Could I get some feedback? -newbie-
MasterNewb
Member Posts: 5
Here's two songs that I've done recently and I was wondering if you guys could help me figure out any and all problems that you hear. I chose these two because it gives a difference in style, pop and classical in terms of how I'm singing technique wise.
I will note that I am currently a Baritone range wise though I used to be a tenor back in HS. I feel I still have a good enough range from high school to do these so I did.
Thank you for any and all help that I get on here, it is very appreciated.
Comments
The first song, Kiss From a Rose, is impossible to evaluate without a backing track. There is no reference to pitch. Demos need a low-level backing track so we can tell what key you are supposed to be in and whether or not you are on-pitch. It sounds like your pitch is drifting in that song, but without a reference it's difficult to tell where you are supposed to be.
The second song, Come What May, does have a backing track. The backing track could be just a little stronger, but not so much that it covers up the detail in your vocal track.
On Come What May, your pitch is drifting. Sometimes you are fine, other times you are off by several cents. I think you need to do a lot of training with scales and take the time to ensure that you are singing each note in those scales correctly. Learn intervals so that you can stay more on-track and in-tune as you go up and down different intervals of pitch.
Your voice in general sounds fine, but without solving your pitch issues you won't be able to satisfactorily perform. That requires training your voice AND your ears and brain to listen actively AS you sing, so that you can turn yourself into a pitch-seeking missile that is always self-correcting and zeroing-in on your target pitches.
If you can get the pitch-monster tamed, the other issues of singing will come easier to you.
Good Singing to You!
Bob
About the pitches, I will do more scales and work my voice to be more on pitch. Thanks for the feed back again.
Once your pitch has stability, we can look at other issues, but overall, the pitch is the main thing that needs addressing first.
So I know that this is 1. probably too soon for another track to be put up and 2. not the right song for my voice type but I felt like recording and asking if this is any better pitch wise. This is because I have the original as the backing track though it's not loud enough to be heard over me, and I feel I've done better at the song because of that.
I am just a student, but from what I heard, there are several things you need to fix to improve that voice of yours:
(i) Pitch - In the Come What May tune, your pitch seems to wander off a lot. Same goes for your Earth Song cover. You can try doing some ear training exercises to improve your pitch accuracy even further - I personally use the solfeggio (basically this is your do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do) to do so. Do this with your guitar (you better make it a habit to keep the guitar in tune if you have one because otherwise you will sound off even if your intervals are actually correct) or piano everyday so that you have a reference note from which you can fall back on, and having a friend with a good ear is even better since he or she can tell you to sing higher or lower if you are not bullseye with your pitch. I agree with Bob that correct notes are non-negotiable no matter what genre or style of music you are pursuing.
(ii) Support - I gave a listen to your Kiss From A Rose recording, and you really need to work on your diaphragmatic support to ensure that your dynamics are more even. You seem to be going too loud even in the beginning, which was supposed to be a lot softer. Your phrases also seem choppy and lack smoothness because of the lack of support, because you are stopping in awkward places to take a breath. When your support gets better, your pitch accuracy will also improve instantly, and even your phrases will sound a lot more musical.
(iii) Diction and tone - Particularly for the Come What May song, the tonal quality seems to be a bit too dark and your throat is not really open, which is why the diction feels quite unclear. Even when you do classical songs or go for a rounder tone (usually for ballads), you still need to have a good amount of brightness in your mix (which you will learn later as you keep developing your voice) to ensure that you do not end up muffling those words or getting your voice stuck on the throat. Ken's advice on the vertical (not horizontal) open throat 'aaaa' holds true and really helps a lot - not only that it prevents you from choking off your consonants (which would otherwise limit your vocal range and cause tons of problems such as massive straining or cracking), but it also adds the required bright 'ping' to your voice that makes your words clearer.
Just my two cents. I am only basing this from whatever I have learned so far. Keep working on it man!
Regards,
Tim
There are still a lot of pitch inconsistencies in this latest demo.
One thing that I would ask you is do you not hear the pitch issues? Your voice is drifting from the correct pitches. You are close, but not close enough. If you can't hear the difference in when you are on pitch and when you are not on pitch, then it's going to take a lot of work to get your voice/ear/brain team to work together actively to be able to do so in real time as you sing a song.
You may need to slow everything to a stop and simply train on one note at a time. Record yourself matching random notes being played from a keyboard. A program such as Sing and See can show you if you are singing on pitch and whether you can hold on to that pitch. Work with one note at a time, and listen to yourself on playback. You will need to be able to do that to make good progress with any singing program. Ken does have a basic pitch program included with his bundle, but you may want to do some intensive target practice to get your voice ready for some accurate vocal exercises. Inaccurate practice will lead you astray.
I hear good qualities in your voice, and I hear the desire to sing well. Conquering pitch discernment is something you will have to tackle in order to be successful as a singer and to be proud of what you accomplish with your voice.
Accurate pitch is non-negotiable.
All the Best!
Bob