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The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2006 10:06 pm
by Morgana
I just begin to sing and I noticed that my voice begins to rattle a little bit after 5 or 6 songs. I don't take vocal lessons and I never studied anything similar. Is this rattle normal if I just begin? And what do I need to sing better?

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2006 10:21 pm
by Jaakko
A recorded clip would describe the problem better, but for a beginner, every mistake is normal with any instrument, and vocals must be the toughest of all to master. So don't worry, do some self-studying, googling around will give you some good info about using the voice, the basics about producing the voice and protecting the instrument, and of course, keep singing. It's fun!

I'm trying to learn singing on my own as well and so far I'm not at all happy with the results, but it's always useful to talk about the issues with others. Maybe later on I could post some links that have been useful but unfortunately I don't have any in my bookmarks right now so gotta look around abit. Cya!

Edit: well here's one site I recently have visited and found useful: http://www.voicelesson.com/html/lessons ... essons.htm

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2006 10:35 pm
by Morgana
Oh thanks for link!!! :P

The only song I'm unable to sing is "Are you the one"... I rty to do it all the evening! F.... :x I'm going to do something that Timo did when he recorded Coldness... :lol:

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2006 11:12 pm
by Miguel_Ricardo
I'm not a singer but I know that untrained singers often screw up their voices (Jon Bon Jovi or Sebastin Bach for example)

If I were you I'd take a few lessons, and learn some warming excercises

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2006 11:57 pm
by Jaakko
Just like boxers screw up their brains. It still can sound good (be entertaining) as long as it lasts. Free choice and sometimes the untrained voice can be exactly what the general audience likes. Otherwise opera music would sell more than Bon Jovi, eh? It's not like the voice is ruined and not usable after damaging it a bit, it will change but it's possible to learn new technique and be able to use it again. But of course it's good to be cautious and remember: if it hurts you better stop and recover before trying again. It's ok to damage your voice knowing what you're doing but it sure will piss you off if you ruin it without knowing.

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 1:08 am
by Stealth
Damn, I'd love to learn how to sing myself... My voice is a little low though. And I sound like I have a throat disease when I sing. :D So, could I become a good singer?? :lol:

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 1:57 am
by Jaakko
Stealth wrote:Damn, I'd love to learn how to sing myself... My voice is a little low though. And I sound like I have a throat disease when I sing. :D So, could I become a good singer?? :lol:
Yes. No question about that. You won't become anyone else, but you always have a good chance to become you! And with the right kind of music, almost any voice will sound great, just need to find the right style and experiment through the horizons. Metal might not be the answer in the first place, but if you decide to limit yourself, then you know who to blame ;)

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 2:05 am
by Miguel_Ricardo
Jaakko wrote:Just like boxers screw up their brains. It still can sound good (be entertaining) as long as it lasts. Free choice and sometimes the untrained voice can be exactly what the general audience likes. Otherwise opera music would sell more than Bon Jovi, eh? It's not like the voice is ruined and not usable after damaging it a bit, it will change but it's possible to learn new technique and be able to use it again. But of course it's good to be cautious and remember: if it hurts you better stop and recover before trying again. It's ok to damage your voice knowing what you're doing but it sure will piss you off if you ruin it without knowing.
Yeah, but I don't think she may want to sound like David Bryan, does she? hehehe

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 2:13 am
by Stealth
Jaakko wrote:Yes. No question about that. You won't become anyone else, but you always have a good chance to become you! And with the right kind of music, almost any voice will sound great, just need to find the right style and experiment through the horizons. Metal might not be the answer in the first place, but if you decide to limit yourself, then you know who to blame ;)
Thanks! You are so positive! :) A couple of days ago when I saw Sonata live, the singer for the first support band was..... AWFUL! There are no words to describe how bad he was! By ANY standard! I'm not kidding when I say that he looked like he was joking (but he wasn't, trust me). Anyways, that made me feel good; I thought if that singer is opening for Sonata Artica, then I could SURELY try something with my voice! :D Suddenly I felt like Göran Edman or John West compared to that guy. :)

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 2:18 am
by NeonVomit
Be careful with your voice. It is actually possible to damage it through incorrect singing. Especially with women, as they tend to have more delicate vocal cords.

Case in point: Savatage singer Jon Oliva almost lost his voice through the way he would sing. It sounded absolutely amazing, but it took its toll.

Proper breathing is essential, and never use your throat, use your diaphragm.

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 6:47 am
by Jaakko
LaBrie of Dream Theater totally destroyed his voice in the mid-90's and it took him years to recover and learn a new technique, but today he sings better than he ever did before his instrument got broken. And he had taken some vocal lessons before it happened, the style was just extremely demanding. Anyway, today he hits his high F# like he did back in 1992:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... am+theater

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 7:36 am
by Morgana
Stealth wrote:Damn, I'd love to learn how to sing myself... My voice is a little low though. And I sound like I have a throat disease when I sing. :D So, could I become a good singer?? :lol:
Don't tell me that you sing bad. I heard you, you sing perfect. And I sure you that you low and my high voices will sound great together! :wink: :)

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 7:50 am
by Stealth
Morgana wrote:Don't tell me that you sing bad. I heard you, you sing perfect. And I sure you that you low and my high voices will sound great together! :wink: :)
Oh well, I know you are too nice; you wouldn't tell me I suck. :wink: :)

However, I can tell you that I definitely sing better than Fabio Dozzo of Skylark... Then again, there's no merit in that. :lol:

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 7:54 am
by Morgana
Stealth wrote:
Oh well, I know you are too nice; you wouldn't tell me I suck. :wink: :)
:x

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 7:57 am
by Stealth
Morgana wrote: :x
:oops:

Ok listen up everyone!! I RULE! I sing better than Edman, Khantatat, John West, Lione, Falaschi, Kakko and Blad combined!

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 8:08 am
by Morgana
That's better... :twisted:

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 4:11 pm
by Kain´s seventh son
Just btw, Bruce Dickinson has never taken any singing lessions, he mastered the art on his own screaming to a pillow (at least so the story goes... :wink: ) :D

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Sun Feb 19, 2006 10:27 pm
by NeonVomit
Kain´s seventh son wrote:Just btw, Bruce Dickinson has never taken any singing lessions, he mastered the art on his own screaming to a pillow (at least so the story goes... :wink: ) :D
Freddie Mercury never had any sort of musical training.


Some people are just talented and have it.

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2006 1:50 am
by stratoplayer
Kain´s seventh son wrote:Just btw, Bruce Dickinson has never taken any singing lessions, he mastered the art on his own screaming to a pillow (at least so the story goes... :wink: ) :D
somehow i can picture him doing it!

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2006 4:45 am
by Miguel_Ricardo
Freddie Mercury ? really?

Re: The Layman question ;-)

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2006 3:03 pm
by NeonVomit
Miguel_Ricardo wrote:Freddie Mercury ? really?
Yup. He was one of the most naturally talented musicians to work in the 20th century, in my opinion.