I've been playing guitar for a while but I never attempted singing because I always assumed my voice totally sucked and I could not sing a note. However, recently I have attempted singing a few songs and my voice is not that bad (or is it?).
There is one problem I'm having: if I sing a string of too many notes, my voice dies out before I hit the last note. For example, one song I attempted to sing has the following lyrics, "Pledge yourself to me." I can sing the "pledge yourself to" without inhaling, but when I get to the "me" my voice completely dies out and makes a cracking sound. If I inhale right before the "me" it sounds weird.
What can I do to improve my vocals? hi, you've run into the classic breath support problem we all face before we get our breathing in order.
You'll want to put the guitar down for awhile, and stand up, because it's more difficult to practice good breathing when you're hunched over your ax.
Put your thumbs on the lowest ribs at the back, and let your fingers wrap around your waist to feel the lowest ribs at the front. Give a suppressed laugh( where you keep your lips shut) and feel how all the muscles under your fingers go wild. These are abs, by the way, and we use them in singing all the time. Like with every breath we take.
It's not so much that we tank up to bursting point, rather we try and dose out the air for a s long as possible. these muscles are the clue to that. Keep your fingers in place, and play like you are a leaky tire. Hiss out the air ( please don't clench your teeth or jaw) and feel how the muscles under your fingers go back into action. You're not going to let them collapse, as a matter of fact, your thoughts say "I'm growing wider, and sturdier" and your muslces will start to either stay put ( as when you first inhaled) or they will actually start to expand. Both of these are good results. We singers train these muscles to do just that. When we encounter a long phrase, we practice dosing out the air, using those ab muscles. If you want, think of it as using oyur air economically- not too much, but just the right amount. If it's areally long phrase, you might even want to think "stingy" and let out a minimum of air, just don't let any other muscles give you the feeling that you are shutting down or closing in on yourself. ( especially in your throat)
another point to look out for is how you let go the tension in your throat in rder to breathe in again. You mention that your word "me" sounds weird, and I think you have left over tension there. In order to get a good breath, the vocal cords have got to swing apart fully. Otherwise we get a sound
that will reind you either of Darth Vader, or someone who is asthmatic. Try inhaling as noiselessly as possible. that, in combination with your abs muslces, will give you the correct direction for proper breath control.
Any singer, whether pop or classical, should know about how to breathe properly.. It gives you years of use with less damage to the voice. |
