SINGING KARAOKE

For those of you who like to sing along with the radio or your cd's, don't think that you are becoming a better singer if you are singing along with the artist. It is so sad to see these contestants try out in reality shows and think they have a great voice. Just because your friends and family say that you are a great singer doesn't mean it is so. The true test is to bring your favorite song up on YouTube and sing it with just the background music or "karaoke." Then have someone listen to you who is not partial and ask them to give you their unbiased opinion. Or, you can come to Music Instruction Studio and take your first lesson (which is "free", by the way) and I will tell you. You can then decide whether you would like to take more lessons to improve. I very rarely let my students sing with the singer--I ask them to sing it solo. That is the true test.

HOW TO SING WITH YOUR CHEST VOICE

For my friends locally, I am posting a series of tips on our "head voice" and "chest voice." I have posted this in the past, but don't think many of you have seen it. Lately in choir practice, our director has been making a point about the sopranos using their lower voices, or chest voices, so they could have more "power and fullness" in their voices instead of a thin soft sound.

The easiest way I can explain how to sing with our chest voice (especially for sopranos) to to ask you to sing like you speak. Just say the phrase "How are you today." Now, sing that phrase like you said it but sing it on just one note. If sopranos sing that like they normally would sing it, they would be talking like Julia Child. Remember her--the forerunner of the cooking shows on TV? Don't sing it like that. Just sing it in a natural talking tone. I will be putting a video on my page to demonstrate this. I don't want to overload you with too much information, but I teach that we all have a "chest voice" and a "head voice." You have probably heard of these terms. In between these two distinct voices, we have a "break" in our voice where we transition from one voice to another. I have exercises that I will put on my page to make that transition easier, but these exercises have to be practiced frequently to train your vocal chords and muscles. So stay tuned for more. . .

MY AMERICAN IDOL TAKE

I watched most of Idol last night and was pretty disappointed with what I heard group-wise. Yes, some of the voices were outstanding, but the harmonies weren't there for the most part. These days, I just wonder how this younger generation is learning music theory. Most of the schools no longer teach it. Actually, the only place we can learn to read music is either in the church choir or by taking voice and piano lessons. (I remember singing in church when i was young and trying to learn the alto part out of the hymnbook. When I mastered the alto part, i went on to the tenor part and learned to sing tenor. And if I could reach the bass part with my voice, I would even try that.:) ) And, yes, we also have the performing arts schools that are keeping it alive. I have an adult vocal student who is learning to read music. She sings in her church choir, but she wants that one-on-one help from an instructor. I love the sound of three-part and four-part harmony, but I often wonder how our young singers are going to learn it. I feel it is my job to teach this fast disappearing musical training as often as possible.

NEW HAPPENINGS AT MUSIC INSTRUCTION STUDIO

I am so excited about the happenings at Music Instruction Studio! We are expanding into the next space which is even larger than the space we are in now. This will allow me to do many new things with my voice students.

- I will have a larger studio.

- We will have a large room where we can have General 

Music Classes.

- We will have a mic and speakers set up in the large 

room so I can work with my students on stage 

presence,how to use a mic in singing, and 

Incorporating choreography into the music. 

- Also, the possibility of developing show choirs and 

even a Seniors choir.

- Working with formed groups of girl and boy bands.

- And, the possibility of students doing a professional

Recording demo and/or video. 

Just so many new possibilities! We will be moving in by next week. Jon is on a fast track of getting this space finished.

AUDITIONING FOR A VOCAL REALITY SHOW

As I teach voice, I hear more and more that people are going to these reality show music auditions to try out for their show. Usually, they are going before they have any vocal instruction whatsoever. I guarantee that unless you have that one-in-a-million voice, you will need some kind of vocal instruction before you decide to try out. And you need more than a couple of weeks of instruction. Just like you cannot pick up a clarinet and start playing without instruction, so it is with the voice. There are so many techniques to learn and most of them do not come naturally. For instance, your diaphragm needs to be used when you sing. How would a novice know how to use their diaphragm in singing without some kind of instruction? And that is just one part of learning to sing well. And, if you like to produce a lot of volume when you sing, you could very easily harm your voice if you only sing with your throat and not your whole body core. You don't have another voice to replace the one you have if it breaks. So, if you are thinking of going to these auditions, plan ahead and find some good instruction before you try it. Currently, I have about six voice students who are working towards this goal. I would love to add you to my list and I know you would enjoy it!

MAKE A NEW YEAR'S SINGING RESOLUTION TODAY!

Here we are into the new year and our lives are returning to our normal schedules. Maybe you have made a New Year's resolution or two. If you are a singer and especially if you are taking voice lessons, one new resolution you should make is to practice, practice, practice more! When I give my students lessons, I can definitely tell who practices and who doesn't. It will not be enough just to come to your voice lesson and sing. I can tell you that your vocal journey will be much slower if you don't practice every day. Try to devote at least 30 minutes to one hour each day to practicing--about 15 minutes for vocal exercises and the rest of the time practicing your song or songs. I usually give my students about three songs to work on and these are at different stages of development. With today's technology, it makes it easy to practice. Whether in your car or at home, iTunes karaoke songs make it very easy to work on your songs. You can bring these songs up on your cell phone in the car or your ipad or computer at home. And I give each student a practice cd that they can play in the car as well as at home. So there is really no excuse not to get your practice sessions in daily. So, start practicing and you will see a definite improvement right away!

WHY SING ANYWAY??

I had an interesting conversation with one of my young 12-year-old students recently. She told me that she was going to try out for the school talent show. I asked her what song she was going to use and she mentioned a song that I hadn't heard. I asked her why she wasn't going to use one of the songs she has been working on, or even use the song she sang in her recital. She said she had sung t

hose songs enough and was tired of them. So that opened up a whole new conversation about why we sing. Do we sing just to conquer a new song and then go on to the next challenge? Not necessarily. Basically, we sing for others. God has given us a talent to be shared and this is the way we should look at it.  We pick songs because they speak to us and when we share them, these songs speak to other people. Over the summer, this student learned the song "Hallelujah" and was asked to sing it at summer camp multiple times. She said she really got tired of singing that song, but I told her that was because people loved that song and wanted to hear her sing it again and again. She may as well keep that song on her list because she will probably be singing that song many, many more times in her lifetime. Our songs are "gifts" from us to others. I have sung one song over and over for the last 40 years because people love it. That song has become very precious to me. So, it just makes sense to "try out" for the talent show with a song that has communicated to others in the past, because it will continue to communicate. I hope she looks at her singing in a different light now and that she will continue to find songs bring joy to others.