How to Sing

Singing I think is one of the most amazing of performing arts. It takes you from happiness to a sudden state of sadness and from a foot tapping state to a state of trance. That is the magic of singing and music which I have experienced, having learned a little bit of classical and light music! I unfortunately could not continue learning it, so my heart goes out to all those who share the same feelings. But there is still hope! Presenting to you some pointers on learning to sing!

Learning to Sing

To learn to sing, the easiest way is to take singing lessons! If the coach is a musician, specially a guitarist, you would also get to learn and play guitar at the same time! Nevertheless, if you want to do this on your own, it can be done.

The Beginnings
To begin with, you need to understand the basics and anatomy of singing. Understand the jargon connected to singing - head voice, chest voice, vibrato, falsetto, larynx, vocal cords, passaggio and so on. Then get to know the vocal ranges and the breathing techniques in place as well as singing exercises. Deep breathing, breathing from the belly up and exhaling and then the whole process has to be practiced. Controlling your breathing is one of the cardinal rules of singing, so it is very very crucial.

The Next Phase
Once you have got these fundamentals right and are on track a bit, the vocal warm up exercises and breathing exercises for singing will come in the picture prior to what you actually sing. This includes singing notes in different scales and octaves. This helps any person hitting the notes bang on. Warm up will also protect your vocal cords from getting damaged. The warm up always has to start with the medium range, which many of us are comfortable in. Then the individual can move on to low range and then high range. You end with a middle range again. These things will greatly contribute to your skill. In addition to all of this, it is better to know how to sing from your diaphragm. Singing from your diaphragm primarily involves breathing and allied aspects related to singing.

To sing by using your diaphragm, keep your hand on a large plexus of nerves in the abdomen behind the stomach and sing simple scales. Before that do some deep breathing where in you inhale and exhale through your chest as well as abdomen. Then after you sing some simple scales in that position when you breathe in, your hand has to be propelled in a perpendicular manner. A very important point when learning how to sing. Breathing this way and then singing gives you the chance to take in as much air as possible. It will further help in facilitating more control over your singing and you would know how to improve your singing voice.

Slogging Hard
Now is the time to learn to sing high notes and to sing in harmony because at this juncture the basics have been covered and you need to take a plunge head on. At this stage, to sing and to do it well, religious practice and training is imperative. As you go along, you would understand what is the tendency and capability of your voice and it can be improved upon. You would also realize the finer points and the minute tricks of the trade. Opening your vocal cords sufficiently and giving it your best shot without inhibitions is the way one can sing better. One has to be in that mode continuously to learn to sing. Singing is such a thing that how much ever you practice, it is not enough. But at the same time, taking care that you do not strain your vocal cords too much is essential. Singing with others and constantly fine tuning your skill can improve singing by leaps and bounds.

In addition to that, pronunciation, intonation and expressions are the finer aspects which would come later, to adorn your noted and your singing. Finally, LISTENING to music is one of the first steps in learning how to sing! If you do not listen, you would not know what it is! This is where I sign off ! Happy singing!