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Spunky songs for practicing articulation and agility
Songs with larger intervals to practice smooth register
Songs to practice breath coordination and legato phrases
Songs for higher voices to expand your range for any gender
Songs for lower voices to expand your range for any gender
Introduction
I’m so happy you chose this book! Whether you’re a shower singer or you secretly desire to sing on a stage, this book is for you. The book is full of helpful information covering all aspects of singing, from posture and breathing to vocal health and techniques for increasing your range. Absolutely no experience is necessary! Even if you know zero about singing, you’re going to have a great time exploring your singing voice.
You can’t develop your singing voice overnight; it takes time. Some people are born with a voice ready to sing at the Hollywood Bowl, but most people who like to sing have to work on their voice to prepare it for the first performance. Whichever category you fit into, this book has some valuable information for you.
Exercising the singing voice is the ticket to improving your technique. The exercises in the book are similar to what you may encounter in a voice lesson or a class about singing. By working on exercises, you give your body a chance to figure out exactly how to make the sounds. After you get the technical details cooking, you can apply that information to your songs and sound even better.
You may not have someone there listening to you as you practice, but you find suggestions throughout the book on how to listen to your voice and critique it for yourself so that you can improve every time you practice.
About This Book
Singing For Dummies, 3rd Edition, is designed as a reference guide, not as a tutorial, and includes exercises to help you improve your singing. Flip through and look for parts that interest you. (For that matter, I recommend that you also go through the parts that don’t interest you — who knows what you may discover about your voice?) What’s important to remember is that you don’t have to read this book from cover to cover to improve your singing; look for the topics you need and use both the exercises and the online tracks to develop your best voice.
The online tracks are an important partner to your book. You can find them at www.dummies.com/go/singingfd3e. The exercises work the technical info that you read about in the book. You hear a pattern played for you on the piano, a singer demonstrates the pattern for you, and the pattern is repeated several times for you to sing along. Just singing songs is cool, but you want to work on technique to get your songs to sound great. If you work on the articulation exercises on the tracks and then apply that information and skill to songs, you can sing with great skill and be understood. If you’ve never had lessons, you may not see the benefit of the exercises in the beginning, or they may seem difficult. Keep trying them during your practice sessions, and you may see how quickly the exercises can help you to sing.
Chapter 10 gives you ideas on developing a practice routine to coordinate all the information that you read in the book with what you hear on the online tracks. After you plot out your practice routine, keep the tracks handy so you can choose which tracks to practice. Sing along during your regular practice sessions or in your car as you drive. That’s cool, as long as you pay attention to your driving.
Because many people respond quickly to imagery, I include ways to use imagery to help you improve your singing. Knowing the mechanics works well for some singers, and others prefer knowing what to think about or visualize as they sing. If you want to know what to listen for, I give you that information as well. I also explain the exercises by having you do something physical. Sometimes just feeling the movement in your body gets the idea across. Whatever way you prefer to use, you can find it in this book.
Here are some conventions that I use throughout this book:
» I spell out the vowel sound for you or use symbols found in Webster’s dictionary, because that’s most common to new singers and nonsingers.
» Throughout the book you have opportunities to sing specific vowel sounds. One vowel sound may need a little explanation. I use the shape “a” for the vowel sound in the words cat, hat, or Matt. For the vowel sound in the words father, plaza, or blah, I use “ah.” You can practice these sounds in Chapter 8 so you know what to do when you see them in other places in the book.
» Musical styles continue to change and the terms used to describe the styles also continue to change. If you read the history of pop or rock music, you’ll see a long list of titles to describe each era. I use the term pop-rock for songs that can cross over into both styles. It’s common to see a great song listed on the hit-song list for different styles of music. In Chapter 14 you can read about the sounds used in different styles, but know that pop-rock refers to a song that could fit in either style.
» I use musical examples throughout the book to give you a visual explanation of the exercises on the online tracks. You can read an explanation about musical notation in Chapter 1. There you find information about how the little circles on the page correspond with the notes on the piano and the notes you’ll sing in specific parts of your range.
Foolish Assumptions
Because you’re reading this book, I assume that you have an interest in singing and discovering how to improve your singing. You don’t need any previous knowledge about singing. You can find information for beginners, as well as advanced information for singers who have some experience.
Icons Used in This Book
This icon tells you that a track on the online tracks at www.dummies.com/go/ singingfd3e corresponds to the information in the chapter.
This information is so helpful that you should store it in your memory bank.
