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Hello, fellow singers!!
WandeltPopera
Member Posts: 1
My name is NICK, aka TabuuForte on YT. I'm a 34 year old, autistic wannabe opera singer from Canada, and I've been into classical music since 2008 after listening to the Il Divo album "The Promise". For those unfamiliar, Il Divo is an opera- and classical-crossover group (they do "popera", a subgenre where opera singers and classical musicians perform re-arranged pop music) put together by Simon Cowell to replicate success the Three Tenors had.
Carlos Marin, baritone from the group, was my hero. His classical pipes were unlike anything I'd ever heard. He even had some pretty impressive abilities in the tenor range. I heard him hit a High C once without even straining!
Sadly, Marin passed away in 2021 due to the pandemic. I was mess for about, 20 minutes, then I decided to embark on my own classical training in his honour and memory. My only regret about studying classical voice? Not having done it 10 years ago. I didn't know in the day I could afford the courses, let alone be told I had some decent talent.
Well now I have been training with a teacher for almost 2 years (minus a "semester" due to the teacher being on break to focus on personal projects for a bit) My goal is to embark on my own eventual opera-crossover/"popera" career as soon as possible, while I'm still young haha. I would love to do the real thing too someday, on the opera stage, but as a secondary thing. And before anyone says "It takes YEARS to master your craft". I know. I wasn't getting into this expecting to become Sherrill Milnes in 2 days. All I want is to put in the work and do it right!
I am a baritone as well. I developed a semi-decent appoggio. I still have to focus on breathing from the bottom of my stomach, or I will continue breathing from my chest which is a no-no. My soft-palate is about 95% under control. Lowering the larynx is my current challenge. That and the larynx AND soft palate at the same time.
Where I struggle most though? Is projection/resonance. I realize I'm forcing when I try to sing loud, and thus straining my voice on high notes. I have a naturally-quiet speaking voice, and I'm a bit timid. But I struggle a lot and it's irritating. My passaggio will just do whatever the heck it wants, making my voice crack more than a dead branch, and I'm reaching the end of my patience. But despite that, I REFUSE TO QUIT. Classical singing is my passion. It's my LIFE. It's all I want to do. At my age, I decided this is "do or die" time. No more playing around. I am dead-serious about wanting to do this.
I watched Ken's video on "the real way to hit high notes". But I wonder if it also applies to opera singers too. I heard he has some bel canto training, and that the proof is in the singing. And yes, by the way. I tested my teacher. She's into jazz but also has bel canto experience from school. And she has a pretty darn good classical voice.
I have immense trouble with confidence. I never "give myself permission" to hit those notes. Because the fear is ever-present. I dread embarrassment, and I'm frustrated because I still don't trust myself and my voice. Like "you're a baritone, why you trying to hit those notes?" Carlos Marin could. And he was a baritone. I was never a confident person. And yes. I know even professional, trained voices can not work 100% sometimes. But for me it's a sadly recurring thing as a fairly new singer.
I need some tips, while my teacher is unavailable. Should I hire an actual, fully classically-trained singer in my area to show me more advanced stuff? Or would some of you be willing to help me?
How do I properly project/resonate? I practice twang, with mixed results. I'm still not 100% clear on what to do to twang. And I know nothing about "belting".
Thanks,
Nick Wandelt, Popera Singer
Carlos Marin, baritone from the group, was my hero. His classical pipes were unlike anything I'd ever heard. He even had some pretty impressive abilities in the tenor range. I heard him hit a High C once without even straining!
Sadly, Marin passed away in 2021 due to the pandemic. I was mess for about, 20 minutes, then I decided to embark on my own classical training in his honour and memory. My only regret about studying classical voice? Not having done it 10 years ago. I didn't know in the day I could afford the courses, let alone be told I had some decent talent.
Well now I have been training with a teacher for almost 2 years (minus a "semester" due to the teacher being on break to focus on personal projects for a bit) My goal is to embark on my own eventual opera-crossover/"popera" career as soon as possible, while I'm still young haha. I would love to do the real thing too someday, on the opera stage, but as a secondary thing. And before anyone says "It takes YEARS to master your craft". I know. I wasn't getting into this expecting to become Sherrill Milnes in 2 days. All I want is to put in the work and do it right!
I am a baritone as well. I developed a semi-decent appoggio. I still have to focus on breathing from the bottom of my stomach, or I will continue breathing from my chest which is a no-no. My soft-palate is about 95% under control. Lowering the larynx is my current challenge. That and the larynx AND soft palate at the same time.
Where I struggle most though? Is projection/resonance. I realize I'm forcing when I try to sing loud, and thus straining my voice on high notes. I have a naturally-quiet speaking voice, and I'm a bit timid. But I struggle a lot and it's irritating. My passaggio will just do whatever the heck it wants, making my voice crack more than a dead branch, and I'm reaching the end of my patience. But despite that, I REFUSE TO QUIT. Classical singing is my passion. It's my LIFE. It's all I want to do. At my age, I decided this is "do or die" time. No more playing around. I am dead-serious about wanting to do this.
I watched Ken's video on "the real way to hit high notes". But I wonder if it also applies to opera singers too. I heard he has some bel canto training, and that the proof is in the singing. And yes, by the way. I tested my teacher. She's into jazz but also has bel canto experience from school. And she has a pretty darn good classical voice.
I have immense trouble with confidence. I never "give myself permission" to hit those notes. Because the fear is ever-present. I dread embarrassment, and I'm frustrated because I still don't trust myself and my voice. Like "you're a baritone, why you trying to hit those notes?" Carlos Marin could. And he was a baritone. I was never a confident person. And yes. I know even professional, trained voices can not work 100% sometimes. But for me it's a sadly recurring thing as a fairly new singer.
I need some tips, while my teacher is unavailable. Should I hire an actual, fully classically-trained singer in my area to show me more advanced stuff? Or would some of you be willing to help me?
How do I properly project/resonate? I practice twang, with mixed results. I'm still not 100% clear on what to do to twang. And I know nothing about "belting".Thanks,
Nick Wandelt, Popera Singer