Hey guys, I'm new here and would like to get some advice on my singing problems.
I've been playing guitar for 3 years and have decided that I also want to learn how to sing, so I can play and sing at the same time. It's been around 2-3 months since i started practicing my singing. I've read a lot of head voice and mixed voice, and I'm wondering if I'm accessing it or not.
When I sing something that isn't in my chest voice range, I slide up into my falsetto or head voice, and I'm not sure which it is. I don't usually have a crack in my voice when I do this anymore, unless I'm trying to yell or put too much air into the note. If it is head/mixed voice, could it be strengthened it so I can sing louder at those pitches? I've also read something about "knowing the notes in your mind and note guessing" to sing. I find that I my voice goes flat on some notes that I sing, and I don't notice it while I'm singing. Does this have something to do with me guessing where the note is with the help of my guitar and note knowing what or where it is?
Thanks for the help in advance.
When I sing something that isn't in my chest voice range, I slide up into my falsetto or head voice, and I'm not sure which it is. I don't usually have a crack in my voice when I do this anymore, unless I'm trying to yell or put too much air into the note. If it is head/mixed voice, could it be strengthened it so I can sing louder at those pitches?
Yes IMO it can be strengthened with the correct technique and practice. IMO the key to singing higher (although I am still in the process of finding my higher registers myself) is to place your voice... Think of you're head as your amp... you don't want the sound to go straight out your mouth without it being amplified first. There are different places in your head where the voice can resonate for different pitches; the nasal cavity is often associated with middle voice and the sinuses with head voice and falsetto. Learning how to place the voice into these areas will add texture and in turn strength to the sound. Do do this I find its good to have correct breathing and to keep a relaxed throat and larynx and quite literately (at first) feel where the sound is resonating in my head (you can feel it in your nose even if you put your hands on your nose).
I've also read something about "knowing the notes in your mind and note guessing" to sing. I find that I my voice goes flat on some notes that I sing, and I don't notice it while I'm singing. Does this have something to do with me guessing where the note is with the help of my guitar and note knowing what or where it is?
Thanks for the help in advance.
Again this will come with practice and development of your ear. You really need to know your own voice. I've been seriously singing about a year now and I feel that I'm only just starting to get to know my voice, and I know when its off... so I guess its just the more you do it :). Practice practice practice, but keep singing :).
FYI
Thanks for the response. But I guess this isn't something that I can learn overnight, and I didn't expect it to be. And about the breathing and larynx, I don't think I'm breathing correctly. I run out of breath really easily, and I've read about belly breathing being the correct way to breathe, or the incorrect way. And if I am breathing correctly, would singing more help increase my lung capacity? Or would I have to do breathing exercises.
I think the way I'm singing higher notes my larynx isn't moving up too much, but it is by about around a cm or so. I think of my voice sliding up my throat and into my head when I go to sing higher notes. For now I can only do this smoothly by doing a warm up. Also, at this moment I can't sing loud at all when singing higher notes. Will my volume improve with the notes?