This icon highlights detailed explanations that you may find really interesting or may just want to skip right over.
The Tip icon emphasizes good advice from someone who has already made the mistake and wants to save you the trouble.
To avoid making a blunder or injuring your voice, pay attention to what these paragraphs have to say.
Beyond This Book
In addition to what you’re reading in the print or e-book, you can check out some extra goodies and reference them when you want, check out the Cheat Sheet at www.dummies.com and search for “Singing For Dummies Cheat Sheet.” You can also find the audio files of the example tracks at http://www.dummies.com/go/ singingfd3e
Where to Go from Here
If you have no singing experience, you may want to start with Chapter 1 and work your way through the chapters in order. However, this book is designed to allow you to jump in anywhere you want and start swimming through information that’s completely understandable. If you have some singing experience, choose whatever chapter appeals to you. You may have to refer to other chapters occasionally if you missed a definition, but otherwise, you’re free to roam the chapters at your own pace and in any order. As you work through the exercises in this book, you want to have the basic technical skills of breathing (see Chapter 4) and tone (see Chapters 5 and 6) readily available. If you find yourself struggling, you may want to go straight to Chapter 3 to make sure that you have proper singing posture.
1 Exploring Singing Basics
IN THIS PART . . .
Find out about different voice types and figure out which category fits your voice.
Understand that great posture can get your body lined up and ready to sing your best.
Discover the importance of air moving in and out of your body to keep the glorious sounds coming out.
Focus on tone, which allows you to improve on the sounds you’re already making or tweak your tone a little if your engine knocks rather than hums.
IN THIS CHAPTER
» Thinking about your voice type
» Starting with the basics: Posture, breath, and tone
» Getting familiar with the different parts of your voice
» Starting to apply your vocal technique
Chapter 1
Preparing to Sing
So you’re curious about singing. Whatever musical background and experience you have or don’t have, this book has something to offer you. The book contains great exercises and online tracks that allow you to hear the exercise and sing along. If you’re a beginner, welcome aboard. You can find out all kinds of cool info about singing in this book. This chapter provides an overview of all the great stuff you can encounter in the book.
Singing is one of the coolest means of expression out there. Singing well is about knowing how to work the parts that create the sound for singing. The chapters that you encounter in the book outline what you need to know in just the right sequence. You don’t have to read them in the order written to get what you need. Some of the later chapters may be a little difficult if you don’t have any singing experience. The only way to know is to jump right in and start reading on whatever topic interests you.
What You Want to Know Right from the Beginning
Before you choose the date for your first big concert or recital, you want to find out about singing. The first part of this book provides you with the big picture.
Determining your voice type
Singers usually are eager to determine their voice type because they want a category to belong to. You may have heard of the categories of singers:
» Soprano: Higher female voice
» Mezzo: Lower female voice
» Tenor: Higher male voice
» Bass: Lower male voice
If you aren’t sure which one applies to your voice, explore Chapter 2. You can find explanations of what makes a soprano differ from a mezzo, or a tenor differ from a bass. You don’t have to figure out your voice type today, but you can explore the chapter so you know what to listen for as you sing.
Locating the notes on the staff
Voice types are probably easier to figure out if you know where to find the notes on a musical staff. (See Figure 1-1 in this chapter.) The names of the notes are A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Those notes repeat across the piano.
» The treble clef spaces correspond to the notes F, A, C, and E. Beginning on the bottom of the staff and going up, the notes spell face You can use sentences to remember the other notes. Again, starting on the bottom line and moving up, the notes on the lines of the staff are E, G, B, D, and F, letters that begin the words of the sentence Every good boy does fine.
» For the bass clef, the spaces are A, C, E, and G, the letters that begin the sentences All cows eat grass or All cars eat gas. The lines in the bass clef are G, B, D, F, and A, which correspond to Good boys do fine always. If you prefer animals, then use Great big dogs fight animals.
If I say that a singer’s range is Middle C to High C, I have to use ledger lines to notate those two notes because they’re not within the five-line staff. Ledger lines are extra lines added above or below the staff for notes that are higher or lower than the notes on the staff. When you find Middle C in Figure 1-1, you can see the extra line added below the staff. The easiest way to find Middle C on the piano is to look at the brand name printed on or above the lid covering the keys. If you find that brand name, the C right in the middle of that name, or just to the left, is usually Middle C.
FIGURE 1-1: Locating notes on the staff.
