Over the past fifteen to twenty years, family song culture has almost disappeared in Russia, and this is a very serious loss.
Previously, the song sounded constantly: adults sang, gathering at one table; mums sang, laying the kids to sleep.
People sang just like that: going camping, digging potatoes, doing spring cleaning.
Nevertheless, song traditions are gradually returning.
Today, a huge number of people dream of not just singing, but doing it right, beautifully. Not everyone has the opportunity to do vocals with a professional teacher. In this case, try to learn to sing at home.
How to learn to sing at home: developing a breathing apparatus
Karaoke is a real find for lovers of singing. Many sing at home, in karaoke clubs, with friends and just like that, for themselves. There are talented people to whom the voice is given by nature, and then they may well find themselves in the vocalist profession.
How to learn to sing at home? First of all, to understand that it will not work easily and quickly. If you want to achieve a really good result, will have to work in three directions:
• develop proper breathing;
• learn to articulate correctly;
• choose the right repertoire.
So how to breathe correctly and why is it important for those who want to learn to sing? The problem is that many lovers sing well, but they do not have the volume and power of sound. This is because the layman exhales the air right away without holding it. The air ends, the muscles relax - the sound is lost.
The biggest mistake is to breathe air into the upper lungs.. With such shallow breathing, shoulders and collarbones rise, and a neck and ligament clamp occurs. A beautiful "flight" sound will not work.
How to understand what is proper breathing? There is a very simple way. You need to lie down, relax and imagine yourself sleeping. During sleep, a person breathes most physiologically. Air is drawn into the lower parts of the lungs. This can be understood by the fact that a sleeping person does not have a chest rising, but a stomach.
That's right, with your stomach, and you need to learn how to breathe a person who wants to learn how to sing at home, without a teacher. Such breathing is not accidentally called diaphragmatic. Air-filled lungs in the lower part expand and begin to put pressure on the diaphragm. A good breathing support is created, without which to get a strong, clear sound will not work. The diaphragm is the secret of proper breathing, successful vocal training.
To check whether you breathe correctly, stand against the wall, straighten your shoulders and take a breath, putting your hand to your stomach or (for clarity), any elongated object: a comb, a small umbrella. If you feel that the hand has gone forward or you see the belly “pushing” an object, everything is in order: it is it, breathing in the stomach, or the diaphragm.
Now you need to train muscle muscles with special exercises. The more you train, the faster and better you will learn to sing. In fact, the stronger and longer the sound is pulled, the stronger the tension in the muscles should be. This will help to sing the whole musical phrase, or even two, without tension, beautifully and completely.
If you inhale the air and immediately exhale, then the end of the phrases simply “spreads out” or does not sound at all. That is why an amateur singer often does not “reach” the line to the end. To avoid a common mistake, one must learn to hold the respiratory support constantly.
The usual swing of the press provides good help, but there are also professional exercises.
• Exhale the air as much as possible, then, without gaining air into the chest, breathe in the “press”, inhaling and exhaling with effort. Such an exercise is designed specifically to develop the diaphragm, so you can’t breathe when singing! Inhale is done through the nose. On inhalation, the abdomen retracts, on exhalation it protrudes slightly. The rate of inhalation-exhalation gradually, as the diaphragm strengthens, needs to be increased.
• Classical academic diaphragm exercise: simulate a shout. Imagine that you need to hail a person who is at a distant distance. Shout “hey!”, Feeling the diaphragm tighten. Do 8 to 10 of these "shouts."
How to breathe when singing? Nose air, filling the lower part of the lungs as much as possible. The breath should be silent, free, natural. Breast or clavicular breathing is unacceptable: you simply begin to suffocate when singing, overload the ligaments. This is fraught with loss of voice, hoarseness, sore throat.
You need to train daily. This is the main condition for success: the respiratory and articulatory apparatus must receive a constant load in order to be in good shape and maintain strength. A well-developed diaphragm is elastic, strong. Thanks to her, you can gradually develop the technique and learn to sing well.
How to learn to sing at home: important exercises
Daily exercises should necessarily include exercises to strengthen the ligaments and articulation. The initial task is to learn to get rid of tension in the throat, to relax the ligaments. You will need to master the “vocal mask” - this is a special facial expression, making it easier, stronger, more beautiful to sing sounds.
Exercise "Wide Throat":
• make a “vocal mask”: smile slightly, feeling tension in the cheekbones;
• pull out the tongue, keeping the “smile mask”. To make it easier, you can hold your cheeks with your fingers;
• while maintaining such facial expressions, breathe dog-like, at a different pace. It is important to feel tension in the press, chill and relaxation in the neck. You can help yourself by putting a pencil, sushi stick, pen on your tongue;
• keeping the position of the tongue and cheeks, lower the jaw down as low as possible, continue breathing;
• leave the muscles of the face in the accepted position and utter the sound “a” by pushing it with the stomach.
