Last blog we looked at how important it is to sing in tune to be allowed to sing. We discovered that singing out of tune isn’t a reason to stay silent at all costs. This blog I will speak about another reason for people to stop singing: the colour of the voice.
Because we’re all different, we also all sound different, natural and cultural factors contribute to that. Naturally, our vocal folds and vocal tract are shaped in slightly different ways, this makes that your voice sounds different from others and that, for example, male voices are generally lower than women’s voices. Culturally we speak different languages and are for example used to speak in a lower or higher range. So many factors contribute to how your voice sounds and that makes it unique.
Besides that, the voice is also a versatile instrument that can make so many different sound colours that we will never get bored. Whether a voice is perceived as beautiful or not is also culturally determined.
This part of the blog is dedicated to singers that are known for their unique voice colour. Here I will give some examples of these kinds of voices. Again: if it’s your favourite artist, don’t be insulted. If you absolutely hate one voice, don’t be bothered, that’s also normal.
To start with a well known example of a special singer, I give you Louis Armstrong. With a father that plays the trumpet, Sunday afternoons could be filled with Louis Armstrong playing and singing. The voice gives me comfort. Trying to sing like him doesn’t give me comfort and the sound that comes out of my throat is… hmm… dying frog. And my teachers would send me home telling me to take go to bed and drink a lot of ginger tea. But what a wonderful world <3
One of my Facebook-friends suggested Joanna Newsom to me. She said this about her own experience with her voice: “At first I hated her voice and I could hardly listen to it. That later changed in great appreciation. Saw her live two times and she’s gooood and very original.” My friend is not the only one with this journey through Joanna Newsom’s singing. I have to confess that I’m still in the first phase of listening to her. But whether you like it or not, she creates her very own sound.
The next two singers are in the same voice category, but in a completely different genre: men singing high.
The first singer, an old-time favourite, is James Blunt.
He constantly sings high with a little bit of rawness in the sound. That makes him unique and he got famous with it. The voice of an angel? I’m not so sure.
The second singer is countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński. If you let a classically trained countertenor sing to an audience that never heard something like him before, they’ll probably laugh. Not everybody is used to men singing like women. But it’s a normal part of the male voice and gives a very specific sound. This sound is not appreciated by everyone.
My personal controversial voice is the one of Alanis Morissette. I don’t think she’s a bad singer and I like the music, but there is something in her voice that just starts annoying me after some time. Then I want to put her off.
What we think is beautiful isn’t necessarily considered the ideal in other cultures. Like we’re not used to their sound. Listen for example to Chinese opera, Mongolian throat singing and also the contrast in sound. They’re almost opposites from what you can do with the voice,
The few examples I gave in these two blogs just gave a melted drop of the tip of the iceberg of voice types and colours. What’s so cool, is that all these sounds, whether you hate or love them, are produced by the human voice. And it’s so great that when we sing, we can add a new sound to this collection.
So apart from being afraid of singing out of tune, also don’t be afraid for your own sound. You’re always welcome to try int in a vocal lesson!
Ok, also this blog gets a ps: three more special voices: one computer voice, the last castrato and a woman with a very versatile voice!
There are many new impressions when you start singing lessons and therefore it is logical that you also encounter some problems during the lessons or when practicing at home. This can slow down your progress and be discouraging. In this article are 6 obstacles when you start singing lessons that are unknown to most new students. Take advantage of them.
I want to talk about coping with your asthma while singing through four questions:
Can I sing with asthma?
Can I sing in a choir with asthma?
How can asthma medication impact my voice?
How can I cope with my asthma during singing?
When we speak we hardly ever think of the length of the words we say. We just say them and usually they’re short.
When we sing this is so different: notes can be very long. In this explanation I will give you tips on how to sing long notes without pressing them. I will give you a technical and a musical path. Both paths reinforce each other.
We believe that everyone can improve their musicality. We bring challenge to music lessons so that you always learn something new, no matter if you are beginner or advanced.
