How bad am I at singing?

[SergioLeone]

Hi!

 

Noob here

 

I was recommended to come here for advice on my singing. So I hope it's OK?

 

Quick story:

 

1. I just started wanting to sing seriously. I have always loved to sing and have always sung but only recently have I dared to record stuff

 

2. I have no idea if I can sing. I have no idea if I can learn how to sing. And I don't know how to learn or where to begin

 

 

I have to be honest and say I'm quite nervous about sharing this but I really want to learn and I really want to become a better singer so it's a risk I'll have to take.

 

1. I sound strained. A friend described it as my voice was shaking

2. Some parts sung slightly off-key (he said)

3. I can't breath properly (through diaphragm). Keep running out of breath

4. I can't seem to get enough melody in there

 

 

So I know this is a long post but I really hope I can get some feedback.

 

Thank you

[jvardon]

First off, congrats on getting serious about something you love.

Now your voice is a frequently quite nasal throughout the recording. It's not too strained but you do sounds like your reaching up with your chest voice, try to relax and get a slightly lighter sound by using your mixed voice.

You seem to have a good grasp of how to show emotion and that's a big plus because technically proficient but emotionally lacking voices are sooo dull to listen to even if they do seem amazing at first glance.

Breathing is a little hard to decipher from any recording so I can't really comment.

 

Hope this helps.

[Jersey Jack]

You'll get more responses if you set up the file for streaming--not many folks are willing to download a file. Welcome to the forum!

[davie]

Main issues:

Throaty sounding, throat sounds over-squeezed and tense.

Off-pitch on some parts.

 

This song is a bit high for some male voices. Try singing something with a lower key and see what happens.

[SergioLeone]

First off, congrats on getting serious about something you love. Now your voice is a frequently quite nasal throughout the recording. It's not too strained but you do sounds like your reaching up with your chest voice, try to relax and get a slightly lighter sound by using your mixed voice. You seem to have a good grasp of how to show emotion and that's a big plus because technically proficient but emotionally lacking voices are sooo dull to listen to even if they do seem amazing at first glance. Breathing is a little hard to decipher from any recording so I can't really comment. Hope this helps.

 

Thanks

 

Hm it's nasal probably because I'm trying to reach those higher keys. Not sure what mixed voice means?

 

Yeah for me the emotional bit is easier to pull off. I just wish I had the technique down.

 

Thanks for the feedback

[SergioLeone]

Main issues: Throaty sounding, throat sounds over-squeezed and tense. Off-pitch on some parts. This song is a bit high for some male voices. Try singing something with a lower key and see what happens.

 

Hm so nasal and throaty. I guess I'm not breathing properly when singing then? So is that something I should focus on?

 

Can you tell me which parts I'm off pitch in ;D

 

I think I might sing it with a lower pitch next time. But at least try to get the melody in.

 

Thanks for the feedback

[davie]

You're off pitch on and off. Nothing in particular. Maybe some of the higher notes and maybe some of the ending notes of the phrases.

 

There's no "quick fixes" in terms of technique. Some people are naturals when it comes to singing and some have to work harder than others to get it right.

But the most important thing for any singer, beginner or expert, is to try your best to reduce your strain.

 

I don't think you should worry about your pitch right now. You pitch problems are likely caused by your lack of training/practice. I feel that you have a fairly good sense of pitch.

But its just the technical difficulties of singing that make it difficult for you to maintain the pitch.

 

To practice breath control. You should practice the 'sustained hiss'. Just make a hissing sound between your teeth by blowing air (no voice).

Then at times try pushing the air "harder". You'll feel your lower body muscles engage. That's breath support.

[JohnBenussi]

First off, I like your tone

 

Where you veer off is your vibrato which is awkward, probably due to poor breathe support and low confidence?

When you sing "yesterday my life is...." you strain and almost don't give it the full chest voice it needs.

 

I like that there is no reverb, and instead it's a pure, unedited version of your voice. Very brave to post that

because many people saturate their voice with effects. I would say to practice consistently and know the song you sing.

 

For fun: sing the song without ANY vibrato and see if you can carry the notes all the way til the next line.

[Arkan]

 

1. I sound strained. A friend described it as my voice was shaking 2. Some parts sung slightly off-key (he said)

 

I'm that friend, and I know next to nothing about singing. But I love this dude's tone.

