Play my guitar and sing, or shut up?

[12FanMan]

Originally Posted by Jeffreykip

I will always stick to the sunny opinion that everyone can sing, maybe even everyoneshould sing. I once heard someone say that if a person can hear the difference in two notes, then they can learn to sing, which sounds generous but logical. That said, I am well aware that there are some singers who sound best when their voice is lost in a large group sing-along, but you can still sing for yourself, for campfires, for friends, or in that aforementioned sing-along.

As a singer, (not pro, but performing soloist, self-critical but comfortable) here few things singers do that might help:

1) When practicing, singers cup their hand around their ear with the heel of the hand near the mouth so that you can hear your own voice. All trained singers do this, especially with others or when there is an especially challenging part, even if it looks a little funny. It's like the ear mics you mention, but way easier and cheaper. It definitely helps you learn vocal control.

2) Showers and tiled rooms (stairwells) are really gratifying and useful for hearing yourself sing. I don't mean taking a shower, but just standing in front of it while you sing. Unlike cupping your ear, you can play guitar at the same time, too. You can really hear yourself and adjust. You can even just face into an open corner of a room and really listen to the wall in front of you and get a good sense of your voice.

3) Practice singing without the guitar, or with minimal strumming and focus just on your voice. Voice takes focus, just like an instrument. I do whole rehearsals where I just sing so I am only thinking about my voice.

4) Sing more. Your voice definitely gets better the more you sing. Way better. Like the difference between a person running a 10k who never runs, and a person who runs three times a week. Warm up with something easy and gratifying, don't sing in a key that doesn't fit your voice (learn to love the capo), and be happy with what you got - some people are born with an amazing timbre to their voice, but not everyone (not me), but you can still enjoy it.

The earpieces you mention are for stadium singers or those playing in loud spaces, and often they don't like them because it doesn't feel natural (didn't you see A Star is Born?). You can sing through an amp and point it back at yourself effectively, but I am all about practicing rather than shopping and spending. You wouldn't suggest someone stop playing basketball just because they were not born tall enough to dunk, and you wouldn't tell them to buy new shoes- you'd just tell them to practice.

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Interesting you said the voice gets better the more you sing. I thought I was just stuck with what I was stuck with. My main problem remains, though. When I sing, something in the repaired ear masks the pitch of my voice. Not only did the surgeon leave me with that problem, but (after telling me he could restore the hearing in that ear) my acuity was dropped by about 75%. That made it impossible for me to discern the direction of a sound. That may not seem to be a big deal...but it really puts the thrill back into driving when you're approaching a traffic light and hear a siren.

Also, about the shower...back when I was in college, I noticed our shower had sort of an echo to it. So, I went back to my room, got my guitar (a Conrad 12'er) sat on the bench and played. I was amazed. It sounded as if the whole shower was an amp.

I have tried one of your suggestions...by using my hand to redirect the sound of my voice to my "good ear," while singing along with a song on the car stereo....I THINK I was able to more closely match the singer's voice by doing that....so maybe the amp speaker or a karaoke device would help. I'd want to find out if I can sound ok way before I tried to gig or sing with a group. Even thinking about such an endeavor brings back memories of the Andy Griffith episode where Barney tried to find the off-key singer when it was him. Anyway, I've never gigged before in my life. Though I've gagged a few times, it was never in a shower, and I never recorded it.

[12FanMan]

Originally Posted by Mandobart

There have been many great songwriters writing songs for others that they don't perform themselves (Robert Hunter, John Barlow, Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weill, Dan Penn, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, etc.).

Who's to say Dylan wouldn't have written anything unless he personally performed/recorded it? And, there are a few artists who do Dylan songs way better than Dylan (Joan Baez, Jimi Hendrix, Sullivan Tuttle...).

==================================
You have a point. I recognized none of those song writers' names..but loved the music they produced.

[LAPlayer]

OP, what you are asking about are In-ear monitors. They are essential when playing in a loud venue (room or hall) or noisy situation to let you hear the mix (the instruments) that works for you to sing to. I need an equal mix of my mic and the front-of-house mix. Even if you're playing alone you need to hear your instrument so a monitor, either floor or in-ear is really important to be on key. Especially with your hearing acuity in-ears may be enormously helpful. Alternatively you can place your amp/pa/speaker at a location behind you enough to hear your instrument while trying to keep away from feedback.

[LAPlayer]

Originally Posted by 12FanMan

Interesting you said the voice gets better the more you sing. I thought I was just stuck with what I was stuck with.

Opera singers train intensely for years to be competitive. Every singer can benefit from vocal training and proper voice preparation. It doesn't mean everyone can be Barbara Streisand but everyone can get better. Your vocal "instrument", like any other wind-instrument, is controlled by valves and chambers controlled by air pressure (lungs, diaphragm, vocal chords) which are all intricately controlled by muscles that can be strengthened and enhanced. It would actually be more correct to say your voice can/will improve the more your practice properly. Not just singing more.

[Charlie Bernstein]

Just put in an earplug in your good ear. It lets you hear yourself like putting a finger in your ear does, but it leaves both hands free to play.

