carp

Really good!   You complain sometimes about your 'tenorness' but I think your voice is quite rich, not lacking in anything.   I'm jealous!

I like it, a good effort!     I'm 50 and I really have the choirboy thing going.  Just today I've started working in something that calls for some grit, and I don't have it!

Thanks for the replies Rob!   I wasn't digging the tone of the first sample.  It was darker for sure, but not very bluesy or generally appealing.  It's helpful to explore the extremes of sound and sensation.   I'll check out those videos of yours again (I have several times, but I'm not as perceptive at this stuff as I want to be)  and listen for those colors.  And we'll talk about it today I'm sure.   And canines canines canines all the way.

Thanks for the comments. I'm doing exactly that.    I have terrible pitch issues still at this point, so can hardly be said to sing, but even discounting that, I haven't had much luck yet applying the sounds from the exercises to actual singing.      I'm mostly working on what Pillars call The Foundation Building Routine.   I've learned from my guitar-playing efforts that putting in the time on fundamentals is really important, especially if things don't come naturally to a person.  And they don't  to me.   Re sirening high - I run pretty hard into the second passagio at A4.  But I'm not worried much about that at this time.

Yes I can do non breathy falsetto.   I talk to my dogs that way all the time     Actually I think I can do a pretty good EH at A, with a wind & release or dampen and release onset.    And I can siren up to A4.   But when I try a Q&R or the NYA at A4, I'm not able to get smooth complete closure.   I'll try the descending thing.   Descending is generally more difficult for me all around.

Thanks Ku for the thoughtful reply.   You're right, the NYA really brings it out.  Interestingly, I can't do the NYA thing above about F4.  I mean I can make the sound, but not get any twang going.       When I go to what I'm thinking is the dampened position, it's hard to maintain the resonant sensation,   Maybe that's normal, or not?   Also when I go to the dampened, I have a hard time keeping my teeth showing.  Rob emphasize the fangy bite as part of a good embouchure.  I keep my mouth open, but my lip pulls over my teeth.    I've got a lesson with Rob soon so look forward to exploring these things further.

Cool, understood.  And it wasn't my intent to pick on you personally, meant as a general observation.

 I wondered about this.  I'm generally curious about the interest in being able to sing above A4; there is a lot of music below A4.   Not much Zeppelin of course ....   More to the point, managing that E4 to A4 range seems like a pretty solid challenge to begin with.

I'm trying to come to a better understand of the sound/feel of the dampened harmonic vs other sounds/sensations. I'm working with Pillars and trying to use the concepts and terms as laid out there.   The link has me doing some basic sirens from G3 to D4.   The first is with what seems to be is in the direction of the dampened sound - darker, dopey maybe.  The 2nd is I guess could be described as 'edging'; its much more metallic.  When executing the second there is much more sensation of resonance in my head, and the sound is more cutting.  Also not particularly pleasant.     Am I interpreting / feeling this correctly?       A related questions - its my understanding that the 'singer's formant' is not the same as the 'dampened harmonic'.  If this is correct, is the 2nd sample (what I called edging) at all representative of the singers formant?     Thanks, Greg 

Wow, just wow!   I assume you've listened to this song a thousand times casually, and probably sung along with it.  But once you decided to record it, how many hours did you spend working with it to be able to sing it?   Not considering actual recording or mixing time, just getting up to speed to sing it.   Is it a matter of 15 minutes, or 2 hours, or 10 hours?   And do you use sheet music, or is it purely a by-ear thing?   I'm a beginning singer, with all sorts of deficiencies, and lately have been working on songs with a local teacher, and I find it's easy to spend quite a lot of time on one phrase getting it right.   In my case 'right' means more or less on pitch.   I have this probably mistaken idea that 'real' singers can pick something up with at least most of the nuances right away, i.e. within a few sing alongs.      For my guitar playing, I'm used to spending a lot of time to get something down well, and wondering if the singing process is similar, or if it's 'easy' once someone is at your level.   Thanks, Greg