Ballzor

I'm just another struggling musician who's trying to broaden his list of "O. I can do thats". Ive got a rather high pitched voice, and can (or so I keep telling myself) sing ACDC type stuff with relative ease. I was wondering if anyone out there had any tips or tricks of the trade that could help me in my ultimate goal. Thx in advance.

Lebell

Ummm,

Well, if you are serious, I would take voice lessons.

Formal training will help anyone regardless of type of music being sung.

Other than that:

- use warm up excercises before you start
- always support from the mid-section
- avoid alcohol while singing, but drink lots of water

That's all the general advice I can come up with, since my training is more classical than rock 'n roll.

Onodrim might be able to help you more: she's in school to sing professionally.

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^^^ that's what I would have said.

balderdash111

I'm torn on the voice lessons thing. I think you can wind up sounding over-......over-.....

I dunno. Over-good, I guess.

That's fine if you want to make a living singing classical, in a chorus, showtunes, etc., but I think it tends to fail in a more informal rock setting.

As a reasonably good singer myself, I'd suggest two things:

1) PRACTICE. Especially try singing along to your favorite songs. Find the harmony part (start with songs that have someone singing harmony already and sing along). Singing harmony is harder than singing lead, and it will make you focus on the notes.

2) Try sticking a finger in your ear while you sing (no, not on stage - while you practice). It's a little distorting, but it helps you hear what pitch you are actually producing.

Ballzor

wow some good ides. that last one is really a good idea. Thx for the tips

soopafreek

when i used to sing for a choir for early church services, if i didn't have time to warm up my voice, "halls plus" lozenges with the medicine center was my best friend. it will get your nasal and throat passages open to belt out some songs and ready in about 5-10 minutes.

halls plus. seriously.

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onodrim

Ditto on everything Lebell said. The most important thing you can do is take lessons from someone. It really doens't matter what style you're going for, any type of singing comes out of a classical training. It's especially important with rock music that you know how to control and use your voice correctly, otherwise you'll just end up 'screaming' the notes, and your career will last about five years until your voice is gone. Your teacher would be able to give you some good warmup exercises to use, and also teach you about that 'mid section' singing, or support, Lebell mentioned. He's also right on with the alcohol point, anything that can dry out your voice, alcohol, caffeine, etc. should be avoided, and water is your best friend when you're singing. Although different things work for different people. I have friends who also study voice and they insist on drinking a Coke before each performance. When you've been singing long enough, you'll find your own good habits.

The practice idea is a good one, singing to songs you know can help you work on harmony. Another great way to really want to improve your ear, would be to join a choir. It would strengthen your voice, and you can learn a lot musically.

soopafreek is right about cough drops being very helpful, but I wouldn't recommend Halls. They contain menthol which coats the throat, which is bad for singing. I swear by Riccola - no menthol, and they always save my life when I'm feeling a little scratchy. Also, tea (as long as its caffiene free) can really help clear you out and free up your voice.

A lot of great advice has already been given, and I can't think of much else to tell you at the moment, but feel free to ask me any questions you have any time.

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cj2112

Singing is as much about listening as it is the actual singing. I sang with a barbershop group for a while and found that my skills improved more from that, than they had in years. I also will suggest voice lessons, proper technique is important to the health of your voice.

noahfor

Ok, I wanted to start this back up again. I'd like some tips. Is the way you sound to yourself what you really saound like?

To me I sound awesome. I can sing like practically everyone, but I think I might just sound like crap to anyone else.

My tip is just to sing constantly, and loudly,really singing not that falsettoish crap, get some power into your voice. Definitely warm up. I make mixes that progressively get harder to sing to, but my voice warms up as I go. First I start off with some danzig, then maybe some system of a down, then incubus, then alice in chains, then move on to the harder stuff, tool, a perfect circle, you know.

Here is a sample:

Halloween 2 - samhain
Mother - Danzig
Know - system of a down
Wayfaring Stranger - Tim Buckley
Rooster - Alice and chains
Would - Alice in Chains
Judith - APC
Creep - Radiohead
Thomas - APC
Eulogy - Tool
____ of the seraphim - Dead Can Dance

Take breaks in between songs. Maybe
throw in some depeche mode at the beginning. I can hit almost everything in those songs. Except for the end of Mother and Eulogy, and the Dead Can Dance is lowered, since I'm a Dude.

Sing Everywhere. I get most of my practice in on the toilet, in the shower, and in the car. Don't be afraid to really sing, top of your lungs i mean,

What are some good drinks to drink?

Alcohol is definately bad, smoking probably is too, but I don't notice it as much as I have when I drink. Thing is I'm too shy to sing in public without the aid of an aniti axiety substance.

Farm

I usually cup my hand, put the tips of my fingers to my ear, and the bottom of my palm close to my mouth. This echos the vocals back to me ear and usually allows me to get back in tune if I sense I am out.

I have been a singer for about 8 years now. The problem is I get with a band, we jam for a few months and life seems to wash it out. I've never kept up on my vocal strength and only start back up when the band gets back together. My problem is I can't maintain my voice for more than a set of ten songs or so. We play mostly metal music and it is rather rough on my vocal chords. The rest of the band can jam for hours while I last maybe one. Is there a way to lengthen the time I could go on singing before it all falls apart?

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