Should I join choir even though I am shy about singing in public?
Ok, so I really like to sing, but not in public. I have a good voice, but pretty much the only people I have sung in front of is my family. I am kind of wanting to join the choir at my school, but I don't like the idea of having to sing alone in front of people, which I will most likely have to do if I want to get in the actual choir, and not just the class. I really want to just get over my fears and do it, cuz it seems like something I would really like. Also the guy I like is in choir. haha. (But seriously, that's not why I want to do it. I didn't even know he was in choir until very recently.) Has anyone had a similar experience where they just did it even though there were things they were very shy about? How did it turn out? I will appreciate any answers given!
I love my choir teacher, but she's being totally unfair...?
I had the same issue in high school with exchange students in band. I was playing top seat, second clarinet part, and this girl who was an exchange student was placed on second seat, first clarinet part right away. I felt much the same way you do, I had worked hard to get where I was and now the director was just PLACING this person above me? It is technically right, since having the best singers in the opinion of the director is in the best interest of the ensemble. It doesn't mean that you're not in it, it just means you're not competing. It's like sitting the bench in a sport: you're still on the team, but you're not playing. It's a sucky situation, and I've been there before. Now, as a director, I normally try to get as many kids involved as I can. The problem is that contest organizations sometimes limit the size of the ensemble that can qualify for contest, especially in chorus. Perhaps there is another chorus you could sing with for competition purposes. I know being in this one was your dream, and then it was shattered by these new people. The bottom line is, as you said, that it is the director's choir and she can admit or remove whomever she wishes. Don't let things like this discourage you from studying vocal music, though. There are lots more opportunities to enjoy! Try your hand at musical theatre if you haven't already or even begin studying operatic repertoire. The soprano voice has so much to offer from so many periods of wonderful music, that there's no limit to what you can study and master! These girls coming in from other places may be good jazz singers, but you may be operatic, which is worth more overall, because Europeans LOVE opera!
I love singing but my choir sucks?
Last year in middle school my choir was REALLY good and we went to all kinds of competitions and we always won, and I learned so much and I loved being in the choir. This year I went into high school but I go to private school. I thought that since it was an all girls school and such the choir would be really good, but I joined, and nobody except me even knows how to read music, my teacher doesn't know how to teach us to sightread so we can't go to festival, and we only do two part harmony and I'm used to four or five part :/ I decided not to sign up again next year because I was really disappointed, but now I don't know what to do because there aren't any choirs outside of school in my town for people my age. What should I do to keep practicing my singing and pursue my love for it?
What should I do if I am a soprano but my choir teacher forces me to sing alto?
I would ask for the reason first. Is it because he needs altos and doesn't have enough?Is it because he feels you may be an alto?Whats important to understand for yourself is when you sing in lower tessituta how does your voice feels?For any voice, having a ‘well-oiled vocal machine’ up or down is a must. And when a soprano has a solid, we'll-lined up middle and lower registers, it's thrilling!This means you can take the opportunity to sing repertoire while in the alto section to work your middle and lower registers!What you want to pay attention to is not to sing that kind of rep that is not your natural fit all the time. You don't want your voice to be squizzed into the rep of another fach, you must stay true to your nature. This point is of utmost importance. There are too many cases of singers singing the rep that is either too heavy for their voice or too high causing damage to their voice!But if you know all of these things, you can turn the situation in your favor!Happy Singing!Vita, Mezzo-Soprano & Composer, www.viktoriyavitakoreneva.com
Why do you like singing?
Yes, I don’t like I love singing!Singing has been my passion. I think I have a beautiful voice. I thought about following music when, 3 years back one of my friend requested me to sing in the class. I hesitated at once, but when I started singing, I was shocked by seeing the reactions of my friends and the teacher too. They all felt amazed to hear me. That gave me confidence, and since then I have participated in many music competitions and school events, even college events.What I feel now is, music has become an indispensable part of my life. Every lovely song I hear takes me to a new world, and I feel so satisfied to hear music. I can express myself by singing my favourite songs. There was a time when I lived only for music, one thing that made me happy. The feeling when a song completely relates to your current situation is just unparalleled !Singing is one thing that makes me happy, also a quality that nobody else has, which makes me unique from other in terms of music. Of course, because my level of understanding music is way higher than others:):):0.Here is one of my recordings, if you want to hear me singing:)harshit tere.mp3Thanks!
How can i get my choir teacher to switch me back to being a soprano instead of an alto?