[SergioLeone]

 

You're off pitch on and off. Nothing in particular. Maybe some of the higher notes and maybe some of the ending notes of the phrases. There's no "quick fixes" in terms of technique. Some people are naturals when it comes to singing and some have to work harder than others to get it right. But the most important thing for any singer, beginner or expert, is to try your best to reduce your strain. I don't think you should worry about your pitch right now. You pitch problems are likely caused by your lack of training/practice. I feel that you have a fairly good sense of pitch. But its just the technical difficulties of singing that make it difficult for you to maintain the pitch. To practice breath control. You should practice the 'sustained hiss'. Just make a hissing sound between your teeth by blowing air (no voice). Then at times try pushing the air "harder". You'll feel your lower body muscles engage. That's breath support.

 

 

Thank you for this! Yes I feel my stomach pushing out and a certain strain (like when doing abs). Is that what I'm looking after when singing? To sing with your "stomach out". If that makes sense.

[SergioLeone]

First off, I like your tone Where you veer off is your vibrato which is awkward, probably due to poor breathe support and low confidence? When you sing "yesterday my life is...." you strain and almost don't give it the full chest voice it needs. I like that there is no reverb, and instead it's a pure, unedited version of your voice. Very brave to post that because many people saturate their voice with effects. I would say to practice consistently and know the song you sing. For fun: sing the song without ANY vibrato and see if you can carry the notes all the way til the next line.

 

Thanks for the compliment

 

Yes it's probably because of poor breath control and confidence. What I try to do to get the right note is to strain the muscles in my throat and get the right sound. I'm probably doing it wrong.

 

As for the reverb, I don't know how to add things like ;D But I think it's better (for my purpose at least) to show the unadulterated version of my voice.

[SergioLeone]

 

I'm that friend, and I know next to nothing about singing. But I love this dude's tone.

 

 

Hey man I wouldn't be here if it hadn't been for your support.

[SergioLeone]

Question about tone. Does it simply mean the quality of your voice? How does it relate to being "tone deaf". I'm slightly confused about the difference between tone and pitch.

[jvardon]

Tone is the quality, the sound. Some people have a smoother or a more rough tone, maybe nasal or delicate and thin. Pitch is to do with notes, like on a piano.

[SergioLeone]

Thanks!

 

I guess vibrato is when you try to vibrate your vocal chords? To get a fuller feel in the note?

[jvardon]

Vibrato, my understanding about that is that it develops in a fairly well balanced voice. Low or no tension in the larynx and good breath support. I'm not sure what exactly is resonating to produce the sound but a good one resonates at about 6Hz. I've yet to develop mine properly but I've done what a lot of online teachers post; fake it until it arrives properly so I've gotten quite good at that and I barely have to put in any effort to do it.

Some people say it's actually easier to sing with it and it takes conscious effort to stop it while phrasing.

Any time you speak or sing your chords vibrate, it's what makes sound in all parts of nature; vibrations. Vibrato must involves a certain part of the anatomy vibrating at a different frequency to the chords.

And yes, vibrato can make a note sound fuller and sometimes louder too. In my opinion it can also help disguise a less appealing tone. My voice certainly sounds better with it than without.

[YeahDoIt]

You don't sound bad to me. I think with practice, reverb and time you might sound better. You sing in key, and are able to sing solo - not everyone can do that.

 

Hearing myself sing helps me. I use an inexpensive microphone with an inexpensive guitar amp as a sound system (I'm also building a better PA system). If you practice singing along with recordings and can hear yourself then you might learn to mimic the sounds (the mouth and throat movements, and breathing that makes those sounds).

 

I begin each morning singing scales as a warmup. You might search YouTube.com, check your local library for singing exercises, books and CDs.

 

Every musician in my area is helping me in some way. You might attend some shows, jam with any musicians that you find, become part of the scene.

[SergioLeone]

 

Vibrato, my understanding about that is that it develops in a fairly well balanced voice. Low or no tension in the larynx and good breath support. I'm not sure what exactly is resonating to produce the sound but a good one resonates at about 6Hz. I've yet to develop mine properly but I've done what a lot of online teachers post; fake it until it arrives properly so I've gotten quite good at that and I barely have to put in any effort to do it. Some people say it's actually easier to sing with it and it takes conscious effort to stop it while phrasing. Any time you speak or sing your chords vibrate, it's what makes sound in all parts of nature; vibrations. Vibrato must involves a certain part of the anatomy vibrating at a different frequency to the chords. And yes, vibrato can make a note sound fuller and sometimes louder too. In my opinion it can also help disguise a less appealing tone. My voice certainly sounds better with it than without.

 

 

Thanks jvardon. These online teachers - do you have a link for vocal training and tips?

