is I listen to music through headphones and sing along. I have my microphone on so that I can hear myself over the music. There's something about hearing yourself through headphones that makes it more fun to sing along with songs. Plus, it's good studio practice, since that's how I always record myself singing anyways. When you can hear yourself nice and clearly through a headset, then you can really pick out how your inflections come across and how they sound to your ears.

[suzumebachi]

Are you in college by chance? If so, I'd join choir. I learned a ton while being in choir. The experience of singing in harmony, warming up and just singing often really helped me develop myself a lot.

I'd also recommend private vocal lessons if something like that is available at college and if you're able to afford a semester or two. Again, it's great experience and really gets your mindset in the right place for developing your abilities.

One thing I enjoy doing often for practicing at home, since I have the proper set up now, is I listen to music through headphones and sing along. I have my microphone on so that I can hear myself over the music. There's something about hearing yourself through headphones that makes it more fun to sing along with songs. Plus, it's good studio practice, since that's how I always record myself singing anyways. When you can hear yourself nice and clearly through a headset, then you can really pick out how your inflections come across and how they sound to your ears.

Hmm, they actually do have a choir at my school. It's late at night, but it might be worth it just to try it out for one semester. Plus choir is usually full of girls (at least at my school) so win-win. As for practicing with headphones, that's basically what I've been doing. Anyways, thanks for the tips mate.

[DragonAvenger]

It's hard to learn how to sing on your own, just like any instrument. A lot of people had good tips.

Sing whenever you can, as mentioned. Singing in the car is great fun, because you get to 'practice' AND people look at you funny.

Never try to strain or tense up when you sing. Being relaxed will help create a better sound. For now I would get used to singing where your voice is most comfortable, then worry about how big your range is and how to expand. No need to take on everything at once.

Again, recording yourself will help. You'll not only be able to hear where you sound best, but you can start to identify how you made that sound. (again, mentioned above)

Always have fun, of course. If it starts to anoy you or anything that you can't do this or that, take a break. Never frustrate yourself over it.

[SnappleMan]

Oh, the irony...

Anyway, Suzu, one of the most important things to do when starting out is to start thinking rhythmically. Singing is just as much about proper timing as it is about pitch and tone.

Most amateur vocalist will train to be in tune, but when they actually have to sing something they accent the words wrong and sound uncomfortable singing because they're thinking too hard about singing differently than they speak.

Good singing can always turn bad when the words sung are said different than when spoken. Once in a while it's good to change the accent of a word, but for the most part, you should sing naturally, like when speaking.

Use notation to write your lyrics on a one line staff. This is a very basic technique but it works wonders if you're just starting out. Take the phrase: "I have a penis waffle."

The best way to sing this would be to break up each syllable into a note value.

"I" tranlates well to a quarter note "have-a" is best as two eith notes, "pe-nis" two eith notes, "waf" as an eith note as the downbeat of the measure and "fle" as a whole note stretched out over the last measure.

Also, dynamics play a very important role. You should learn to bend and modulate your voice, as well as control the volume and expression. Most amateur singers will sing robotically because they figure "Well. I'm on time and in tune, so this singing must be great!"... and end up failing miserably.

[Broken]

Great info y'all. I'll be taking this advice to heart and hopefully not sucking the next time I sing.

How much would your everyday vocal lessons cost? Hopefully not too much.

[Alexis]

How much would your everyday vocal lessons cost? Hopefully not too much.

Well if you want to take from a professional, it might cost upwards of fifty bucks per hour. Luckily there are private teachers who will teach for less- to find them, contact a local school district and talk to the choir director. They should have a list of private teachers in the area, and could probably recommend somebody to you.

[DragonAvenger]

Lesson fees are variable and will depend either on the teacher or shop/school they work at.

The shop I teach trumpet at charges $20 for a lesson, whereas the community division at my school charges $35. Private teachers on their own might chart more or less, etc. My old trumpet teacher taught out of her home and charged $45 for an hour lesson.