Tune Your Voice

Just bought the book w/ 7 cd's

Has anyone else worked with this? It seems pretty good once you skip past the first half of the first cd.

Man, I didn't realize how bad I was at singing intervals when put on the spot.

What are intervals, sir?

I second that question.

Intervals are standardized distances between notes--e.g., major and minor thirds, fourths, fifths, etc. as well as octaves. Frinstance, solfege (e.g., do-mi, do-so, so-do, etc.) is a form of singing intervals based on relationships between notes of the scale regardless of the actual pitch of the root note of the key. (That's an oversimplification of course). Learning to sing the proper pitches at either end of the interval is integral to sight singing, or being able to sight-read and accurately reproduce musical notation using only one's brain and voice, rather than another instrument.

Great sight-singers get the most session and pro choir gigs. I envy them their ability. It can be developed with practice, but the best are born with that innate sense of pitch.

I believe that getting good at them is critical to being a good singer. You will develop a feel, kinda like muscle memory, of how to hit that next note from the last. As opposed to "finding" the note, which can lead to sounding sloppy, pitchy and amateurish.

It's right up there with ear training. Knowing the note you want to sing and being able to hit it.

I would find it rather impressive if someone was able to sing an interval just based upon what was asked. i.e. "sing the Major 3rd from this note"

That's a much easier skill to pick up than having someone say, "Sing an A" and being able to do it, at least in my experience. Relative pitch is easier to pick up than absolute pitch.

(and in most cases, I can sing you a major 3rd, so I guess I'd impress you.)

Learning intervals can be helped by recognizing them by singing the first two notes of things you might already know, for instance:

Major 3rd: When The Saints Go Marching In

More here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ear_training#Interval_recognition

Brian V.

Yup.

Nice wiki article.

Ooh...ooh...me too...can I impress him too!?

I can do this. Actually, a LOT of people can do this--it is the foundation of vocal harmony.

Hey man, anybody that can sing harmony has props in my book.

When I was in college, taking theory, and singing in the concert choir, I was pretty good at singing intervals. It's been years, so I don't know how good I'd be at it now.

Oh, I see, yeah. I'd heard of them, but just had a mental blank as to what the term intervals was. D'uh. lol.

Anyway, I can do them. If someone explains to me what a major 3rd is (like, to me, who knows absolutely nothing about any of this stuff, I'd assume it'd be 3 notes from the note you've just sung or whatever, or maybe that say you sing a note, then you sing another one and then the last one you sing is an octave above the first one...3...something like that. But if both of those are incorrect assumptions, and someone explains what it actually is, sure I can do it)

Harmonies for me are easy.

Quick lesson on intervals. Let's assume C is the root:

C = Root note

C# = Minor 2nd

D = Major 2nd

D# = Minor 3rd

E = Major 3rd

F = 4th

F# = Flatted 5th

G = 5th

G# = Minor 6th

A = Major 6th

A# = Minor 7th

B = Major 7th

C = Octave

i think of a piano as a good analogy. learn the intervals well and your voice will be laid out like a piano, with any key at your disposal.

People really don't know what an interval is?!

not everyone has studied musical theory.

Thanks, Dthraco.

That's what I imagined them to be when I heard the description.

They should stop what they're doing and learn.

Not everyone has the opportunity.

I wish I could. Only ever had one year of music lessons in school and that was 40mins a week. I kinda didn't care much when I was that young.

In my opinion music theory is mostly god awfully boring to learn. But I try to learn more all the time in small digestible amounts, because once you get it it's interesting and helpful. I use the internet for my learning purposes. lol

You have an internet connection don't you? Teach yourself! Buy a book at the used book store.

AMEN!!!!

It was boring for me when I had to learn it that one year in school. I just sorta shut it out of my head like French class, I was and still am HORRIFIC at all languages.

If and when I finally start piano lessons I will make a concious effort to learn more musical theory. I just dont feel I need it very much at the level of singing lessons I'm doing (just CD lessons unfortunately).

Here here!

That's what I did

I'd like to tell everyone to learn an instrument too

And learn to read music

I'm still not quite good enough, but I'm getting there (H)