In this position, the ligaments rest.
The most important quality of correct singing is proper articulation, that is, a clear pronunciation of vowels and consonants.
Articulation Exercise.
• Include the original song. Well, if you remember the words as a keepsake. If not, you need to have text before your eyes.
• Take a thick marker or felt-tip pen, clamp between the teeth. The main task is to hold the felt-tip pen while pronouncing the words. Keep your upper teeth hanging over the felt-tip pen: this will make it easier to sing.
• First you don’t have to try to sing, it’s important to say the words. The tongue at this moment should not be under or above the felt-tip pen. When pronouncing, he will constantly come across a barrier and get tired. This is serious muscle training.
• Having done the exercise two to three times, you can proceed to singing the text. Make three repetitions of singing.
• Now you can sing without a felt-tip pen. The bottom line is that the articulatory apparatus remembers the position of the muscles of the face, in which it will be easy for him to sing. Thus, the exercise allows not only to improve articulation, but also to get used to the “vocal mask”.
Of course, do not ignore tongue twisters - An indispensable element in the development of clear diction for all artists. When speaking tongue twisters, pay attention to the endings of words: they cannot be swallowed, the phrase should sound cleanly from beginning to end.
Great for simultaneous training of the respiratory organs, vocal cords, diaphragm, some exercises of respiratory gymnastics according to Strelnikova. A lot of singers are engaged in this system, why not beginner vocalists do this too? The basis of this paradoxical system is a special nose inhalation. It should be sharp, short and noisy. But the exhalation should be completely invisible, easy, it will be filled with the mouth. It is necessary to focus attention on inspiration.
Exercise Pump.
• Make a half bow, hands free. The back is rounded, legs shoulder-width apart.
• Make the slope stronger, as if you were really working with a pump, and at the same time inhale sharply.
• Take the initial position with a quiet exhale.
• Repeat. One exercise cycle - eight breaths. Complete exercise is 12 cycles.
Hold Shoulder Exercise aims to expand the lower lung, which is very important for singers. When inhaling, the chest should be pinched, and all the air will rush down.
• Place your hands parallel to the floor, bending at the elbows. One hand is on top of the other.
• Sharply, at the same time as inhaling, throw your hands towards each other, hugging your shoulders and at the same time pinching your chest.
• On exhalation, loosen the compression, return to its original position.
• The number of repetitions is the same.
Another great exercise you need to perform is the same as the Pump. However, hands should be placed on the stomach. Simultaneously with the tilt, press on the press and pronounce syllables with any consonants and vowels "and", "y", "o", "e". It will turn out very similar to the classic chant "mi-mo-me-mo", "ri-ru-re-ro", etc. Exercise helps develop respiratory support and deliver voice.
How to learn to sing at home: choose a repertoire
It's time to pick the right repertoire. It is not as easy as it may seem. It is important to catch the tonality (pitch of the voice) at which the ligaments will work as comfortably as possible, without tension. If the song is “yours”, the sound will flow freely, without clamps.
Try singing individual sounds in unison (monotonous) to the selected song first. This means that two sounds of the same pitch will sound simultaneously: your voice and music. If you have a musical instrument or tuning fork at home, making the sound clear can be easier. Pick up a sound with your voice so that it matches, merges with the instrument or tuning fork. For starters, you can do this without opening your lips, that is, simply mumble.
If there are recordings of your favorite song performed by a professional artist, and if the tone suits you, start singing. Try to copy intonations, facial expressions, singer movements - this will help to master the technique of singing. Ideally, your voice and the voice of the artist should merge completely.
The next stage is to try to sing karaoke or "backing track" of the selected song. Be sure to record your performance and listen to it. When a man sings, he does not hear himself. Analysis of the record will allow you to see the errors and work them out. For example, if you are fake somewhere, that is, you do not fall into tonality, you need to work out this fragment.
Learning to sing is very helpful for children's songs. Usually they have a narrow range, a pleasant and clear melody. When the children's repertoire is mastered, you can switch to popular music, romances, folk songs that you like.
If you know a foreign language - great. Songs by foreign artists will significantly expand your repertoire. If you don’t know, then it’s good: thanks to music you can learn a language. The main thing is that the work should be technically uncomplicated, sound within one octave (that is, there would not be too much difference between low and high sounds) and have a simple text.
Ask benevolent relatives or friends with a musical ear to listen to your singing. Do not take hostility with criticism. In the end, you are only learning to sing, so each comment will only benefit.
