Awww, now look what you made me do. I just increased my count and became a significantly less awesome lurker.
…seriously, folks. Keep us posted about how the lessons are going!
Who are you studying with, Bacon?
Some random school in Kirkland that was nearby and convenient (44 School of Music or something like that). I might do some guitar lessons there as well since I’ve been at the self-taught plateau for 10 years now =/
I’m positive there are many highly qualified instructors out there that are likely better than what I’ll find, but given that I’m a horrible singer I’m not sure finding a top notch university level instructor is going to be reasonable for me.
Now if someone knows of someone awesome that has private instruction that is convenient to either southlake union/downtown or Kirkland, I’d consider that since I’m only obligated to try out the free intro lesson for now.
It just so happens that I do. Drop me a PM if you’re interested.
I’m necro-ing this thread because I’ve been thinking about voice lessons also, and I have a couple of questions:
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anyone have a ball-park guess on how long one needs to take lessons for before attaining some kind of competence? I’d like to go from “embarrassing when I karaoke anything (although I do it anyway because I don’t care too much)” to “at least not embarrassing” but I don’t know if it’s worth it if it takes a year before I see real results
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I really love to sing, and I do so all the time (shower, car, while cooking). I’ll sing anything, no matter what. I mostly live alone so no one is harmed. I’m wondering… I know that I’m a bad singer, but it doesn’t bother me currently. If I take lessons, I imagine I will become more conscious of my limitations. How likely is it that I will no longer enjoy singing songs that I really can’t sing? Of course you don’t know me, but is this something that often happens? For myself, I don’t know if the benefit of being a competent singer is worth the loss of the pleasure of belting out “Total Eclipse of the Heart” while I cook.
Thanks for any thoughts you might have!
My new roommate is a former song teacher. I’m thinking of abusing the opportunity.
I don’t mean to quibble, but it isn’t clear what you mean by “singing well,” particularly as it applies to untrained voices. There are people who have a vocal sound that is not very pleasant who can still carry a tune quite well.
But at the most basic level, I would answer that singing is learned. I have never met a person who grew up in a Protestant church who could not at least carry a tune. They may not have a good sense of rhythm, and they may not have a voice that is nice to listen to; but they can sing the tunes they know.
To quote William Byrd, English Renaissance composer, “Since singing is so fine a thing, I would all men would learn to sing.”
My advice would be to find a good teacher and do what he says. If you mainly like to do pop singing, find a teacher who can teach that, but honestly make the effort to follow his instructions. I was taken aback when my teacher expressed amazement at the fact that I listened to what she said and tried my best to do it. Yes, you may discover things you were doing that are wrong, but it can give you the tools to overcome that. And if you keep the attitude that it is supposed to be fun (and singing is supposed to be enjoyable), even “failures” can be fun as you experience making music. don’t let the recording industry fool you: Music is as much about the process as it is about the outcome.
A lot of what you ask depends on how hard you plan to work. You can’t take lessons and magically gain improvement. You’ll need to devote a certain amount of time each and every week (and preferably every day) to practice. Part of practice may be to vocalize scales, which not only helps your range, but also the transitions from, say, chest to head. Technique can be improved, too.
If you practice, you should see results before the end of the first year. For one, you’ll be able to open your mouth, sing, and this big sound will pour forth that probably can blast out anyone around you.
I call this the Billy Corgan Corollary.
Thanks for the feedback!
Although I don’t think anyone is going to give me the tools to do justice to “I will always love you.”
Not without some major cosmetic surgery.
(Hint: Dolly Parton originally recorded the song)
That said, you should see some improvement in the first few months as long as you practice.
Hey, thanks! I had no idea about that. I just bought her version on Amazon. Rad!
Watch “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas” to see her sing it to Burt Reynolds!
<The post above mine is spam, and reported, in case later anyone wonders why this thread was bumped.>
Liar. Now sing for us.
No one wins in that scenario I assure you!
Earplug makers?
WHAT??