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When approaching a note, whether it’s playing piano or singing a song, there are different ways to approach a note. For instance, to play or sing with force, loudness or soft and connected are a few different ways. How to approach a note in singing is called vocal onset. We will discuss the different ways to approach a note while singing or playing the piano (or any other instrument). Staccato: You must strike the keys or sing the note a…

A singer whose vocal resonance is even and consistently good from note to note, high or low, soft or loud, is changing the vowels semitone by and the vocal tract is constantly changing form. Singers have to work on how they form certain vowel sounds in a performance. Some vowel sounds are naturally brighter than others. For instance the “ee” vowel sound tends to be very bright and without some modification. The sound can stick out when singing a song.…

The word arpeggio comes from the Italian word arpeggiare and it means to play on a harp. If a singer sang an arpeggio or a pianist played an arpeggio, it would be a group of notes for a particular chord one after the other. It can also be called a broken chord. For instance, the C chord consists of C E & G, so you would sing or play C E G one right after the other and you can…

Part of getting the most out of your singing voice is to understand your own voice type. When you have a better understanding of your own anatomy, you are more able to know what to expect from your voice. So make sure you read the last blog about “Unlocking The Key To Your Voice”. Knowing your voice type is really handy if you want to sing in a community choir, audition for a music theatre production or join a vocal…

When you sing, articulation shapes your tone, the formation of a clear and distinct sound while singing and vowel articulation forms your vowel sounds and makes a huge impact on how you sound when you sing. If you are not forming them properly you will not sound your best. You can change the way you sound instantly through articulation. Articulation also deals with the clarity of playing piano or any other instrument. For a singer, articulation deals with the clarity,…

Do you want to get the most out of your singing voice? Are you trying to make your voice stand out from the rest? There are a few techniques you can use to make your singing stand out from the rest. How you begin to sing a note or initiate pitch is key. Today we will talk about one of the techniques. A hard vocal onset or glottal attack when singing a note. There is a gap between the two…

The vocal tract is made up of four parts: the oral cavity (which is the inside of your mouth from the lips to the front two-thirds of you tongue), the nasal cavity (inside the nose), the larynx (voice box which houses the vocal folds – cords), and the pharynx (hollow tube that starts behind the nose and goes down the back of the neck). Each of these four components of your vocal tract used to produce sound. You can think…

I’m sure you’ve heard the term phonation (production of speech sound), phonatory process, voicing (speech sound with resonance of the vocal cords) and they all mean the same thing. They are all describing the physical process in which sound is produced. As a singer you are converting air pressure into audible sound through vocal fold vibrations. The vocal folds (cords) produce sound through vibration. When you begin to sing, inhalation of air causes pressure to drop in the larynx. The…

There is such a thing as vocal color; it is the distinct quality of tone that gives color and personality to your voice. Every voice has it’s own unique timbre. Once you have established good vocal technique you need to add different shades of color. It’s like adding highlights to your hair. Tone is the overall sound of the voice. If Christina Aguilera and Adele sang the same song, it would sound completely different because of their tone and shades…

Technique is a skillful way of executing a song, whether it is singing or playing the piano. Technique deals with the concept of tone, musicality and expression in your performance. These techniques will improve your voice and help extend your vocal range as well as sharpen your ability to play piano. Proper vocal technique allows singers to produce a warm, rich sound that is conducive to achieving a good vocal performance. Your posture (standing tall – no slouching), breathing (from…