Tuesday, November 22, 2011

How to teach yourself to sing

By Pamela C Smith


Is it possible to teach yourself to sing? According to many who have accomplished this feat, the answer is yes, you can. I myself was once one of those who tried to sing but could only produce off-key noises. I stayed away from chorus classes in high school, even though I really wanted to learn to sing. I just couldn't take the constant criticism I knew I would get. When I got older and decided to play the guitar, I knew that the time had come to teach myself how to sing along, and I did it. Now I actually play acoustic guitar and sing in coffee shops and small venues in the area. You can teach yourself to sing too.

I started by choosing a few of my favorite songs as exercises. I knew most of the words already, but I had to learn to play them on the guitar. Once I had them down, I began to try singing aloud through each song and being ruthless in my judgement of how I was doing. At the beginning, I was not doing so well.

I knew this because I recorded myself singing. I knew that one of the best ways to teach yourself to sing is to learn to listen. By listening to yourself on a recording you can find out which songs fit your voice, what types of melodies are a problem, and if you are improving your sense of pitch and being in tune. And of course you hear what listeners hear as well, not how you sound to yourself.

Being in tune is one of the most important elements of learning to teach yourself to sing. You just have to listen to your singing and try to imitate the original as closely as you can. It helps if you play an instrument, because it will be giving you the correct pitch for the song (if it's in tune). But if you just follow along and learn to imitate you'll improve in no time - you know what they say about practice making perfect.

Another way to teach yourself to sing is to sing along with tunes from your own collection of recordings, your mp3 playlists, from other playlists, or from an Internet or regular radio station. If you learn to listen to yourself and compare what your voice is doing to what the original singer is doing, you'll learn not only how to sing on key, but how to sing more expressively.

Singing in your car or in the shower are great ways to teach yourself to sing, but don't limit your efforts. You should try singing in different places and slowly grind down any inhibitions you may have about public singing. It's also fun - your voice will sound better in a hallway or space that adds some echo and depth. You also have to practice using your lungs to project your voice, like the classical singing you used to see on television. You don't have to have vibrato like Pavarotti, but if you learn to add strength and volume to your voice you'll sound better.

As a last step in teaching yourself to sing, you're going to have to get some public practice and feedback. The easiest way to do that is to join a community singing group or a church choir. You should be singing material that you enjoy, of course, but don't be afraid to check out different styles of singing to see if there is a good fit for your voice. Being around other singers is a great way to teach yourself to sing, because you are bound to improve with practice and good examples to follow.




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