As a professional Opera Singer I can tell you he is wrong. The fact you can sing the low notes does not mean you can sing in the alto part. That is one of the reasons Voice Teachers recommend their students to not join any choir until they have a completely developed technique and range. To sing in the wrong range (alto range in this case) can make you lose part of your high notes (high register) I would recommend you to talk with this teacher and tell him you don't feel comfortable singing that low. Many times Choir directors change singers to other sections because they need more "altos or tenors or what ever" They don't think or they don't know the damage they can cause in the singers voices. Find a good voice teacher to work with your voice and find your real range. If you are a soprano you have two choices here: 1. Talk to your teacher and tell him you are a soprano and you can't sing in the alto section anymore. 2. Quit Better to quit when you have voice enough to start developing a good and saety technique. Do not wait until your voice is damaged to quit. I am a professional Opera Singer and a voice teacher also. I have had students singing in choirs in the wrong section. What I use to do is to send a note to the Choir Director explaying why he/she should change my student to the appropiate choir section. In many cases they follow my advice, but I have had a problem with two different choir directors with BIG EGOS and they told me clearly that I can't decide for them what is the best for their Choir. My answer to that: I know what is the best for My student. So I give my students 2 choices: 1. They quit singing in the choir 2. I do not teach them Why? I would not be resposible of the vocal damage this student will suffer singing in the wrong range. This vocal damage would be caused by the choir director and I will not be responsible for other people. I hope you can find the courage to face this situation and do the best for your vocal instrument. Read my Yahoo 360's blogs maybe you can find some answers there. http://www.myspace.com/dorcacobian
As the leader of the church choir, how do I politely tell other choir members that their voices aren't good?
Why would you do that?A few weeks ago my vocal ensemble took in a temporary singer, we have only two sopranos right now, and the other one can’t make it to our next concert.It was painful. She had this weird vibrato going on that stuck out like a sore thumb, and made it very difficult to sing with a cohesive sound.I didn’t tell her I hated her singing (I did) or that her voice wasn’t good. In fact, because of her technique, I couldn’t tell if her voice was good enough.I tried being circumspect, and asked the conductor what kind of timbre we should be aiming for. It didn’t help. Weird old lady vibrato continued.So I told her “you need to adapt to the ensembles timbre” “Am I not?” “We have a lot less vibrato.” And lo and behold, she adapted!Thing is, it’s almost never about the voice. It’s about technique.Look, this is a church choir, and the choir members have been admitted already. Telling them they had “bad voices” wouldn’t just be mean (and it would) it would probably be untrue. Very few people have bad voices. They may have bad technique, or, at worst, a bad ear for music. But most of that stuff is a matter of practice.Your job is to work with what you have.If you want to be more selective, start having auditions for new members, and increase the difficulty of the repertoire, and gradually the choir will get better. Whether or not you should do this is not for me to say.What you can do NOW is to work more with technique, have more excercises, maybe bring in a professional voice coach. You can have individual sessions, focusing on each chorister’s strengths and weaknesses. You can work with how the choir stands, to make it easier for everyone to hear well, and do listening and intonation exercises.What you shouldn’t do is tell them they have a “bad voice”. That’s just mean.
Any singing tips? 10 points to best details!!?
OK, I'm a girl, but lemme try. I sort of had the same predicament when I was in my teens (just got out of it now.) One important thing to consider is your age. If you're in your teens chances are your vocal chords are not much developed yet, so expect a lot more changes. The girl voice you're referring to, I assume would be your falsetto voice. It means 'false voice.' While it sounds nice in RnB/Soul songs, you shouldn't try to force it as doing so might damage your vocal chords. And I'm quite baffled with your range. You want to sing Music of the Night, which is actually written for a tenor (well, originally for a soprano, actually, but then Andrew Lloyd Webber realized it would fit well for the Phantom). It is indeed high. And then the range you're describing for yourself fits into the baritone/bass range. To be a tenor your range must be somewhere around C3 to C5, so you're an octave short. That makes sense--that's why you can't reach some notes in that song. In a capella you would have to have a good sense of pitch. It would be better if you know how to read notes so you can at least guide yourself. If you're rehearsing an entire song a capella, it would be helpful to play on a piano the first note or even the first few bars of the song. Keep that key in mind so you won't get off-key so easily. Not all people have a good sense or ear for pitch, and I'm not sure how one develops that cause for me and for most singers I've met it comes by naturally. Ultimately it would be best for you to train with someone who knows. You can even try to develop your range and tame higher notes (but probably not to the point that you'll be a tenor.) A good one-on-one instructor would be best. Or something like a group workshop, even. If that's not an option for you try tutorial videos for vocalizing, breathing exercises, and the like in youtube or expertvillage. It's better than nothing at all. One thing I'm sure about--it might be sad but Music of the Night isn't right for you at this point. Try something that would fit for the type of voice you have. If you're into music theatre I would suggest something like 'Why God Why' from Miss Saigon or 'Stars' from Les Miserables (the one with Philip Quast is the best). Try looking 'em up on YouTube. All the best!