This has troubled me for sometime now and is the one thing holding me back from going at it full throttle solo. How do you find your own singing voice. When I sing sometimes my voices sounds like I am singing from my nose, unless I am singing real high, then it sounds good.

Any ideas on how to find that happy medium?

do u have a piano? ;you can find your voice by doing the do' re' me'thingy by singing along.
like:
do=c-----middle "c"
re=d
me=e
fa=f
so=g
la=a
te=b
do=c-----"c"one octave above middle c
and so on

or get a "learn to sing" downloadable program. they're available at a lot of music stores.
this is totally "primary" information to start up.
as far a singing from your nose. try pushing the air up from ur diaphram when singing...this alleviates the nasal tones, because the sounds will go straight to your vocal chords and out of your mouth, not ur nose.
"hope this helps"..
making music is a wonderful adventure..."good luck" i admire ur wanting to learn
[Edited 6/20/06 18:45pm]

tamaranow said:

Thanks!

Another tip that will help is take a prescription bottle (something of that size) and put the bottom of it between your teeth and practice your scales and do even some toning sounds. This will keep your upper throat open and will force you to sing from your diaphram. It will also help developing your vibrato.

Practice yoga breathing also it teaches you how to breathe while singing.

Also practicing to opera records gives you vocal strength.

Try to practice at least an hour a day.

LQ

some people sing nasaly because its easier to reach high registers Prince does that alot...
i don't know why people think its not really singing...
Nasal singing creates a certain type of intonation that works for some people...
If you want your real singing voice just belt out some scales raw, without any type of intonation...

I learned how to sing just by mimicking the sounds of my piano...
and practicing every day...
it trains your ear,
than sing along with songs but don't mimick the artist singing it..
use your voice and see if you can realize at what points your in key and out of key!!!

I seem to have perfect pitch while mowing the lawn and in the shower but for some reason when I get in front of a mic, I loose it.

yamomma said:

that could be one of two things
the shower - reverb factor (makes you sound great)
the law mower drowning your voice...

Do you warm up before your ready to record?
it helps to do some scales before recording and warming up the chords
you might notice that the chords gaather up a fair bit of mucous sometimes
this is an indication that the chords need to be warmed up...

When reaching certain notes that are out of my comfortable range my voice seems to 'disappear'....any tips to help me extend my vocal range?

EmbattledWarrior said:

Right. Sorry, that was my bad joke of the day.

yamomma said:

oops didnt know it wasnt suppose 2 b taken literally lol

EmbattledWarrior said:

I believe you can sing nasally, I listen to middle eastern and Indian music all the time, which is very high pitched and nasally. However, to be a really effective singer you will alternate between different areas such as nasally, throat, and diaphram. Usually when people say they need help learning to sing more effectively and get the most from their voice, these people are usually just using the throat and nasal passages. It sounds great, but often during concerts or places where you have to really project volume, you'll tire out quickly, have your voice get scratchy and crack due to fatigue. That's why during the pop singer craze of the 90s singers resorted to lipsynching their songs during concerts (and it wasn't just due to having their boobies bouncing while they're trying to dance). You'll really notice the difference when you have to go on tour and are singing for a minimum of 3 hours a night every day. When you're young, it doesn't get noticed much, but as you age, you'll have more and more problems with your voice. I used to sing primarily with my throat and nose, but when I began to learn opera and incorporate my diaphram into the mix, my vocal power increased ten-fold. I admit I never had problems getting tired, but now that I'm older, I can still belt out notes for hours with very little or no fatigue.

This is just an opinion. Singing is like anything else, with some people, they have their own method that works for them.

LQ

My biggest problem with singing is that I have to grasp for air too often. Also I havent found the right singer/band to sing along to, as I have to sing an octave lower (I think) than most pop/rock singers like Morrissey or Anthony Kiedis, yet Isaac Hayes and the guy from Tindersticks are a bit too deep for me.

thanks everyone!

LadyQ said:

I can do a barotone like Freddie Mercury, but that doesn't work with rock/pop

Renato said:

How about old Jim Morrison records or INXS? Those guys sing pretty deep.

LQ

Thanks! Never listened to INXS but Jim Morrison seems like a good choice, need to dig deeper into his music.