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synthdude · Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 6:48 pm Post subject:

<b>(Compiled from various sources/American English version)</b>

1) Where you practice can be as important to your vocal workout as how much you practice. Make sure you practice in a place where you feel free to sing out and let it go, without worry as to who might be listening. If you are not letting go, you are not really singing... you are holding back. Like throwing a baseball to a 5-year-old, are you really throwing with all you've got, or are you tossing it? Singing, like being a baseball pitcher, requires you dig down and give it all you've got.

2) Singing at gigs, recording sessions or band rehearsals should not be considered practice for the singer. You must also make time for yourself to sing without the pressure of having to sound good. Give yourself the luxury of taking chances and making mistakes during your own, private workout. I cannot count all the times I have been sitting alone in my den, singing to one of the songs I have on my list, stopping and saying, "Oops, bad note!"

3) When you practice, do so slowly and give yourself the time to relax before your workout - don't rush! Haste is the #1 enemy of meaningful vocalizing. It is supposed to be fun, something you love to do, never forced. Again, like with baseball, your first warm up pitch of the day is not your hardest fastball. Loosen up, have fun, play around a little.

4) If you vocalize for just a half and hour everyday, you'll be surprised at how much more ready to sing you'll always be. I sing at least 1/2 an hour every day.

5) This is not a contradiction to item #1, it is an add-on. Where you sing for practice is by no means as important as actually singing. Your car, the shower, while making dinner... I'd avoid it while making love though. Howvever, if you chose to do it at that moment, be careful of your song selection, some songs may not be considered appropriate. I'm sure you can think of a few...

6) Always train yourself to be able to sing at least one or two notes higher and lower than required in your performances. This insurance will allow you to relax on stage. Scaryoke bars are great to try out your increased ranges in front of a drunken audience, where no one will remember it in the morning anyway. I cannot begin to tell you of the nervousness I will feel if I know that I am about to do a song that tests my limits and the worries of making sure I hit that one serious high note. In contrast, the ease I feel when I know that my next song is something I can sing in my sleep.

Okay, so, now you know something about practice. But what good is practice if you physically cannot do it, or do not know the mechanics behind it? Trust me, singing is not just opening your mouth and making melodic noises. Some of my Physical Tips include:

1) The muscles used for sit-ups or leg lifts are the same used to support (or press) air through the cords to bring forth a singer's sound. Some of these exercises, on a regular basis, add power to your overall tone.

2) Your jaw should drop - as it does when you yawn - whenever holding a note in your upper range.

3) Your vocal chords just make the sounds. From your chest to your head, are your ranges. You mouth is your final resonating chamber... do not be afraid to open it and use it as such.

4) If you have to cough or clear your throat, do so gently. These actions are like sandpaper to your vocal cords.

5) Eat and sleep properly and exercise daily. This will enable your body to achieve a state of relaxation and vocal-cord readiness and will benefit your singing more than you'd think.

6) Maintain a high level of water in your body. The old adage eight glasses a day helps keep your vocal cords lubricated and conditioned. ALWAYS avoid singing with a dry throat.

7) Some people have suggested a sip of wine before singing… bad move, it dries out your throat!

8 ) Avoid marathon sessions... Abuse of your voice by not allowing it to rest will eventually destroy your chords, tendons and muscles.

Of all I have stated, thus far, perhaps the most important thing about singing is breathing. It is not just taking air in and expelling it. To really be able to sing at your absolute best you must know how to breath and use the air that you bring into and expell from your body.

Breathing tips:

1) The significance of the diaphragm as a muscle of breath support is over-emphasized by most music singing schools and teachers. The diaphragm controls and helps sustain tone support, but is not responsible for the source of power.

2) Power comes from your diaphram is also a misnomer. your power comes from below that. <b>Pavarotti once said, "my power comes from my asshole."</b> In a way, he is very correct, the more of your abdominal musculature structures you can use in your vocals, the more power you can bring.

3) Be sure the shoulders do not raise when taking a breath. In all actuallity, do not try to breath as if you were trying to fill your lungs, but as if you were trying to fill your stomach.

4) If you can hear your inhalation, you're taking in too much air or your stomach is tense. Be sure your stomach is relaxed before, and as, you inhale. A sure way to tell an untrained or an improperly trained singer is by listening to the gasps of air they take during their singing.

5) Always inhale gently when singing. Heavy gasping of air will tighten your throat. The key thing about singing is relaxation and enjoying yourself. It is awfully difficult to do that if our every action causes tension.

6) An excellent breathing exercise is to lay on your back, rest a book on your stomach and breath in such a way as the book rises and falls. Picture that same thing when you are standing to sing. This breathing technique is the main key to successfully bringing yourself to achieve all of your singing goals. Mastery of this technique, alone, will allow you to increase your vocal range 2 full octaves!

7) When singing, the air is NEVER forced out. It flows out, gently. Do not confuse air flow with power. All you need is enough air to vibrate the vocal chords.

8 ) Picture a vocal sound as a fragile little ball. A soft, gentle breath of air vibrates the vocal chords and causes the early stages of the ball to be formed, the materials, if you will. Next, this material is centered somewhere. Where? that depends on how high or how low you want the note to be. for the highest notes, center it as high up into your sinuses as you can get it. For low notes, as far down... all the way to your diaphragm... as you can get it. Once it is there, the ball is automatically formed. The key is to hold it there or manipulate it's location as you bring forth it's tone through your resonation chamber (your mouth).

Additional tips:

1) Posture is the foundation. Be sure your posture is straight when singing. Not a military stance, but comfortably upright. This positions you for maximum support. Mind you, good stage performance seldom allows you to stand in one location. Loss of stage presence could destroy even the best of singers. If you have ever noticed some of the best rock singers, that are capable of amazing ballads, pay attention to their posture when they move around: their backs are always straight and their heads and necks are upright.

2) Always imagine the sound that you want to make and then sing it - using all resources available - your entire physical being, emotions, psyche and spirit. Sing from your heart, this is more important that anything else I have said. To achieve real vocal ability, your audience must be able to feel what you feel.

3) A tight jaw is bad for good singing. Do whatever is necessary to relieve your jaw, neck and shoulders of tension before you sing. Remember, it is supposed to be relaxed and fun.

4) Even though loads of people do it, don't smoke! Smoking puts at risk the entire mechanism you're going to stake your claim to a vocal career upon.

5) Don't try to imitate another singer's voice. Discover your own, unique, vocal identity. In order for you to be a great singer, you have to be your own singer. If you want to be a pitcher in baseball, learn how to do it and pitch like you pitch, do not try to be Nolan Ryan.

6) Lastly, if you are going to sing, damn it, sing! I cannot begin to count all the good singers that I have heard that are going absolutely nowhere in their career and cannot figure out why? The band sounds good, the music is good, the vocals are good... what is wrong? It's all good, but it isn't great. I do not care who is the "Official" leader of any band, when that first note begins, it is the singer that runs the show. If the singer does not let go and stop honding back, the rest of the band will hold back too. If the singer over powers the band or the band cannot keep up, it is time to get a new band!