Singing is as much of an acquired skill as it is a natural talent. Some people have a better aptitude towards singing and music than others. Ultimately, learning how to sing for beginners is about practice and patience. If you think that you’re not a good singer and want to learn how to sing, you’ve come to the right place.
Whether you have dreams of singing in front of a crowd or just want to hone a new skill, here is a step-by-step guide on how to sing for beginners. Let’s get right into it.
In case you are interested more in-depth information about improving the quality of your voice or singing in general, we can recommend the Singorama 2.0 course. It's not free, but the value you'll get from it definitely justifies the cost.
Learn How to Breathe
Wait a minute, isn’t breathing something that comes naturally to everyone? If you’re asking yourself what breathing has to do with singing, you’re not the only one. Many people who start out singing don’t know that there’s a specific type of breathing for singing. This type of breathing has to be done in order to make sure that you’re able to get all the sound out.
In order to breathe properly while singing, you need to fill your diaphragm with air. When you breathe in, the air should be going below your chest and above your navel. If you breathe in and feel all the air filling up your lungs and your chest, then you’re not breathing right.
Learn some breathing exercises designed for singers, so you have better control of your breathing. This is one of the first steps to learning how to sing. Your instrument relies entirely on air being pushed through your vocal cords and out of your mouth.
Breathing Exercises
To learn how to breathe with your diaphragm, try breathing in and filling your diaphragm for a count of four seconds. Then, exhale for another count of four seconds. You can repeat this particular exercise eight times, and then again another sixteen times. This will teach you how to have better control over your breathing. Also, it will get your diaphragm used to this type of movement.
Learn How to Stand
If you do most of your singing slouched over, then you’re probably not getting the best sound out of your instrument. Another important part of learning how to sing is having the proper singing posture. When you sing, you’re not just using your voice.
You’re also using your lungs, your chest, your diaphragm - really, you’re using your whole body. Singing is a very physical experience. Here are some ways to make sure that your body is properly aligned and that your posture is best for singing.
Keep your neck straight
Your neck should always be balanced on your top vertebrae. Your head should be looking neither up nor down, and this will keep it remain streamlined with the rest of your spine. For clear airflow and movement of your vocal cords.
Keep your shoulders relaxed
When you’re singing, your shoulders shouldn’t be moving. Since they’re not attached to your ribs, you don’t need to move them up or down in order to have a better sound. When your shoulders are relaxed, you’ll have more room in your brain and body to focus on singing.
Keep your hands and arms relaxed at your sides
Unless you’re purposefully gesturing while singing, you should be able to keep your arms and hands relaxed and by your side. Don’t clench your hands into fists, and don’t have your fingers outstretched, either.
Keep your torso and hips aligned
Relaxing your torso and letting your spine keep its natural curve will settle your hips underneath your torso. This helps your chest feel open and allows you to sing more clearly and naturally.
Learn How to Match Pitch
Matching pitch is an important part of learning how to sing. In order to match pitch, you need to have something you can use as a baseline. Most people use a piano or keyboard, but, if you don’t have that, you can use a digital tuner or even an app on your phone used for tuning.
In order to learn how to match pitch, you need to play a key and be able to sing that key right back. A great way to do this is to slowly slide your own note higher or lower than the baseline. Then, see how well you’re able to get back on key. It might take some time and practice, but matching pitch is one of the first steps to learning how to sing properly.
You can also use the “do re mi” exercise in order to learn how to both match pitch and improve your vocal control. Singing “do re mi fa, so la ti do” to varying pitches will help you recognize what pitch you need to work on.
Learn Your Vocal Range
Do you know how high or low you can sing? Vocal range is an important part of learning how to sing. In order to find your vocal range, take a minute to sit down with your digital tuner, tuner app, or keyboard. Start by playing a middle C. You should be pretty comfortable hitting this note.
Next, play lower notes one at a time and keep seeing how low you can match those notes. The lowest note you can hit is how low your range goes. You can do this same exercise for the high notes and determine your vocal range.
Head Voice Versus Chest Voice
You may have heard terms like head voice and chest voice. Respectively, these terms refer to the higher notes and the lower notes, of your vocal range.
It may be difficult to find out on your own whether you are singing in head voice or chest voice. Employing a vocal coach to help you with this, is probably the best solution.
When singing in chest voice, you get the sensation that your singing resonates from your chest. On the other hand, when singing in head voice you will feel as if the sound resonates in your head.
Warm Up Your Vocal Cords
When you are just starting out, be sure not to sing too much, as you might strain your vocal cords. Before singing, you should, therefore, do some vocal warm-up exercises. This will help your vocal cords get ready for being used intensively.
You can compare this to athletes who will first warm up their muscles before engaging in sports. They do this to avoid straining their muscles and thus injuring themselves.
Don't expect to be able to sing more than 30 minutes to 60 minutes on average, even after doing warm-ups for your vocal cords.
Furthermore, by doing warm-up exercises for your vocal cords regularly, you'll also be able to increase your vocal range.
Get Started Singing
Ideally, you should find a karaoke version of a popular song you like. This type of song does not contain any vocals and can, therefore, be used as a backing track for when you practice. Otherwise, you can use a regular version of a song and just try to sing along with the lead singer.
As you practice singing you will notice that your confidence level increases bit by bit.
Conclusion
Learning how to sing is easier than most people think. You do not need to have an expensive vocal coach charging hundreds of dollars an hour to teach you one-on-one. Having some comprehensive online courses like Singorama 2.0, or just knowing the right exercises, can have anyone singing better in no time.
Now that you have got an idea of where to start, hopefully, you are able to feel more confident in your abilities. Singing takes time and patience, but once you’ve got the basics under your belt, you’re ready to face anything, whether that is a concert, an eisteddfod, a gig, or just singing in your shower.
