Do I ever have a prayer of singing decently?
vindibona1
Member Posts: 3
Hi all... I'm a semi-professional musician, have a degree in Music Ed and have played guitar, bass and trumpet pretty much forever. I'd like to think my ears are pretty good (though I kind of suck at remembering music lines... or dance steps... even in the short term). But I read music very well which helps in that regard.
Fact: I got no pipes. When I sing, if I can hear myself, I can force notes into pitch, but they have no resonance or tone that anyone else wants to listen to. I have sinus blockage so I get little resonance in my head and have difficulty hearing myself singing if there are any moderately loud sounds around. I have a similar issue playing trumpet, but to lesser degree because it's louder and a lot of the sound bounces off the music stand.
Is there any hope at all with someone like me who would love to sing in public but has no natural gifts and struggles just to stay in tune (even though I can hear pitch down to one or two cents)? If so, where do I begin? TIA
Fact: I got no pipes. When I sing, if I can hear myself, I can force notes into pitch, but they have no resonance or tone that anyone else wants to listen to. I have sinus blockage so I get little resonance in my head and have difficulty hearing myself singing if there are any moderately loud sounds around. I have a similar issue playing trumpet, but to lesser degree because it's louder and a lot of the sound bounces off the music stand.
Is there any hope at all with someone like me who would love to sing in public but has no natural gifts and struggles just to stay in tune (even though I can hear pitch down to one or two cents)? If so, where do I begin? TIA
Comments
There is hope for everybody to sing. KTVA really builds your voice and forces correct muscle memory. However, it all comes down to how you use the program. If you do the exercises wrong, then you won't get the results you want. If you do them right, or slowly start doing them better until the technique is alright (it took a while in my case), then you will get there. It's absolutely stunning what this program can do for your voice, and even increase your range, resonance etc.
So yeah, KTVA is great. With that out of the way, i don't know how much your sinus blockage will do to your singing. Some resonance is wanted in the area of course, but a sound that is dominantly nasal is not what KTVA teaches. Is there anything you can do against your sinus blockage? Or is it a permanent problem?
A good hearing for pitch gets you halfway there. Your pitch in singing is all training. Being able to hear pitch well, including your own, will make it so much more easier. It just takes time. Recording your simple scales will show you how you are handling pitch. When your singing technique improves, i notice that pitch also becomes easier to grab.
Maybe @highmtn or other more experienced singers in KTVA can tell you more about the sinus blockage?
Welcome to the forum!
All the best,
Ben
get busy!..LOL
Then it hit me. It wasn't a want anymore, it was a need. My will, and determination overpowered my fear, and I'm loving every bit of it. I can actually sing now!
Peace, Tony
I don't know what kind of sinus blockage you're experiencing, but if it's mucus related, there are a couple of methods of clearing that out, like with steam or exercise where air needs to flow rapidly through your sinus to breathe.
As far as pitch goes, I've been singing since I was young, but I've always been singing to music playing in the background. If it's hard to hear your own pitch, I find that it helps to hold the palm a small distance in front of the mouth and "curve" the sound to one of my ears, while I have music playing on a headset or earbuds on the other ear. This makes my voice a lot clearer to hear for me and easier to distinguish if I'm in tune.
There are also apps and devices that detect pitch or are used for tuning that will show you exactly what pitch or frequency you're singing in. The app Sing Sharp actually has a nice vocal range detector, which can give you live feedback on what tune and frequency you're singing in. Playing with this could possibly provide you with more control over your pitch.
Hope that helps!