Don't worry, you'll still be able to hear. Jazz artists use earplugs all the time.

[jwellsy]

Originally Posted by 12FanMan

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...maybe ... a karaoke device would help.

That's an interesting thought.
If I could get comfortable singing karaoke, it seems that it would have to help singing along with my playing.

I think Tascam used to make little Cd/mp3 player that you could turn down the volume or speed of different individual tracks.

How do karaoke machines get their files?
Are there downloadable karaoke song collections?

[jeanray1113]

Originally Posted by Jeffreykip

I will always stick to the sunny opinion that everyone can sing, maybe even everyoneshould sing. I once heard someone say that if a person can hear the difference in two notes, then they can learn to sing, which sounds generous but logical. That said, I am well aware that there are some singers who sound best when their voice is lost in a large group sing-along, but you can still sing for yourself, for campfires, for friends, or in that aforementioned sing-along.

As a singer, (not pro, but performing soloist, self-critical but comfortable) here few things singers do that might help:

1) When practicing, singers cup their hand around their ear with the heel of the hand near the mouth so that you can hear your own voice. All trained singers do this, especially with others or when there is an especially challenging part, even if it looks a little funny. It's like the ear mics you mention, but way easier and cheaper. It definitely helps you learn vocal control.

2) Showers and tiled rooms (stairwells) are really gratifying and useful for hearing yourself sing. I don't mean taking a shower, but just standing in front of it while you sing. Unlike cupping your ear, you can play guitar at the same time, too. You can really hear yourself and adjust. You can even just face into an open corner of a room and really listen to the wall in front of you and get a good sense of your voice.

3) Practice singing without the guitar, or with minimal strumming and focus just on your voice. Voice takes focus, just like an instrument. I do whole rehearsals where I just sing so I am only thinking about my voice.

4) Sing more. Your voice definitely gets better the more you sing. Way better. Like the difference between a person running a 10k who never runs, and a person who runs three times a week. Warm up with something easy and gratifying, don't sing in a key that doesn't fit your voice (learn to love the capo), and be happy with what you got - some people are born with an amazing timbre to their voice, but not everyone (not me), but you can still enjoy it.

The earpieces you mention are for stadium singers or those playing in loud spaces, and often they don't like them because it doesn't feel natural (didn't you see A Star is Born?). You can sing through an amp and point it back at yourself effectively, but I am all about practicing rather than shopping and spending. You wouldn't suggest someone stop playing basketball just because they were not born tall enough to dunk, and you wouldn't tell them to buy new shoes- you'd just tell them to practice.

I LOVE this response, and hope that the op takes it, and several others, to heart and doesn’t pay much attention to the first response he got. Our vocal cords are an instrument just as much as any other instrument, and just as we improve our guitar playing by practice, we can improve our voice with practice.

[rllink]

The thing is, you don't have to be a great singer, just a passable singer who puts some heart into it. I know several very popular solo performers around here who aren't great singers, but they know how to engage the audience.

My wife gave me singing lessons for my birthday one year. The teacher asked what my goals were. I told him I wanted to sing and not embarrass myself. I would get there early and listen to the lady taking lessons ahead of me. I thought she had a beautiful voice. After six weeks the teacher told me that I had met my goal and to go forth and sing. I asked him how I could be kicked out of the nest to fly after six weeks when the lady before me was still there after eight years. I told him she sang beautifully. He said that she didn't think so. He told me that she aspired to sing like someone else and that I was just happy to be me. He said all I needed from him was confidence. That's stuck with me. Just be yourself, it will show well if you are.

[12FanMan]

That's an informative story. How did you know how you sounded after six weeks..and how did you know you'd improved?

I do admire your instructor for knowing when to say when...while knowing at the same time he was cutting his income down in the process.

[rllink]

"That's an informative story. How did you know how you sounded after six weeks..and how did you know you'd improved?"

I guess I just took his word for it. I felt a lot more confident and comfortable singing, which meant I that I could put a lot more emotion and expression into a song. I had gained an octave and a half in range from the first day.

"I do admire your instructor for knowing when to say when...while knowing at the same time he was cutting his income down in the process."

I would expect any reputable voice teachers not to string you along just to get your money unless you wanted to continue. We set goals right off and met those goals, which was to feel confident and not embarrass myself, the goal was never to be a great singer, admired and adored by everyone who hears me. Plus, my wife bought a six week block of lessons. I might have taken a few more, but I was never going to be in it for life.

I think that the biggest mistake with lessons, be it singing or playing an instrument, is to go into it with no realistic purpose or objective. I think that was the problem with the lady who had been taking lessons for eight years. She was never going to be good enough in her own mind.

[jwellsy]

I found that you can find pretty much any karaoke song music & lyrics you want on Youtube. There's a Firefox addon called DownloadHelper that will download any Youtube video to your pc. The free version puta a watermark in one corner of the video. The paid version is a very cheap one time charge and well worth the money to remove the watermark. I just loaded several karaoke songs that I want to learn onto a USB drive, including Ave Maria in a lower key.