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 James |
Please tell me why my singing is not better (recording inside) |
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Posts: 5 (11/04/09 1:05 PM) |
http://www.box.net/shared/dy3pepovbq
I'm happy to provide any information required to properly assess my problem areas. I know I was sharp on the last "note." I just went for it.
Last Edited By: James 11/04/09 2:50 PM.
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Napilopez |
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Posts: 655 (11/04/09 9:10 PM) |
Welcome to the forums!
You gave us no information on your singing background, which I find very helpful. When did you start singing? Why? Are you using/have you used the Singing Success program or any other voice training program? Have you had a voice teacher before? Are you familiar with the Singing Success/Speech-Level-Singing terminology, or that of any school of voice? Anything you can answer helps =P Singing-wise: Thats a tough song to sing, but at least you're "mixing" on it. However, you are very much pulling chest voice. You are also quite nasal here. Although only you can really know what's going on physically, you reallyyyy sound like you are straining and consciously or subconsciously hurting yourself, you've got to let up on that. Try dopey/low-larynxed exercises to counter that. This is a sound that brings down your larynx, like when you're yawning or drying to speak deep. That's the main thing we gotta address first, the pulling of chest voice. |
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James |
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Posts: 5 (11/04/09 11:57 PM) |
Hello Napilopez, thank you for your response!
To answer your questions: I started singing around 2 years ago, but for the last year I've been doing it very off and on. I started singing for a number of reasons: as far as I could tell, singers get most of the attention and admiration in a band without having to lug guitars and amps around. Also, I find singing feels a lot more personal and "real" guitar, which is what I used to play. I also get a greater satisfaction out of it and there just aren't very many decent singers in my city which made it more attractive. I'm not using any singing programs now, but I used Jaime Vendera's "Raise Your Voice" almost every day for a year and made very little progress. I've also skimmed through Singing Success and James Lugo's "Vocal Asylum."I've had a couple voice teachers over the last 2 years. I'm pretty familiar with the Singing Success / SLS terminology. Past experience of lightening up on my sound any more then I am (believe it or not I'm trying to keep it as light as possible while still being clean) has resulted in loss of adduction and a breathy / falsetto tone. I will emphasis low larynx exercises in my practice sessions, although I've really been doing those for the last 2 years, off and on. For the last year I've been researching singing literally every day. I go on the internet and look up information, I read forums, post recordings, watch youtube vids and so on. This pulling chest business has plagued me since I started, but I don't know how to avoid pulling chest and still maintain a non breathy non falsetto sound. I've done a lot of reading and application of what I've read on the subject, and this is where it has left me. My last voice teacher told me she didn't think I was pulling chest, and I don't get a red face or veins popping out of my neck when I do it. Until I read your response I didn't know it was possible to "mix" and also "pull chest" at the same time. I'm under the impression the only way to NOT mix above one's break is to have a breathy or falsetto tone and that mixing = adducted tone on and above one's vocal break until you hit pure headvoice. I never did get what people meant when they said "you need to start mixing earlier." I'm very interested in learning how to mix without pulling chest. I apologize for the long response, I tried to keep this as brief as possible while answering all your questions.
Last Edited By: James
11/05/09 12:17 AM.
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Napilopez |
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Posts: 655 (11/05/09 1:18 AM) |
Ahh, do not worry about the long response, I prefer the details! =P
I'd like to hear you try to do the low larynxed exercises, sometimes you can do the exercises wrongly and not get that progress you want. I think one common mistake is that people tend to be TOO dopey, or TOO whiney or TOO whatever. At beginning levels, these exaggerated sounds help find your footing, but you need to use more finesse as you improve and understand the concepts better. You can indeed pull chest and mix at the same time. Mix means having chest and head resonance, but it doesn't mean you can't be overusing one or the other. It wouldnt be so nasally without head presence, methinks. Point is though, you're using much more chest and pulling more than you should. What you are saying about mix is a common misconception, something I had to go through. You can start to mix earlier or later, just as you can end mix earlier or later. Voice clip time =P |
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Napilopez |
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Posts: 655 (11/05/09 10:43 AM) |
I apologize for the volume of my fan in this James, but it was the only way I could record without making myself too audible lolz
http://www.box.net/shared/zv3khmqb2a
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James |
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Posts: 5 (11/05/09 11:56 AM) |
Napilopez, thanks for taking the time to record that, I found it informative.
Here are the recordings you requested Light mums up to tenor C: http://www.box.net/shared/sdsqut8qnk (I haven't practiced this way very much in the past) Louder mums up to tenor C: http://www.box.net/shared/c5t22zffd2 (feels the same on my throat as when I sung my clip in post #1) I look forward to your next post.
