tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3495622859323058834.post4448681885545569088..comments2022-12-23T02:21:31.320-05:00Comments on ONCE MORE WITH FEELING: Please Fix My Voice!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00399266373570613570noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3495622859323058834.post-32203165614840815052009-10-31T19:49:04.608-04:002009-10-31T19:49:04.608-04:00Completely 100% agree with this post. Too many si...Completely 100% agree with this post. Too many singers only think about their technique in their lessons, and cede all control of their voice to whichever teacher their university assigned them. Then they float around, lost in a fog of vocal confusion when something goes wrong or it turns out that teacher wasn't right for them. <br /><br />what's more, even if the teacher IS right for you, you still have to do a lot of work on your own time! Practice, experiment with different sounds and approaches, challenge yourself with new information, and always be looking to expand upon your "technique".<br /><br />I'm launching a new website this weekend, a library of sorts for singers. It's the most complete digital library of operatic technique resources in the world, and it's called <a href="http://belcantoforum.com" rel="nofollow">Bel Canto Forum</a>. It has treatises from historic masters like Lamperti and Garcia, audio recordings of lessons with famous teachers like Melocchi, videos of masterclasses with great singers like Pavarotti, and even google books previews of the latest voice science literature. The library grows every day. The site also has an integrated discussion forum, where people can talk about the ideas from the literature. It even supports audio clips so singers can send each other examples.<br /><br />I have seen too many young singers who don't take ownership of developing their technique, and I hope that <a href="http://belcantoforum.com" rel="nofollow">Bel Canto Forum</a> can help fix that problem. I hope to encourage singers to learn about Bel Canto technique, and to challenge them to make their singing live up to the golden age of the mid-20th century. <br /><br />I think the site could be very useful for some of your readers and students. Actually, I believe that even the best singers can benefit from revisiting Lamperti... but at the very least, it's handy to have all those great technique resources in one place. And it wouldn't hurt to have a few 'real' voice teachers checking in on the forums from time to time. :)Campbell Vertesihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02390905416698123730noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3495622859323058834.post-1019891957090314882009-10-25T20:41:41.906-04:002009-10-25T20:41:41.906-04:00thanks Shaun! keep finding the answers!thanks Shaun! keep finding the answers!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00399266373570613570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3495622859323058834.post-57716089345589521112009-10-23T21:09:52.683-04:002009-10-23T21:09:52.683-04:00As someone with vocal problems (I liked to force m...As someone with vocal problems (I liked to force my voice for years), I can relate to this. I have a couple professionals I am currently seeing but I have also tried to do a lot of hard work to fix the problems on my own. <br /><br />I think that seeking outside help is essential but I feel that seeking help without trying to understand the factors in play is just plain stupid. It is also not smart to assume that there will be a quick fix to long term bad muscle memory or that someone else is going to do the hard work. The hard work is something done every day.<br /><br />I have a high voice for a male and I was teased a lot. I had a lot of traits that made it worse and I have never been a masculine guy. Needless to say, I tried to force my voice down. Now, I have tons of muscle tension and other problems and I can't sing and I love to sing even if only for the joy of it. So, I am currently on my long road to recovery and it is hard work.<br /><br />It is made harder by the fact that I don't like everything about my voice and I am tempted to manipulate it. Being macho is no longer such a big deal, I am 30 and while I don't entirely know myself, I am who I am and an effeminite voice fits me. But my voice is not the same as other voices I grow up with and admire. It can be a very strange creature and being different has always been a hard burden for me.<br /><br />I know I will succeed at least in what I am trying to do at the moment. I don't know whether I will like the final destination. I don't always like myself. I feel like an inhuman freak far too often. I always want those people who I can talk to and just bear my soul without feeling ashamed. I would love to have people think that my voice was beautiful and worth hearing. I grew up with the worst criticisms leveled at my voice. I grew up with similiar criticims leveled at my person. <br /><br />For me, the hard part is twofold.. First, it is the gentle reminder in the form of pain concerning how I have used my voice. Second, it is learning not to be emotionally involved in something (my voice) that is very very precious to me. I never even trained to the extent that I was a good singer. But I love to sing for hours for no reason at all.. Music is precious to me.Shaunnoreply@blogger.com