Treble Clef
Middle C is called Middle C because it’s in the middle of the keyboard that contains 88 keys. Middle C is also called C4, because it’s the fourth C on the keyboard. If Middle C is C4, then the next C above is C5, and so on. C is the note just to the left of the pair of black keys. The distance between the two Cs is called an octave. If you start counting at the first C and count eight white notes up, you find another C. That means the E just above Middle C (C4) is E4. Easy enough, but not every person you encounter knows this system, so I stick to what works: Middle C.
You also encounter the words flat and sharp in this book. A flat lowers a pitch a half step and a sharp raises the pitch a half step. F-sharp is the black key on the piano between F and G. The same black key between F and G can be called G-flat.
First, you want to get yourself aligned — that is, line up all your body parts to get ready to sing — and then explore your breathing. Breathing while singing is different from breathing normally, because you have to take in more air and use more air over a longer period of time. When you get the air flowing, you can explore the tone of your voice.
» Correcting posture for a better sound: Posture is important in singing well. If all the parts for singing are lined up correctly, you stand a really good chance of getting wonderful sounds to come flying out of your body. Knowing how to stand isn’t rocket science, but it may take a little adjustment on your part. If you aren’t used to standing tall all the time, you may feel a bit awkward at first. Chapter 3 explores posture for singing.
» Knowing the keys to proper breathing: The big key to great singing is knowing how to use your breath to make the sounds. You may not know how to get much breath in your body and then make it last throughout a long phrase. If you check out Chapter 4, you can find all kinds of exercises and explanations on how to work on your breath so you can sing those long phrases in your favorite song.
» Finding your tone: Vocal tone is important because you want the best sounds to come out of your mouth. By exploring exercises on tone, you can make changes to your sound. People often tell me that they want to change the way they sound. To change your sound, you need to know how you create sound. The two chapters on tone, Chapters 5 and 6, give you quite a bit of information about how to start a note and then what to do to make the note sound a specific way.
Developing Your Singing Voice
When you have the basic information swimming around in your head, you can start to work on your singing voice. Chapters 6 through 9 offer you more specific information about how to create a sound that’s unique to you. Sometimes singers try to imitate their favorite famous singer. A better idea is to sound like yourself. Your voice can be just as fabulous as that famous singer’s. You just have to practice to develop it.
Following are some points to work on:
» Filling the auditorium with resonance: Resonance is the echoing of tone. In Chapter 7, you find out how to use resonance to project your voice. Singing
loudly makes a lot of sound, but using resonance allows you to project the sound over the orchestra to the back of the concert hall. Find out how your voice can resonate so Uncle Sam can hear you from the back row.
» Fine-tuning vowels and consonants: A long time ago in grade school, you had to work with vowels and consonants. Well, you can refresh your memory in Chapters 8 and 9. By making your vowels and consonants specific, you can make yourself easily understood when you’re singing. You’ve probably heard someone sing but couldn’t understand a word they said. It’s even worse when the song is in a language that you speak. By knowing how to articulate vowels and consonants, you can create specific sounds that your audience can follow.
» Warming up your voice: Practice makes perfect! After you discover all this great information about singing, you need to develop a plan for practicing it on a regular basis. If practicing seems like a foreign concept to you, check out Chapter 10. The whole chapter is devoted to helping you figure out what to do when you warm up and how to apply the exercises that you read about in the book to your daily practice routine. Because you can explore so much, make a list of what you want to accomplish today, and then add more to that list each time that you practice.
Working the Different Parts of Your Voice
Your goal is to make your singing voice sound like one smooth line from top to bottom. Your voice may have a few bumps and wiggles as you work your way up and down. That’s perfectly normal, but help is right at hand. Chapters 11 and 12 work with specific areas of the voice called registers — chest voice, middle voice, and head voice. In these chapters, you can discover what each part of the voice feels like and what to do with it. When you’re ready, try these tips:
» Strengthening your middle, chest, and head voice to get a complete vocal workout: The first step in the workout for the voice is to find the different registers of the voice and then notice what each feels like. After you find them, you want to try to smooth the transition between registers. You may find that your chest voice and head voice feel miles apart. The exercises in Chapters 11 and 12 are designed to help you smooth out the bumps. You may not think the exercises are easy in the beginning, which is good. I don’t want you to be bored. Even if you’ve never explored any vocal sounds, you can figure out these exercises and get your voice in good working order — it just takes some time and patience.
