I dont wanna sing...

Eventually you'll get used to it. Just remember to breatheand relax.

Nobody's voice is perfect. Well, very few are, at any rate! Look at Bob Dylan....... probably one of the best songwriters, known for his definitely imperfect voice. The first few times I ever heard myself recorded I thought, "OMG! That's AWFUL!" But, the more I practiced, the stronger my voice became and now I really don't mind hearing myself. I still pick my voice to pieces, but I'm much more comfortable with it! You will get there, too! Just keep on keeping on! It probably doesn't sound as bad as you think it does!!!

Danada wrote: I hear everyone say you need to sing....but...I dont want to. I hate my voice.
Danada,

I suffer from the same malady. I can carry a tune and stay on pitch, but I just don't like the sound of my voice.

For now, I am starting to hum along with the guitar, so I can at least hear the melody line. Of course, if my kids are in the room, they tell me to shut up. They don't even want to hear that! :lol:

Don't know if I'll ever get over the "fear of singing", but I figure humming is a start.

Margaret

Not the fact that it quite hard for me to find the right timing to start singing and all but I just dont like how i sound.

No one likes what their own voice sounds like the first few times they hear it recorded.
If I was to play in the same register and key as my voice, I'd need to play guitar riffs on a bass.
An out of tune bass. :lol:

I like margaret's idea of humming along, though. I'll have to try that.

As soon as I get good enough in my playing to start multi-tasking a bit. Right now if I even think about lyrics my strummimg falls apart.

I hear everyone say you need to sing....but...I dont want to.

Poo on everyone. If you dont wanna sing, then dont. My guitar teacher cant sing but man he can make his guitar sing for him. He's one of those that can play several parts at one time and he's more entertaining than most I have seen who can play and sing.

Its your hobbie, goal, life... do what you want.

Geoo

Of course you dont NEED to sing. People usually like to hear vocals accompany your guitar playing. But, singing is best left to singers and guitar playing to guitarists. If being both is not on your list of goals, then dont sweat it.

Concentrate on learning how to make youre guitar sing. That takes years of dedicated practice. Anybody can sing...(almost anybody)...

There are lots of singers out there that play guitar, some of which are the only guitarists in the band.

Anyway, the best thing to do is play on your strengths. Stick to keys you can sing and stick to tones of your voice that sound good. It may not sound like the vocalist in the song but people will be impressed.

I hate my voice precisely because I couldn't carry a tune in a bucket.

While singing I hear myself going off pitch, try to get back on pitch, shoot off the other side, and eventually crash out of control on the side of the song someplace.

I play an instrument for a reason :)

I've heard that "anyone can sing," and when I was younger I took voice lessons for a bit to try, but eventually my teacher informed me that she just didn't know what else to try with me. She really took it as a failure on her part that she couldn't get me to sing much better than I do.

What really bothered her is that most people who can't sing on pitch just need to train their ear. But my ear is fine, it's my vocal control that is non-existant.

I can carry a tune and stay on pitch

Your one up on me.

I sing badly, but I find it really adds somthing, if only from my perspective.

I don't sing and the vocalists in the band thank me every time I don't.

I'm the same as Margaret, I can pitch (most of the time) but I just don't like the sound of my voice (even less when I record it and hear it how others would hear it). It just sounds too nasal and 'whingy' to me. I have good days and bad days though, the good days are getting more frequent and the bad days not so bad, so keep at it.

I've found the basic techniques that people advise to be helpful, so here's what I remember of it. As it's from memory, some of it may be outdated, bad for your voice in the long run or just plain wrong, but it all works for me :) (Corrections, warnings, additions etc from anyone else are welcome. KingPatzer?)

- Sing from the chest not the throat. (To know the difference, try to breathe out as little as possible as you hold a long note - to do that requires the correct singing technique)

- Sing with some force even when you're singing quietly (difficult to get your head around that one, but I can't think of any better way to explain it)

- Warm up your voice and get your into pitch-matching mode in one excercise before you start. Strum a basic major or minor chord and sing a long, loud, 'ahhhhh' along with it. Change the pitch of your voice to match the root note and hold it for a couple of bars, then change pitch to match the third and hold it, then the fifth and hold it etc. (I also go from a soft voice to a gravelly kind of growl and back after the first few which makes my throat feel more like it does after I've been singing for an hour - not sure if that's good for it, but it helps my voice stay consistent. :/)

- Be confident. Seriously, the difference a positive attitude makes is amazing. If that means only practicing at full whack when everyone else is out of the house, then do that every single time they're out for a while to build your confidence up. I go to an open mic thing quite often and the people who are not shy always come over better, even if they're not technically as good. I think that it's just another way of looking at the 'sing forcefully even when you're singing quietly' thing.

Good luck!

If you don't want to sing, then don't.

If you want to sing but feel you can't, then that's a whole other story. Just keep practicing.

Some people think that all musicians need to sing, sight read and be able to play lightning fast solos. Do what you want.

Kingpatzer said:

I hate my voice precisely because I couldn't carry a tune in a bucket.

Took the words right out of my mouth....which is why I always write my songs in one key, then transpose to another - "now where's this capo going to go?"....

:D :D :D

Vic

:P I knew I get alot out of this one, ok, where to start.

One of my biggest concerns as of now is that im pretty shy, "he doesnt talk" kinda thing. Im hoping that once I get to college I'll be able to change that. I know I wont get anywhere If I dont talk :wink: .

"Ok , before i write a thesis on singing , can we hear a sample of your voice.Record it for us in audacity and put it on soundclick (or any other way , if you want to). That will REALLY enable us to judge whether you voice is *unpresentable* or your just having a croonphobia." YIKES! Although it makes sense its kinda scary but possible, not sure if i want to tho :P Maybe later.

And from most of the responses I feel its a pretty common thought to skip out on the singing part, and let "your guitar talk for you" I just dont want to be forced into singing someday and be incapable of doing so :wink: .

And my teacher is trying to encourage me to sing while I play, I know hes not realy a singer but hes realy damn good at making up for that.

BUT THANK YOU ALL FOR THE INPUT!!
I'll keep trying :wink: and MAYBE link a recording (not likely tho :oops: )
I no theres alot but I like my faces!