Studies have found that the way we sound is the SECOND impression that we make when meeting someone else for the FIRST time! No wonder we are so very precious about the sound of our voices, especially when used in the modality of music creation!
Years of being an aspiring vocalist who wished to emulate my favorite music artists had me focused on the wrong thing: Trying to sound EXACTLY like my influences lead me to years of frustration because I don’t sound EXACTLY like my vocal heroes! Sure, I sing most Stevie Wonder tunes, but I have to de-tune Overjoyed by a half-step from the original recording for it to fit MY vocal range (for example).
Certainly, I can sing A Song For You by Donny Hathaway, and even affect his glorious soulful vocal tone, and his smooth yet understated vocal riffs. But, his innate sense of timing and phrasing and being able to perfectly sing “off the one”, all the while not sound like he’s counting, (ex “I Love You More Than You’ll Ever Know”)? Fuhgetaboutit. His sense of rhythm, or “feel” as it’s called, is supernatural!
You’ll note that the examples I’ve used have been very specific about certain ASPECTS of what makes Stevie and Donny so great. I need to confess that my understanding of that came way later in my own vocal development, and early on I was just trying to mimic what they did without understanding or putting a name to these individual things.
Years of being a professional voice teacher and singing coach made me take a much closer examination of these singers and start to identify WHAT makes them so great. And, through that process of “breaking it down”, understanding that these are aspects that CAN be worked on and improved upon over time in any singers voice, including my own.
It’s just that how it manifests is DIFFERENT and UNIQUE to my own vocal design and habits and tendencies.
And, that’s more than OKAY! In fact, if I’m to be a true music artist, than that is IDEAL!
And, that is what I wish to encourage you with today:
Listen to your favorite singers and make a list of WHAT it is you LOVE about their singing. It could be their vocal tone and timbre. Try to ID the qualities of it: Is it husky and breathy? Is it full and robust? Is it gravelly?
Maybe, it’s the way they stylize their range and registers: Do they have a seamless “MIX”? Do they have a super strong “BELT”? Perhaps they like to intentionally “BREAK” or “FLIP” from their lower / chest voice to their upper / head voice. Do they have an incredibly sweet “FALSETTO” (a la Maxwell or DeAngelo)?
Make that list, write it down, be specific. I promise you, you will put a name to at least one thing that you innately do already as a singer, but maybe not have been cognizant of it. And, you’ll have an itemized list of things that you may want to add to your own repertoire and “tool-kit” as a singer; it will help FOCUS and STREAMLINE the way you next practice!
Have Fun Singing!! :)