There are three important elements that will create a real sense of emotion when you are singing or playing the piano. These elements work together to provoke feelings to the listening audience. They can bring a sense of urgency, sadness, happiness or fear in a matter of seconds. The three key elements are crescendos, tempo and quality of tone. Crescendos and decrescendos are all about the sound growing louder or getting softer, which is part of the dynamics of a song. It does matter if you are singing or playing the piano, gradually getting louder or softer in the right places of a song will ..read more

To become a great singer and have total freedom with your voice requires a lot of practice. An exceptional vocalist is someone who is dedicated to their craft, works hard, and is willing to do whatever it takes to become the best they can be. All of the greatest singers like Christina Aguilera, Alx Rose and Robert Plant have these characteristics. There are some distinct qualities of a great singer. The first trait is pitch control! You must have the ability to hit the note and stay on the note. It is necessary to be able to hold a note without losing your pitch, this is where the note may go ..read more

Breath support is how you regulate the outward flow of air (when you exhale) while singing. Breathing is so natural and automatic to us; it's hard to believe that we could be doing it wrong. Every note relies on the gradual exhale of air and the control of that air stream. Proper diaphragm and breath support is what creates power in your singing. Breathing is so natural and automatic to us; it's hard to believe that we could be doing it wrong. Breath exercises for singing can dramatically improve the caliber of vocal performance. Each note and phrase rely on a source of air being exhaled in st ..read more

Music is a fantastic stress reliever and mood lifter. In order to become an amazing singer or play the piano on a professional level you need to practice. Practicing is the key to take you to the next level. What you put into it is what you will get out of it. First thing to do is change your mind set about practice; think of it as an exciting time to enrich your brain, expand your mind and enlighten you soul. Practice as often as you can. If you start with 15 minutes a day and increase gradually up to 30 minutes a day, next thing you know an hour has gone by and it will seem like 10 minutes ..read more

Songwriters have been using cadences (in Latin cadential which means “a falling”) which is a chord progression of notes (played on the piano or sung by a singer) creating a sense of finality or sense of an ending. A cadence in musical terms is a progression of at least two or more chords that finish a phrase or a section of a song. The closing or ending for a musical phrase which are made up of a combination of chords. There are many types of cadences, but the three most common types of cadences are authentic, half and plagal. I’m going to discuss cadences in reference to the Key of C to simpl ..read more

How to naturally amplify your voice from the recent blog (Monday 11/15 “How To Naturally Amplify Your Voice”) discussed the chambers in your body that resonate sound. They are acoustic resonators for your voice along with the larynx and pharynx. Vocal articulators are also used to manipulate the sound as you resonate. All the sounds we make when we sing are the results of muscles contracting, air passing through the vocal tract, and articulators producing the words we sing. We have a large and complex group of muscles that change the shape of our vocal tract. Any of the vocal organs above the ..read more

To sing or play like a pro you must have the ability to "keep time" (timing or rhythm) accurately and to synchronize (play at the same time) with other instruments or singers. A steady tempo is one of the easiest ways to tell an amateur from a professional. An audience has the ability to feel the beat while listening to music. So much so, that any deviations from the rhythm are immediately noticed and can give the audience an uneasy feeling that things aren’t quite right. For this reason, if you want to become a successful musician or singer, developing a strong sense of musical timing: it is ..read more

One of the most important qualities a singer or pianist can possess is confidence! The more you perform the more your confidence will grow. This is a key issue for your development if you want to be a performing artist. Being confident is nothing more than believing in yourself; confidence comes from within. Negative thoughts invade everyone’s lives, no one is immune from self-doubt and the pessimistic inner thoughts. The cynical self-talk can start first thing in the morning before you even get out of bed. You cannot stop negative thoughts from entering your mind, but you do not have to dwell ..read more

The voice is just like any other acoustic instrument that you play. They each have their own special chambers to resonate the sound. What is vocal resonation, well it’s a loud vibration caused by a smaller vibration. Your vocal cords (folds) begin to vibrate to create sound but in order to amplify the sound you must use your own personal acoustic chambers! Have you ever wondered why your voice sounds so good in the shower? The acoustics in the shower amplifies your voice! The singing voice can be considered a wind instrument and has three components: voicing, resonance and articulation. The or ..read more

If you’ve never jogged and go out for a run, you probably will not go far and your muscles will be tired when you are done. If you’ve never jogged and decided to run a marathon, chances are you will injure yourself. You have to build up muscle strength and stamina. It’s the same concept with singing. It is a physical exercise of the muscles in your throat, chest and diaphragm which take time to build the muscle stamina. When you put your all into your singing, it takes a lot of physical energy to perform a song correctly. You need to get into shape, especially if you want to belt out those not ..read more