Winter Blues -- A Cure

I don't know about you, but around this time I get a little melancholy.  Fortunately, there is a simple fix that we share:  work on improving your singing! 

In my experience, even on lonely cold days where I sit in the house--never a good idea--I can do a lot to feel better by simply firing up some Rock Band and doing my own karaoke show.  It's good practice, and good relief from boredom.

Better yet, throw a holiday party and have a few guests over...it can only help your options for a happier season.

Taking criticism in stride

One of the most important things about improving singing is learning how to handle criticism.  Like it or not, if you can't take constructive benefits from people's feedback, you're going to greatly limit your potential.  This is true even on the celebrity level of singers, as reported in this article about a conflict between Taylor Swift and a producer.

Apparently, the music executive told Swift that "you can't sing"...and she lashed out in song on a best-selling album.  Of course, most of us don't have that luxury, but we still have to be ready:  there will always be pundits trying to get you down.

For your own self improvement, the most important thing you can do is prepare yourself for this by learning how to take criticism without letting it damage your ego.  It's crucial that you be able to do this, or your singing will be limited to an audience of one:  yourself.  

What to sing to learn?

Many beginners looking to learn how to improve singing run into problem:  what songs to sing to begin? 

First off, think of what you actually enjoy...if pop is your passion, you'll find no shortage of songs to learn to sing along with.  If your interests are more in the veins of techno...you may have to step out of your comfort zone.

Secondly, find a handful of songs that you really want to get right.  To properly learn from listening to someone else sing, you're going to need many repetitions of both singing along with them and practicing on your own to get it right.  It's not going to happen overnight, so give yourself permission to learn...eventually.

Lastly, expect to put regular time into it.  You're better off consistently practicing for 20 minutes three days a week than randomly putting a full hour in...but not following a schedule.  Treat the voice like a muscle, and make it stronger by following a routine of building it up.

A Segue into Acne Care

I'm going to take a little detour today and talk about something not having to do with how to improve singing:  home acne treatment.  This is for two reasons:  1)  I've been reading up on it and have something to say, and 2) I just had a major outbreak, and it tanked my confidence getting on stage.  If this has nothing to do with you, feel free to disregard.

Anyway, while I was figuring out what to do, I came across a ton of misinformation...that I want to put a stop to.  First off, there are way too many "miracle treatments" out there...in my experience there is no silver bullet, which is as true for acne as for singing.  Anytime you find something that claims instant success, be suspicious.  Very suspicious.

Secondly, out of the treatments that are effective, consistency is key.  You don't become a star performer by singing for 8 hours once a month, rather, you get good by practicing day after day for years.  Acne treatment is similar...you pick a few effective acne treatment products, and make them work.

Lastly, you need to be ready to experiment.  Some people have terrible reactions to acne drug #1, but do great with acne drug #2.  Others need to mix-and-match.  This is no unlike singing...one person's best set of exercises may be useless to you, and vice versa.  You need to be ready to experiment and learn from your mistakes.

What cleaned up my infection was using benzyl peroxide every morning and salicylic acid every night...which seems a basic, workable regime.  Try it out if you're suffering, and in the meantime, keep doing your singing exercises!

Learn Singing Through Online Courses?

In the past, your options for learning how to improve singing were pretty straightforward:

1.  Hire a vocal coach and head over to his/her den of singing

2.  Get a good book and/or audio CD course and follow it

3.  Sing along in the bathroom and car until you magically get better (not recommended...though it can help if you first do one of the first two options)

One interesting option of recent years is hiring a vocal coach...over the Internet.  This might sound ridiculous, getting a virtual coach, but can work surprisingly well.  For one thing, modern technology has come a tremendous distance.  There are plenty of good free programs for teleconferencing, so that you can easily speak/sing to your coach over the 'web even while make eye contact and see any props that he wants you to have access to.  For higher-quality work, you can easily record yourself singing to MP3 and e-mail it, and the teacher can pass whatever materials you need over the same medium.

If money were no object, I'd stick with face-to-face coaching...but the online option gives a good compromise for someone who wants that personal touch and guidance, while not having to pay an exorbitant amount of cash.  I'd recommend checking it out if you're either looking for a low-cost start to coaching or are a generally mobile person who wants the coach to follow you to whichever city you visit.

Karaoke Machines -- A Way to Train?

In the process of learning how to improve singing, one common issue is figuring out a good training regiment.  There is the conventional wisdom--do your assigned singing lessons 3 to 5 days a week, go through vocal warm-ups on other days, try some free singing--but this can become monotonous over time.  Fortunately, there's a less painful way to go about it.

Put some of that will to sing into karaoke night instead.  By going out with your friends and having fun, you're going to be looser automatically, and then you can see the benefits of your practice while hanging out.  If you've been training for a while, you're almost definitely going to surprise your friends--which is fun in its own right--and you just might get some great reinforcement from the surrounding crowds.  Give it a try next time you need a change in the grind of learning singing.

Enough Talk, Start Singing!

Here's something light-hearted today...a wry post about scene kids who love their music too much but won't pick up a mic and sing themselves.  And as we all know, learning how to improve singing starts with just that!

The main point the blog author made is that many fans of indie/underground/unknown bands will jump from undiscovered band to undiscovered band, never settling into liking any particular ones.  Meanwhile, they'll also never put the pedal to the metal and make their own music.

Now, in of itself it isn't a terrible thing--many people aren't cut out to be professionals at this--but I do find it interesting the common excuses people use:  there's no time, they don't have a teacher, they don't have an education, they don't actually want to make music, etc.

I believe that many people have this idea that in order to be at all good at music, you need to practice four hours a day for a decade.  If you want mastery, then perhaps...but for most people, they can get good enough for their entertainment--and others--just by putting in a handful of hours each week.  If this describes you, don't be shy in trying...if nothing else you will gain fresh appreciation for the world around you.

Can Anyone Learn to Sing?

Here's a simple question that I've seen over and over again:  "I'm tone-deaf/can't sing at all/sound like a dying cat, can I learn to be better or am I stuck?"  I'm not here to give you rah-rah-rah you too can learn how to improve singing, but I do believe that most people can manage to be much better than they are.

Think of it this way:  you can send any kid to basketball camp, and he's not going to magically become the next Michael Jordan.  But he will be a better player than he going forth, and that's what you can do with singing.

If you're one of those people truly struggling with it, then start small.  Just worry about getting on pitch, and forget about the power of your voice, and/or its "quality" until you've got the basics down.

I also recommend considering the variety of options out there...best-case is working with a coach, but you can accomplish plenty with a good audio or book-based course.  Shop around, and find the best options for you and your situation...which is almost certainly not as bad as you think it is!

Your newest competition: Japanese pop robots

Let's start with something light-hearted before getting into the nitty-gritty of how to improve singing:  Japanese pop star robots.  No, seriously, they're real and performing concerts somewhere in the world.  Some scientists devised this cybernetic creature that learn how to sing a song in about an hour, and with a day's study can learn to mimic a performer's gestures and body language.

The thing is, anyone reading this can do better.  We're all born with the ability to mimic each other's vocalizations and tempo, and not taking advantage of this can greatly cost you in the long run.  The problem is, you're trained to not be free-spirited and loose in singing and expressing yourself, and this holds you back.

The next time you're lingering in stage fright before taking the stage, remember:  a man-made machine can get out there and sing and dance like a human, so you absolutely can to.