Can anyone learn to sing?

My father used to be voice instructor and the director of the choir at the church next to our house. I'm not a great singer by any stretch of the imagination, but he taught me how. It just takes more effort for me than it does for people with a natural talent. I will never be a great singer, but I can sing competently if I try.

I'm an artist and I've taught people how to draw. They will never be great artists, but if they put in enough effort, they can produce something that satisfies them and actually impresses others who've never learned to draw.

These things do take talent to a certain extent, but there are a lot of skills that can be practiced and learned that give satisfying results.

Booko's right about the foreign language part with infants too. Perhaps, you could play some foreign music and kill two birds with one stone.

Booko's right about the foreign language part with infants too. Perhaps, you could play some foreign music and kill two birds with one stone.

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Our daughter is growing up exposed to English, Japanese, Chinese, French, Hebrew, German, Spanish and Arabic. My husband and I use phrases from other languages all the time, and consume media in different languages (dubbing is banned from our home!). I just hope she doesn't get too confused.

If you come across any good singing advice for someone without access to a teacher, let me know. Keep us posted on your progress!

Okay I've had 2 lessons now and so far I can handle the scales, well I can get through most them. The half key change gets me because I want to move a whole key instead. Its gonna take so much practice but improvements have been made. Just knowing the right way makes a world of difference.

The breathing on the other hand is killing me. At first I found out I hold my breath once in a while through out the day. So when I started to practice breathing I'd get light headed and yawn a lot. She said its oxygen depervation. I'm past the yawns for the most part. But I would like any advice on the breathing, this is hard for me. I always been a chest breather (found out its from stress) they say babies breath the right way. So what do you think, anything I can do to improve my breathing or tricks or things I can do to practice?

Abram said:

The breathing on the other hand is killing me. At first I found out I hold my breath once in a while through out the day. So when I started to practice breathing I'd get light headed and yawn a lot. She said its oxygen depervation. I'm past the yawns for the most part. But I would like any advice on the breathing, this is hard for me. I always been a chest breather (found out its from stress) they say babies breath the right way. So what do you think, anything I can do to improve my breathing or tricks or things I can do to practice?

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If you're yawning, that's a good sign. It means you're lifting your soft palate. A choir that's properly warmed up yawns a lot.

Here's what my first voice teacher had me do. Lie down on the floor. Put one hand on your chest, and the other on your navel. Relax for a few minutes. Now (and only after the few minutes of relaxing!) notice what's going on with your hand on your chest. It isn't moving. The hand on your navel is, though.

We always breath correctly when we're relaxed and sleeping. The body already knows how to do this.

Now all you have to do is get your head and your emotions out of the way.

When you're singing, put your hands in the same place -- one on the chest and one on the abdomen. Then you'll know when you're into chest breathing again. If you are -- just stop singing. Take deep breaths, let them out slow...relax....and begin again when you're ready. You can't "push" this -- it just adds stress, which puts you back to chest breathing again.

When you're ready for the next exercise in breathing practice, bump the thread or PM me to remind me.

I wonder if anyone who does meditation techniques can offer some other help?

I know when I did Tai Chi correct breathing just came as part of the package. Everything in Tai Chi moves from your center...even the breathing.

no, you cannot learn to sing. The talent is already there, it just gets refined

Abram said:

So I had my first lesson last night. I was a bit nervous at first but after I lighten up and became more comfortable with the teacher it went real well. I learned a bit on breathing (who knew that was so important) , we tried to slide from high to low (I have some breaks in my voice that need work), then she played some notes on a piano and I had to match them. I did it! So the good news is I can learn to sing. How well? Practice and time will only tell. I schedule another lesson for next week.

Thanks all for your advice and motivation to get me to at least try. Keep a eye I for my next CD. :jester3: Just kidding!!!
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I hadn't seen this thread. I have been a singer all my life (but only joined an amateur operatic company for a short time), and have sung in Church choirs.

Not so long ago, my wife read an advertisment asking people to learn how to sing (20 lessons free). As she has never been able to sing, she decided to go along, and I said I would go with her, to give her moral support.

In the event that was useless, because women were taught one evening, and men on a different one.

The tutor's message was that "Everyone can learn how to sing".

As you have found out, breathing ius all important, and I notice this most at my age! but basically, vocal chords are only muscles. if you excercise them carefully, they will become stronger. practice, practice, practice, but Never strain.

I posted this thread over a year ago and have been practicing and now can say that anyone can learn to sing. You must first have the desire and discipline to practice. Talent can help many jump start into a new passion but only through practice can anyone sing. Michael Jordan the basket ball player couldn’t make the team in high school but he stayed at it, the first to practice the last to leave. He became better then all the "talented" players.

It took almost the first full year to find my voice. Booko is right, if you can match a tone then you can sing. Come to find out even if your tone deaf and with the help of someone you can learn the feel of the notes and sing.

So yes anyone can learn to sing.:yes:

Abram said:

I posted this thread over a year ago and have been practicing and now can say that anyone can learn to sing. You must first have the desire and discipline to practice. Talent can help many jump start into a new passion but only through practice can anyone sing. Michael Jordan the basket ball player couldn’t make the team in high school but he stayed at it, the first to practice the last to leave. He became better then all the "talented" players.

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J.S. Bach had a terrible time with counterpoint, but eventually became the Father of Counterpoint. He was a hard worker and very determined.

It took almost the first full year to find my voice. Booko is right, if you can match a tone then you can sing. Come to find out even if your tone deaf and with the help of someone you can learn the feel of the notes and sing.

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I'm delighted to hear you're having success with your voice! :hamster:

Very few people are actually tone deaf. And the best way to ensure your children do not grow up tone deaf is to play music around them when they are infants. We used to put our son to sleep with the classical music radio station on very low. It helped him sleep, and was great early ear training as well.

Hmm... well, in singing (as in many other things) there is technique and there is talent. An abundance of the former can sometimes make up for a lack of the latter... however, sometimes, no matter how much training you receive, your voice simply will NOT perform certain tasks. I'm a soprano, like it or not; I can't sing base no matter how much I try, but I can sing alto passably well and even a little tenor.

That being said.... there are certain styles of vocal performance which lend themselves well to a more... spoken... style of singing. Chant, rap, etc. So perhaps you may never be an opera singer, but that doesn't mean you can't make full use of the range of abilities which your voice does possess.

Good singing takes training the vocal box and faith...if you doubt the tale that is sung...it can be heard.....try recording your self and test.....a free professional system you can use too record is Fruity loops-Demo (save disabled - real-time hard disk recording works and saves samples)....try compression on vocals and add reverb; it will show how it would sound....

p.s you could do like professionals do and use Antares Auto-tuner....