Singing Practise

If you are new to singing and are taking lessons then you should practise every day. It takes time to develop muscle co-ordination, strength and flexibility which are needed for singing. Just remember that trying something new takes time and patience. You will need somewhere where you feel good to practise like a rehearsal studio, community center, school or even the car. And you should really record yourself. The most important things to remember when practising singing are:

• Start with a warm-up
• shorter is better than longer and few
• concentrate
• don’t overdo it

Warming up is important to get the fluids and mucous out of your throat. Your vocal cords need to be damp to move and that is why sometimes in the morning it is hard to speak. The greatest place to do vocal warm ups is the shower. The steam actually opens up your throat and windpipe and it is soft on the vocal cords. Along with that drinking lots of water will help. In fact, some singers drink a gallon of water a day! When you begin training you should sing for shorter sessions several times daily.

The shorter the practises the more you can keep your focus and not tire the new vocal muscles. When you do your exercises you need to focus on what the exercise is doing. Feel the physical sensations that the exercise brings on and hot the changes in sound. The more you become aware of your singing the more control you will have. Your throat should not get tired or tense. If it does then you are not using the proper techniques. Any discomfort could come from using the outer muscles too much, forcing sounds or singing your exercises too loudly. Try to use a moderate volume while singing and practising.

You should try to practise when your home is quiet. If you want to sing in the mornings then you will need to warm up your vocal cords because sleeping dries out the vocal cords. It makes sense since fluid intake is next to none during the night. Get hydrated before you start to sing and warm up. The nice thing is that singers need very little equipment. There are some pieces of equipment that you may want to look into to make singing and practising more efficient. One is a piano.

This can be played or used to find a pitch and can be found at thrift stores and garage sales for less. A keyboard is handy for rhythm, percussion bass and more. A recording device is good so you can hear how you sound and make any necessary changes. Finally, a mirror is handy to practise in front of to get a look at your whole body. You will notice posture your mouth, shoulders, breathing and body. Do you think the audience will take to you, or do you need to make changes? It is not always fun to have to practise, but the rewards you will get in the end will far outweigh all the work.