Chapter 12 helps you refine your register transitions and extend your range. Some songs require flexibility, and the exercises in the chapter help you develop agility and even try out your agility in some pop riffs.
» Adding belting technique to your list of skills: Your speaking voice needs a workout to get you started on belting. Belting is the sound that you want to make for musical theater or pop-rock songs. The exercises start from the beginning, so you don’t have to know anything about belting to take on the information in Chapter 13.
Applying Your Technique
After you explore your technique through the exercises that I provide, you need to take the next step. Chapters 14 through 18 are about applying your technique. At some point, you want to apply that healthy technique to songs. You also want to maintain your healthy technique and a healthy voice at all times. When your technique is really cooking, you can explore Chapters 19 and 20, about moving your technique into a performance situation. Performances can be big or small. Whatever the size of the audience, you want to look like a pro and feel good about what you’re doing onstage.
To start applying your technique when singing songs for yourself or others, consider the following:
» Training for singing: Finding a voice teacher can be tricky. When you find the right teacher, the experience can be rewarding. If you aren’t sure how to go about finding a teacher, explore the tips and suggestions in Chapter 15. Finding the teacher may be the most difficult part. After you answer the questions in Chapter 15, you’ll have a better idea of what you want from voice lessons. Whether or not you hire a voice teacher, you can check out Chapter 14 for information about training to sing different styles of music. Knowing what’s required of your voice allows you to dive right into the right chapters.
» Choosing appropriate singing material: Finding new songs to sing can be overwhelming. You have so many choices, but how do you know what works for you? The clues are in Chapter 16. The lists there offer suggestions on what to look for and what to avoid when choosing songs. Whether you want a song to sing for your own pleasure or a song for a specific function, you want a song that accentuates your strengths.
For more suggestions of songs, you can explore Appendix A for a list of suggested songs for enhancing your singing technique. The songs cover different styles of music, from classical to country. After you choose the song you want to sing, check out Chapter 17 for some tips on how to conquer the song in a short amount of time.
» Feeling comfortable with the music and text: In Chapter 18, you can explore acting to combine with your singing. Sounding good when you sing is great, but you want to sound good and understand the story behind the music. You don’t have to know anything about acting to explore this chapter; it’s all right there for you.
» Overcoming performance anxiety: If your daydreams of singing are clouded with anxiety about singing in front of an audience, Chapter 19 is just for you. By confronting your fear and taking charge, you can make progress and let go of the anxiety. You only add pressure to your performance if you assume that you’re supposed to be totally calm. Many famous performers get nervous before a performance. After exploring Chapter 19, you’ll know that it’s fine to be nervous, but you can still sing while nervous.
» Nailing your audition: So many singers dream of auditioning for a Broadway show or entering a singing competition that I wrote a whole chapter about auditioning your song. Chapter 20 has information for you on what to expect at the audition, what you may have to sing or do, and how to prepare for the audition. Because an audition for a musical is different from an audition for an opera, you want to know what’s kosher and what’s not.
Having Fun
Singing is about more than just alignment and technique — although, of course those considerations are important. If you concentrate only on the technical aspect of singing, you may end up singing from your head rather than your heart. Remember to let loose every once in a while and have fun with it!
Some performers are really amazing onstage — obviously having fun — and they also have great technique. Check out Chapter 21 to see whether any of your favorite singers made my list of performers with great technique. And if you want your performance to be spectacular, Chapter 24 has some great tips on performing like a pro. Before your big performance, check out Chapter 22 for answers to the most commonly asked questions about singing, and see Chapter 23 for information on keeping your voice healthy. Maintaining a healthy voice is important. Your vocal cords are really small, and you want to take good care of them. You can also read about medications and other factors that influence your singing voice. A healthy voice and solid technique will keep you singing for years to come.
The online tracks at www.dummies.com/go/singingfd3e that come with the book are a great tool to help you keep polishing your technique. The singers on the files have two things in common with you:
» They all love singing.
» They all have a group of exercises they use to keep their technique in tip-top shape.
You may think that only classical singers have a vocal workout routine, but that’s not true. Some famous singers even post videos of themselves practicing before they walk out on stage and sing their pop-rock tunes. Check out the different singers on the tracks that range from a rapper, belters, pop singers, musical theater performers, classical singers, and different voice types of all shapes and sizes to see if you can tell what style of music they perform.
You may be surprised that the type of singer isn’t always obvious just by listening to them warm up. Before and after recording the tracks, each singer laughed a lot and experienced the challenge of demonstrating a specific sound just for you.