 

So do opera singers sing with no vibrato? And country singers tend to sing with more vibrato? Is it part of a style?

[SergioLeone]

You don't sound bad to me. I think with practice, reverb and time you might sound better. You sing in key, and are able to sing solo - not everyone can do that. Hearing myself sing helps me. I use an inexpensive microphone with an inexpensive guitar amp as a sound system (I'm also building a better PA system). If you practice singing along with recordings and can hear yourself then you might learn to mimic the sounds (the mouth and throat movements, and breathing that makes those sounds). I begin each morning singing scales as a warmup. You might search YouTube.com, check your local library for singing exercises, books and CDs. Every musician in my area is helping me in some way. You might attend some shows, jam with any musicians that you find, become part of the scene.

 

Thanks YeahDoIt! It's a relief to hear I'm not bad

 

Sing solo, you mean with no back-up singing? Not singing in a group?

 

I will start learning singing scales. Never done it before.

[jvardon]

 

Thanks jvardon. These online teachers - do you have a link for vocal training and tips? So do opera singers sing with no vibrato? And country singers tend to sing with more vibrato? Is it part of a style?

 

 

Oh there are tonnes of them but a lot of them are crap. The best ones I've found are Eric Arceneaux on youtube and his own site. Brett Manning of Singing Success, he's huge in the vocal training world and a single 1 hour lesson can cost about $200. He's got some free clips on youtube that might help.

 

Opera singers have tonnes of vibrato, it's one of the things that people recognize most about the style. A lot of people who go for vocal training are terrified that if their teacher is a bit more old school, they might end up with a more operatic sound and vibrato.

I can't really comment on the country style since I'm not very familiar with it, the closest I get to country is one or two Taylor Swift songs and a couple from Shania Twain too.

[SergioLeone]

I think I need to youtube vibratto for singing in order to fully understand

[jvardon]

That would probably help.

[Jersey Jack]

Great analysis and advice here from list members! I agree that we've got good tone here and a good sense of pitch, so you're doing fine. Your voice will sound a lot better once you throw a little bit of reverb and compression on it, but Johnny's right to say that it's a lot easier for us to comment on your voice without it.

 

The big problem, as many have noted, is tension. This is my problem, as well. It can partially be addressed through stretching exercises, even yoga, but you should also consider lessons, which can help you eliminate any throat/jaw/tongue tension.

 

About the key: In technical terms, you're pulling chest--which means that you're trying to hit higher notes without transferring into head voice. When singers try to bring chest voice up to the higher range tension is inevitable. A good teacher can help you ease the transition, enable you to let go of chest voice and rise in head voice. There's LOTS of material on the internet about this. In the meantime, you may want to lower the key, but ultimately you'll be able to sing this song in the key used here.

 

So, you're not at all bad at singing!

[davie]

 

Thank you for this! Yes I feel my stomach pushing out and a certain strain (like when doing abs). Is that what I'm looking after when singing? To sing with your "stomach out". If that makes sense.

 

 

This will help you to breathe and control the breath properly.

 

When you breath in, you should feel an expansion of the lower abs. And then as you hiss or sustain a tone, your lower abs will push inwards and your upper abs (solar plexus) will push outwards.

 

Try practicing to carry the hiss function over to the sung tone.

[JohnBenussi]

 

Thanks! I guess vibrato is when you try to vibrate your vocal chords? To get a fuller feel in the note?

 

 

K, listen to your own recording.

When you sing difficult notes: you use vibrato as a crutch whereas say a professional singer or seasoned vocalist would

use the same vibrato for accentuation...

 

Now, let's say a song's verse is sung, but doesn't fully carry over to the next line: the deficit is often narrowed by: vibrato.

 

Vibrato resonates and holds a line's word/phrase.

 

Vibrato is *not* required in any song/line or phrasing.

There are some *singers* out there that unfortunately use vibrato because they find it difficult to hold notes on their own (hence the crutch analogy)

 

I feel many singers have used this unnatural way of singing due to the aforementioned traits: poor breathe support, among other noted issues.

Confidence (a lack thereof) CAN create the appearance of poor vibrato and even pitch issues because when you KNOW your song: you own it.

 

When you don't? These kinds of easily fixed issues can take control of your performance.

 

Peter Gabriel for instance *rarely* uses vibrato and can carry his lines all the way without the fluctuations of "vibrato."

I personally feel it is much harder to do this than use vibrato because vibrato is a tool: that CAN be used to compensate. It does happen!