ive practised singing for a few months and i think im doing pretty good, but i got a problem.
i think i hurt my voice because ive been trying to sing notes i cant take yet,
does anyone have tips for how i can get it better and keep on singing regularly?


i would also like some tips on nice songs to sing to.

some hints to what i like and have sung( so u get an idea on my register )

opeth - to bid you farewell
opeth - harvest
pink floyd - wish you were here
pink floyd - lucifer sam
emerson lake & palmer - tarkus( have problems in the end where there are some really high pitch notes )
the who - behind blue eyes
king crimson - i talk to the wind
king crimson - islands
king crimson - cadence & cascade

edit: w00t, what a sensation i sung tarkus flawless first time ever 5 minutes ago.

This post was edited by f10eq on Jun 13 2009 04:53am

i'd practice with a pitch recorder

or a tuner

so you know what notes you are hitting

i dont have a problem hitting the notes im singing, i just try to hit the ones i cant really sing and then my voice sort of breaks

Do you like 'heat up' before starting to sing? Or do you just start?
It's advised that you do some scales before starting, from the middle of the register to the highest note you can do, and then back to the lowest you can do.
You should try to do that with different combinations of notes or rhythms.

Before you sing songs, do A LOT of scales (if you're serious about singing properly) -- otherwise you will be off pitch. Practice with a keyboard / piano for the scales, do like, Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do (you could say 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1), and then do like, Do Do Re Re...etc then change it up, Do Re Mi, Re Mi Fa, Mi Fa So, Fa So La, etc... Come up with more and more scales like these on your own and just do them. Do them slowly first, then add speed -- may sound ridiculous to you and anyone else listening lol, but trust me its good for your throat.

As for actually singing, to hit the notes you can't yet, you'll just have to wait. It comes by practice and practice alone, don't strain your throat because you will mess it up for a few days -- to keep your throat in good shape, drink warm water (no cold liquids), if your throat hurts then take a spoon of honey (it helps a lot)... and when you're singing, just take occasional SIPS of water (if you drink even more than a quarter of the glass while you're singing you'll see that you won't be in pitch anymore).

Just keep doing scales WITH a piano / keyboard (never ever do them alone, you won't know if you're on or off pitch) -- and with time you'll get better, just time alone. Good luck.

E: if you've only been singing for a few months, I doubt you sung Tarkus flawlessly -- you could have hit all the notes, but thats not all there is to singing. Anyways, if you need someone to critique your songs you could always post them on here and I could show you where you're going wrong or what you could improve on.

This post was edited by BovineDesi on Jun 13 2009 07:07am

thanks for the help, flawless was a strong word yes i got ahead of myself there ^^ but i managed to hit all the notes anyway thats what i meant, even the tough ones in the end.
well i havent just been singing for a few months, ive done it to and fro through like 2 years, sung tarkus atleast 30 times.
and yes i do know there is more to singing than singing the right tones, i do music every day, i play drums and guitar e.g.

do you think i could send you files by msn or something like that? and can i ask what your experience with singing is?

ty

This post was edited by f10eq on Jun 13 2009 08:03am

Been singing for about 8 years, but in the past year and a half I haven't done too much singing -- mostly because I got sucked into the guitar but this summer i'm planning to start it back up.
I don't have an msn, but you can go to sendspace.com and upload ur file there and give me the link to it through PMs. Youtube video links work too if you wanna put it up there.

ill definitely try out your tips, thanks.
do you, or anyone else for that matter, have tips on some good songs for me?