HELP why is it so hard to sing and play at the same time?

[OregonJim]

so far...cannot sing while playing the bass!!

Very frustrating...

Neither can I... while playing bass, I'm usually thinking in terms of scales and runs, not melody. Or, feeling the rhythm... in any case, I can't seem to sing melody and play counter-melody at the same time. Probably because I never "memorize" bass parts - just create the feel on the fly - which means I always have to "think" while playing bass, which leaves out singing...

 

[quiltingshirley]

Can you whistle? I often whistle till I have the playing part down, then switch to singing.

That's my problem! I can't whistle either.

 

[VegasGeorge]

I just watched a video that might be relevant to this topic. In it, a young, inexperienced performer was playing Ukulele and singing. I noticed that she was slowing down her strumming every now and then to allow her singing to catch up. Ukulele, when played with a strumming technique, is uniquely suited for showing off such weakness in rhythm. The constant strum is very much like a metronome or drum beat, and should keep the music in time. But here, it was allowed to be flexible, slowing down to allow the singer time to get through the vocal parts that were troublesome to her. So, I think it illustrated one of the more common singing playing problems. The Ukulele needs to be selected as the rhythmic lead instrument, and the strumming measured and accurate throughout the piece. For practice purposes, it ought to be like clockwork. Then, the vocals can be added and phrased in such a way as to keep up with the strumming. Of course, once a performer gets comfortable with singing and playing, and doesn't unintentionally get behind, then artistic license to play and sing more freely becomes OK. But for beginners, basic togetherness is important.

 

[lovedcfc]

I just watched a video that might be relevant to this topic. In it, a young, inexperienced performer was playing Ukulele and singing. I noticed that she was slowing down her strumming every now and then to allow her singing to catch up. Ukulele, when played with a strumming technique, is uniquely suited for showing off such weakness in rhythm. The constant strum is very much like a metronome or drum beat, and should keep the music in time. But here, it was allowed to be flexible, slowing down to allow the singer time to get through the vocal parts that were troublesome to her. So, I think it illustrated one of the more common singing playing problems. The Ukulele needs to be selected as the rhythmic lead instrument, and the strumming measured and accurate throughout the piece. For practice purposes, it ought to be like clockwork. Then, the vocals can be added and phrased in such a way as to keep up with the strumming. Of course, once a performer gets comfortable with singing and playing, and doesn't unintentionally get behind, then artistic license to play and sing more freely becomes OK. But for beginners, basic togetherness is important.

I personally love this idea. Playing on the downbeats of chord changes is how I still start learning new songs. It's all about keeping a beat within yourself. It's such a beautiful thing - harmony and rhythm being kept internally while you produce wonderful music (doesn't matter what skill level you are, it can be wonderful to you). In addition - I'd recommend getting D-D-U-U-D-U down to the point where you don't even think about each stroke, you automatically just play it for a full measure without being aware. And humming as other have said, too.

 

[graybones]

So many great tips in this thread!

One trick I use when learning a new song is that I only sing the words that line up perfectly with the strums / chords, and leave out the rest. So you may just be singing one out of every four or five words. Then I slowlyyy add in another word or two, when it feels natural to my brain. As soon as feel myself getting confused I drop the singing. So I'll play, for example, the first verse and chorus over and over again, slowly adding in more words, until I can sing the whole thing. This kinda goes hand-in-hand with what VegasGeorge is saying, too.

 

[Debby]

If you are sitting down to practice, you could just skip holding the uke for a bit. Practice the strumming pattern on your leg, while you sing... that way you can get those two in sync before you add the other hand in there (playing chords). Once you get the strumming hand in time with the singing, you can add the uke back and try it.

There are wonderful suggestions being offered here... Just thought I'd make another.