Last Edited By: James
11/05/09 12:18 PM.
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Napilopez |
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Posts: 655 (11/05/09 12:45 PM) |
Decided I'll just podcast, no point in me posting an essay if I'm going to give a speech anyways =P
http://www.box.net/shared/vxp8jxu281 |
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James |
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Posts: 5 (11/05/09 3:28 PM) |
Napilopez, thank you for another informative recording. I made one of my own:
"Woofier" mums: http://www.box.net/shared/oyvk72b2z7 I'm still very confused as to how not to pull chest while still maintaining a completely clear non breathy / non falsetto tone because really, nothing seems to be working.
Last Edited By: James
11/05/09 4:53 PM.
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Napilopez |
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Posts: 655 (11/05/09 5:23 PM) |
That was much better! Make sure you keep the woofyness throughout the entire scale. You can also try lighten up once you get to like the really high ranges, so
you don't get that crackly breaky sound.
Watch this video with dave brooks talking about the importance of vocal compression. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwUnXXAtqxA The "pouty" part of it is really important. Though woofyness helps, compression isn't just that woofyness. I think that'll help you maintain some coordination. Don't loose the woofyness and compression as you go higher into your range! Or at least, try not to. Add a litttleee bit of incremental woofy for every note you go higher past your break, to counterbalance the high larynx. If it helps, put a finger liiighttly above your larynx and try to make it so that it doesn't rise any higher than a neutral position. It'll go down when being woofy, and then make sure it doesnt rise above the balanced neutral position. |
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James |
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Posts: 5 (11/06/09 11:22 AM) |
attempt at even "woofier pouty" mums: http://www.box.net/shared/i1x0j6gn8f
Thanks for the video link, I based a lot of my sound in my first post on how I interpreted this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0QGvgO7M_4. This is what happens when I try to hold my attempt at a "woofy pouty" note above my break: http://www.box.net/shared/69a6zhdt6b. I stopped before the end of the scale because I felt I was in falsetto. To me it has the same strained sound as when I sang in my first clip in post #1. It also feels very similar, if not identical. I will keep at it, staying woofy and pouty and making sure that whatever tone I start with before the break is the same tone I take through the break. Any more tips would be great.
Last Edited By: James
11/06/09 11:29 AM.
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Napilopez |
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Posts: 655 (11/06/09 6:40 PM) |
Hey! As I said in myprevious post, I think you can lighten up once you've passed your bridge, I don't thinks its very helpful to bring too much
compression/poutyness past that, I'm sorry as I should have made that more clear. I should have noticed before you were over compressing. You need to
surrender the chest presence to head as you get higher up into your range. Even if it breaks, just let it go into head voice. You sound over compressed up
there. Like, yes, you do want to bring that chest voice presence into your higher notes eventually, but compression too much wont do that.
I'm not sure of the exact physiology, but think of compression like a squeezing mechanism that brings your folds together more than usual. When you're higher up in your range and not in falsetto, however, your vocal chords are already pretty adducted (closed), so I believe compression becomes less necessary if you already have your head voice and are singing past your bridge, but don't quote me on that =P. Either way, it sounds like you are trying to force that compression there, when I think you can relieve it at let more head voice in. In your second clip, you start with the high note at a G#4, and quickly go up in range to like an F5; there's no need to try to mix all the way up there if you don'y have a control over the lower notes. Build your mix from F4 and work on a note by note basis from there. After hearing all of these clips, I think your main issue is learning to surrender that chest voice to head voice with an easy release. In you louder mums from before, you were mixing up to like before the A4 I thinkz, and sounded pretty good, if shouty. I wanted to hear your dopier mums to get a better overall sense of your voice, but now that I do, you can back off some of the dopeyness/lowlarynxedness and compression. Remember the ultimate goal is to keep things neutral, not too low larynxed. I think you're at a stage where you can be dopey, but dont have to be tooooo dopey or compressed. Are there any other board members with an opinion about this? This is what I'm hearing but maybe someone else sees something I'm not seeing. Sorry that was so jumbled and unorganized, I've been writing essay posts and making podcasts all over the past few days, so I don't remember exactly what I've told everybody =/ Clip: http://www.box.net/shared/9m9t4cg00m Also, sent you a message. GEEZ I write and talk a lot >_>
Last Edited By: Napilopez
11/06/09 6:59 PM.
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confused |
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Posts: 794 (11/07/09 1:29 PM) |
Man, one day all the helpful posts that Napilopez has posted should be compiled, edited, and published into a book.
Unlocking the Saiyan in your Voice by Napilopez |
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refuter |
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Posts: 156 (11/07/09 7:22 PM) |
I like it when Nape sings in a really dopey and chesty voice... and he adds that vibrato.
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