That 1st song line/Finding confidence (even when you don't really have it)

Cherie

The first line of any song. It's the worst for me. Some kind of troll in my head ALWAYS questions my ability and then repeats incessantly during those pesky first seconds, at the beginning of any song. "Will I sound stupid?", "Will I remember the first line?" "Will I be flat?" "Will my timing be off?". If I don't hear those particular questions, I'll hear some other negative thoughts. And I know it's coming even when I'm practicing alone in our study in front of my two dogs! Why can't I just think, "I'm gonna be great on this???" And then when it does sound bad I think, wow, I even embarrassed myself on that one! I do believe as I progress with KTVA, it will help A LOT with my vocal insecurities. There was even a point, in the last few years, when I thought I should consider finding a hypnotist somewhere to trick my subconscious brain into pure confidence and bravery. I don't really believe in that stuff but I was feeling really frustrated before finding KTVA. Maybe the psychology is another component to successful singing just as important as the muscles.

highmtn

If I'm recording, I will practice the opening line over and over before hitting the record button. When I do my KTVA exercises, I pause the playback and repeat the first scale over and over, because I'm usually starting out cold, and invariably, if I go over the first scale 5 or 10 times, the rest of the scale and the rest of the workout will turn out to be much more solid.

I can be ultra-critical of the first line of a song. But I try to use that as an encouragement to really do my best.

On a recording, I'm of the opinion "Why go on if the first line doesn't sound perfect?"

That can be a stumbling block, but really, why not do whatever it takes to get that first line as golden as it can be. You don't want to obsess over it, or have a phobia, but then, let's make sure our standards are high enough to hold ourselves accountable for even the very first note.

Yes, we do have to turn off the voice of that liar inside our heads that tells us we're going to fail, but we also have to realize that we're human, and we will falter on some notes, and we just might need to be really on top of our game when that first note happens.

It is a balancing act, between self-confidence, and self-discipline. When you have both, it usually means you've been practicing a lot, and everything is starting to "kick-in".

Cherie

Practicing the first line a lot is REALLY good advice. I am going to do that with every song I record from now on! I do believe that you can sing a song reasonable well but if it starts out weak it can absolutely affect the perception of the listener for the rest of it. Also good re: the scales. I start out weaker, get stronger in the middle & for me because I haven't built up a lot of vocal strength and stamina yet, I often peter out at the end.