I Wonder if I Could Ever Learn to Sing

TCK,

I have watched some of your videos in the seasons threads. You are a very gifted entertainer. It sounds like it was a bit of a struggle for you but it seems to come through as a natural talent for you. My brother has the same gift. I think his gregarious nature has helped him a great deal. He always wants to be the center of attention. It doesn't hurt that he has been playing guitar since his early teen years, though he's been goofing off for much longer.

I started studying and playing classical guitar much later in life. I was in my thirties. I can't remember exactly how old I was. It was a struggle for me but I enjoyed it immensely. However, while I grew to become fairly proficient with the classical guitar, there was something missing. When I would get together with my brother and other family members we would bring our instruments. And here entered the frustrations - I couldn't play along with anyone. I wanted to be able to join in the music-making and maybe sing a song or two. But I just couldn't do it. I couldn't strum. And I didn't seem to have a sense for rhythm. I couldn't even begin to think about playing and singing at the same time.

I thought I had the answer. I bought myself a steel-string guitar and played that for a few years but still I struggled make music. It sounds silly, but I couldn't keep hold of a pick. The strumming never materialized and I reverted to finger style. Then, two years ago, enter- the ukulele.

It was a game-changer. The uke was, for me, like the gift of a bicycle to a child. It was freedom, independence, confidence, adventure. Of course, I had to work at it but it has been a revelation. I have explored many types of playing styles (claw-hammer, finger style, flamenco etc) and many genres of music such as Celtic, folk and rock. I have only recently gotten to the to the point where I can strum and sing at the same time. And it is a joy! My brother and I played our ukuleles together at our Thanksgiving get-together; the whole family was singing Christmas songs as well as some pop songs like "House of Gold" and "Can't Help Falling in Love With You". I can make music!

Just today I uploaded some performance videos, my first, to Youtube for my family to see. I was a bit nervous but I didn't embarrass myself. Tons o' fun.

David
 
Im getting over the singing hurdle too. Im in m 50s and over the years just about every time I tried singing karaoke I could barely make any sounds. I thought I literally cant sing, oh well a guy cant expect to be good at everything. Recently I found a few YouTube videos on beginning singing lessons that showed me I tighten by upper chest and don't breath right which makes my voice disappear to a whisper. Now Im working I'm starting a daily practice of YouTube lessons and singing along with the radio.

And for you folks that don't think you have a good voice, I say don't worry about it. Whenever I hear someone singing with an average voice I think that maybe I could do that. Average singers are much more inspiring to me than than super talented people with non-human perfection.
 
"I'm thinking about taking some singing lessons. I wonder if I could learn to sing well enough at least so that I could sing along with my uke."

Yes, you can learn to sing well enough and taking singing lessons is the best way to start. I wish you all the very best in your endeavours. You can do it!

John Colter
 
Good luck with the singing lessons. It is important if you ever want to perform publicly, whether live or electronically. It is tough for me to view a video where the singing is not good (especially in a zoom meetup). The ukulele should accompany the voice, though so many uke players and groups think the reverse with less than stellar results.
 
Im getting over the singing hurdle too. Im in m 50s and over the years just about every time I tried singing karaoke I could barely make any sounds. I thought I literally cant sing, oh well a guy cant expect to be good at everything. Recently I found a few YouTube videos on beginning singing lessons that showed me I tighten by upper chest and don't breath right which makes my voice disappear to a whisper. Now Im working I'm starting a daily practice of YouTube lessons and singing along with the radio.

And for you folks that don't think you have a good voice, I say don't worry about it. Whenever I hear someone singing with an average voice I think that maybe I could do that. Average singers are much more inspiring to me than than super talented people with non-human perfection.
As far as I know all the same living teacher, usually more practical!
 
My wife sang 8 part harmony acapella in college. My lack of ability to harmonize causes her great frustration.
 
I think what holds many people back from singing is that they are trying to do it quietly and are choking down the airflow. My advice: next time you are at a birthday party just sing Happy Birthday as loud as you can and give it your all. See if that will get you closer...
 
TC Helicon Mic Mechanic

Yes, this a pitch corrector. But I don't quite use it in a normal way. It can also work as a voice coach. This will duplicate your voice and mix it in "on" key. You will simultaneously hear yourself and where the pitch should be. Your own voice will 'auto-magically' try to seek out (match) the correct pitch. It helps by nudging your singing back on key.

It has echo and reverb but just leave those off. They will just confuse you. Advance the "Correction" knob as little as necessary. A little correction (nudge) goes a long way.

After a bit, it put in a drawer... until you need a refresher course, of course.

Do this only at home;)

<edit> I use a small (8") guitar amplifier for a monitor. Plug your mic into the Mechanic (XLR input and output) and use an XLRF to 1/4" TS to cable from the Mechanic to the guitar amp. If you have a PA with an XLR input, use a standard XLRF to XLRM mic cable to connect the Mechanic to the mixer.
 
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I struggled to learn to sing as well. My voice maturation at puberty was more like a boy's - drastic, dropped about an octave, lots of weird oscillations and cracks.
 
Id like to sing too, I sound better in the shower, but the uke doesn't like the extreme humidity.
These guys wanted to teach me to sing.....You dont hear from them anymore, do you?
 
The best way to become a better singer is to sing lots! Sing in the shower, in the backyard, in the garage or maybe on your walk. I sing or whistle all the time. Learn some do-re-mi type scales, and be sure to listen to yourself!
 
I think most of us sing better than we think we do, but that's not important. Probably not many of us are gonna be on television or singing somewhere for money. I've seen people in church singing those old hymns, and one can just see that they're really enjoying the heck out the experience. That's what it's all about!

Music is supposed to be fun! Something one does with a smile on his/her face. Folks don't have to be good they just have to be loud and somewhere close to the song they're singing.

The reason so many people say "Aw, I can't sing" is that they compare themselves (or their friends) to some song that they've heard on a CD or the radio. Those songs are recorded over and over, and mistakes are erased and corrected until they are almost perfect. It's no wonder that we just "can't sing" like they do.

So, just sing out and have a good time. The more people sing, the better they usually get at it. We're doing music hobbies for fun not as a chore.

We're all gonna die and rot in the grave some day anyway! :eek:ld:
Good advice. When you're paid big money for singing then you can rate it good or bad. No pay, no worries.
 
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