How to sing in key
by Kate Slaney.
ExploreYourVoice.com
Have you ever told anyone you're tone deaf-or
incapable of carrying a tune? Its usually the surest way of getting out
of singing for someone, but is there such a thing as "tone deafness"? I
doubt it. How can someone be born with the ability to hear, but not
comprehend music?
In ten years of teaching voice I haven't been able
to place a single person in that category, and yet here in Australia
most people have serious inhibitions about their singing
capabilities.Like many singing instructors, my own experience involves
training people to hear themselves, hear music and to gain control over
their instrument. I think with proper guidance, and the right
encouragement, people can learn just about anything.
I would not have taken on students with serious
difficulties in pitching their voice if I didn't begin with a simple
premise: Most of the world's people sing. Music making and
singing is common to most religions and indigenous cultures for
example.These environments provide a supportive musical education for
most children, who grow up regarding singing as natural a skill as
speaking.
Having said that, there will always be people with
strengths or talents in some areas and not in others. Being able to draw
something in perspective does not necessarily make you an artist, just
as learning how to sing in key doesn't necessarily make you a great
singer, but its a very important start.
A common singing problem is simply not listening
to yourself
Put on one of your favorite songs and then ask your
self ; how many voices are singing at any one time? What, if any are the
different harmony lines? How many instruments can you hear? Can you
separate them out? Can you really hear the bass line?
Tap out its rhythm and sing it in the comfortable
part of your vocal range. You may be singing along to songs and either
drowning out your voice by the sheer volume of the music, or ignoring
your voice by focussing entirely on the lead vocal or the music in
general.We've all heard people sing out of tune while listening to music
through headphones. They're out of key primarily because they cant hear
their own voice.
There are other classic reasons why people sing
out of key.
Most music today is sung in high vocal ranges, for
anyone with a low vocal range, especially most men, this is confusing.
We all have a natural range of about 8-12 notes where it feels
relatively easy to sing. Men's voices usually sit an octave (eight
notes) below women's. Once you relax and get comfortable with that you
will recognize that not all songs were meant for your voice, at least
not in the original key that demands you strain out of tune to reach the
melody.
Once you're comfortable with your natural range
which tends to be in the speaking or "chest" register of your voice, you
can start to expand your range to sing higher in what we call our head
register. In the chest register the sound reverberates from the air in
your chest and mouth. It also resonates from your throat where we often
speak. Singing and speaking from the back of the throat strains the
vocal chords which is why learning to sing or developing a professional
speaking voice involves projecting the sound forward.
In our head register the sound reverberates around our sinus cavities,
that is our nose, nasal passages and forehead. Children sing and speak
naturally in this area. Unless you've never stopped, you'll have to
rediscover this voice to properly extend your range,stop straining your
vocal chords and singing out of key.
The best way to overcome difficulties with
singing in key is to get
singing lessons.
We dont all have the time or money to pay a full
time professional singing teacher. For some people it can also be an
intimidating process to sing in front of a complete stranger. Now there
is another way to take singing lessons.
You can learn how to sing in the comfort of your own
home with your pc on the internet. I have created Explore Your Voice
especially for people who feel they need to take their time and get a
feel for singing lessons. It's based on over 10 years as a professional
vocal instructor and I use some highly effective and innovative methods
to bring out your own unique voice.
Kate Slaney.
ExploreYourVoice.com
Explore Your Voice
Singing Lessons was created by Kate Slaney and a team of world class
professional musicians and teachers. It brings to your pc everything you
need to learn how to sing popular songs using tried and proven singing
techniques.The famous
Explore Your Voice singing
lessons are also available as an audio CD set.
The Explore Your Voice Show Podcast is a free weekly music chat show
hosted by Kate Slaney , Michael Oliphant and Roger McLachlan. Lots of
discussion about singing, performing in bands and karaoke, songwriting,
recording and all of the best professional tips and advice from some of
the top musicians, producers teachers in the music business.
