Can you change a voice to make it sound GOOD?

Started by vandy12, March 04, 2021, 03:48:06 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

bluebunny

I'm with Ron.  Being "tone deaf" is actually very rare.  Practice makes perfect - or at least perfectly reasonable.  Joining a choir is excellent advice.  Not only are you enjoying safety in numbers, but it's actually really difficult to sing out of tune when you're part of an ensemble.  From that point on, it's just like exercising any other muscle: practise, practise, practise.

BTW, this is from personal experience.  I was forever the archetypal silent bass player.  Then I got into the vocal role kinda by accident.  My "choir" was quite small (only one or two others), but now I'm a not too shabby singer.  Depending on the song, I can now summon my internal Aretha, Lennon, Garfunkel, Sinatra...  (Well, perhaps! ;))
  • SUPPORTER
Ohm's Law - much like Coles Law, but with less cabbage...

amptramp

There is another consideration here - a number of musicians get free beers at a gig.  In fact, some musicians are paid in beers.  I have been told (by my wife and another couple we went with) at a karaoke night, my voice improved after one beer.  Maybe not Sinatra but pretty good.  Another beer would bring it back down to not that good, but a different "not that good" from being cold sober.

One choir leader was not too happy about me calling "In a Monastery Garden" a drinking hymn but it is the liturgical equivalent of "Hey Mr. Tambourine Man", a song that can be sung with perfect enunciation and crisp note changes but somehow sounds better slurred with your voice behaving like a slide guitar with a portamento between each note.

One of the favourite songs we did in the choir was "Almighty and Everlasting" by Orlando Gibbons.  It would have topped the charts in 1603.  It was a madrigal where the soprano, alto, tenor and bass all sing different melodies with different timing but end at the same time.  This develops a degree of independence in that you can sing your part correctly while listening to other parts that are at random timing and pitch compared to your own part.  It is natural to lock into someone else's part in a song and madrigal training definitely shows you how to break that habit.

Determining what conditions make you sound the best can be an interesting challenge.

anotherjim

Being able to sing doesn't mean that you should.
Technically fine singers don't necessarily find an audience simply due to their individual vocal qualities. I personally don't seek out technically trained opera and stage singers. I can't abide those types of singers.
I can sing pretty well, but I don't want to. I don't like my own voice.

Another reason I don't like singing, although OT, is it involves words too often. For some reason, many people assume the singer actually means the words sung - and that stupidity drives me mad!


vandy12

I think singing lessons can only do so much. To me it is like my weakest area...rhythm. You either got it or you don't. I mean, look at Barney when he was trying to get into the choir! They said in real life he could sing so well it was hard for him to act the off key singing part.

jonny.reckless