Free Your Voice with Expressive Music Art

Today we take a look at using Music to inspire physical Art.  And, postulate how this process can be used to Free Your Voice! There are many ways to combine art with music, so don’t think this prescription is the only way – make up your own way! Step 1: Gather your art materials: in this case a sketch pad and drawing pencils Step 2: Put on (play) desired music (in this case – classical piano) Step 3: Let your artistic expression flow! Here’s the example my daughter created: (to support art by Katie Pierce click here) Click the image
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Cross Training with Piano

With many types of training it’s often helpful to take days off from the primary area of training and to focus on training in other related areas – eg, cross training. For singing, areas of cross training might include playing the following instruments Piano Guitar Flute Overall, the Piano is probably the most versatile and is widely used for teaching and understanding music theory.  The keys are laid out so that you can quickly identify notes (something not always as obvious on a guitar or flute for example).  This makes playing scales, building chords, and understanding harmonies a snap. If
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“I DON’T WANNA PRACTICE!!!” – The CURE!

Think… Inspired Singing! – Don’t Ever Force It! “How to practice” is often not well addressed for students in private lessons, video, or books.  If you’re lucky your private teacher may offer a few hints… Here are a few things you will hear from a teacher that are helpful starting points… “Don’t practice mistakes”… for example, “Practicing at full tempo with errors, only reinforces the errors… because then you’re practicing to perform the errors… slow it down until you can play it perfectly at a slower tempo, then gradually increase…” While this is sound advice and a great starting tips,
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Incredibly Inspiring Intervals for Singers!

On first glance the idea of Interval work for Singers sounds about as exciting as working out at the gym (not to dis those who get excited about working out – it’s a great thing!). But, let’s face it, all of our music is made up of intervals and we need to be solid in making those leaps.  What’s challenging is finding a good way to practice without being bored to tears – something that keeps us going! SOLUTION Find a practice pattern that is FUN!!! In this article, we borrow one of my favorite exercises of all times (from Foundations
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[MUST KNOW SECRETS] Singing On Pitch in the Holidays

It’s nearing that time of year again and it’s never too early to begin to prepare for Holiday Singing. Here are some best kept tips and secrets to help you make it through this holiday season in good voice. Start making set lists or favorite song list.  If you’re a casual singer, then you probably have the experience of being in a group where everyone is trying to come up with songs.  Now, many groups will go around the circle and let each person chose a song for everyone to sing – that’s ideal if you can get it going.  But, often
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You’re SINGING OFF PITCH her teacher Scolded… She SMILED ;)

Some voice teachers and be quite forceful and intimidating and it’s a wonder how they ever get positive results from their students. Recently, a prominent voice coach scolded her student for Singing Off Pitch! The student responded by SMILING and continued singing. In this case, the student’s response was exactly what was needed. Smiling is an old school technique for improving flat pitch that still works for correcting small pitch errors. The benefits are two fold: The SMILE can actually slightly tightens the vocal chords, thereby increasing pitch The implied “brighter” mood of the singer is also known to slightly
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How to Find the Starting Note in a Song: Part 4

In Part 1 we looked at “getting over embarrassment” as even the best singers hit a wrong note from time to time; and outlined steps to support hitting the correct note. In Part 2 we expanded the discussion to include more tips and examples of how to use musical instruments/accompaniment to help find the starting note. In Part 3 we dissected the basic elements of chord structure and introduced the confounding issues of overtones using different instruments, and impact of chord inversions. In Part 4 we’ll explore starting notes that are not the root of the chord, but the 3rd or 5th of the
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How to Find the Starting Note in a Song: Part 3

In Part 1 we looked at “getting over embarrassment” as even the best singers hit a wrong note from time to time; and outlined steps to support hitting the correct note. In Part 2 we expanded the discussion to include more tips and examples of how to use musical instruments/accompaniment to help find the starting note. If you just discovered this conversation thread, you may want to go back to these previous discussions. Note: we’re talking about leading and teaching a song to a group, but all of these principles can apply to most other settings. In Part 3 we dissect
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How to Find the Starting Note in a Song: Part 2

This questions might seem trivial at first for some singers. However, it does apply to all skill levels. Consider a “Classical” aria where the piano, or orchestra, plays an introduction that goes on for what seems like minutes and the vocalist seems to pick the starting note out of thin air as it doesn’t apparently fit with anything recent in the accompaniment (think Brahms). In such situations the singer might be listening for a strong note 8 or 16 measures earlier and from that point jumping a known interval to find the right entrance. Wow! It’s not easy sometimes! Fortunately,
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How to Find the Starting Note in a Song: Part 1

Ever wonder how to find the starting note in a song? I travel quite a bit and work with a lot of singers who lead/teach others in singing. This might be a choir, sing-a-long, or other group gathering. For someone new to the role of leading a group, one of the most common questions/problems is “how to find the starting note”. Of course this is a challenge for singers in all situations. At times it’s quick, easy, and comes naturally. At other times, depending on experience, and the complexity of the song, and your history of singing (eg, what you are
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Top 10 Tips for Singing in the Holidays

As a Thank You for reading this season tips, take advantage of special Holiday Savings and get an EXTRA $10 OFF the already low Holiday Price. 100% Money Back Guarantee!   Many people are singing in the holidays more than any other time of year. Here are tips that will enhance your Singing Results this Holiday Season.   The count down starts today… Dec 15, 2013.   Tips #10 – Make A List Just Like Santa… and, Practice!   So many times at gatherings people start to sing and get through a couple of songs and then can’t figure out
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Holiday Feasting KILLS Singer’s Voice

  Singing after the Holiday   You might not normally think that the great feasts of Thanksgiving and other holidays would have anything to do with Singing, except that you might be singing more often. Have you thought about the impact of that delicious food on the Quality of your Singing Voice? Gaining weight – the first thing most of us notice is an extra 5 pounds or so of weight, mostly concentrated in the belly area.  This extra weight limits your breath support because your lungs can not fully expand.  The impact on singing is shorter phrases, less support
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HOW TO FIX SINGING ON/OFF PITCH BY LEARNING TO SIGHT-READ

Instrumentalists like to make fun of singers for their lack of musicianship: they often have trouble counting, have trouble finding the correct voice pitch, cannot tell when they are singing on/off pitch, learn their parts on the fly by ear, and many do not even know how to read music!  Nor do they spend nearly as many hours working in the practice room as their fellow instrumentalists.  Singers wish to refute these insults as unfounded stereotypes, but unfortunately the accusations are indeed based on fact.  So, singers must take responsibility if they wish instrumentalists to take them seriously as musicians!
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