Robert Lunte

Any clue how long the lifetime membership lasts?

When you update your version do I need to buy a new lifetime membership?

Just to clue in the rest of the journal readers out there... I purchased the four pillars back in October of 2014. So, 3 years ago.
Back then I was using a program called sharefile as well as vimeo to get the updated files. I was under the impression that these files were continually updated. Which is why I am concerned about this "lifetime membership".

Oct.2014 paid $484.
Now, 3 years later, I can get the new program for $80.

...
I understand business it business... That being said, as a 37 year old adult, I have emotions and rationality as well.

If we all have a limited lifetime membership for 80$... then I will just have to understand that it is a play on words... Similar to how I might get a lifetime membership to window xp. It's not windows 10, but it's still a lifetime membership. The fine print if you will. That's what I am curious about. 

Hey guys.
I figured I might as well start a Journal... It will keep me on track. 
There wasn't any Sticky that I could find on Journals, so I am just going to wing it. Basically, I assume it's a record of our experiences. Words, audio/ video... 

This Journal of mine will probably be a mix of video and word.

So, to begin. I've had the four pillars program since 2014. I got it. Watched a bunch of videos. Tried some of the stuff. And then just left it.

I think the reason for this is that the interface just kind of throws everything in your face. There doesn't seem to be a set flow for what you are suppost to be doing and in which order. If there is, I still haven't found it yet. 

Now that I am back at it, I am still finding this.  The videos are very long, and seem to drag in spots. I think it wouldn't be so bad if I wasn't going in so blind. If there was some clear order then I would know what to do when. Also, I find that having 40 mins lectures cuts down on potential singing time. That said, I wouldn't want to trade it and lose the info. I would prefer if they were separated so I could choose to watch less. The interface needs work, in my opinion. But, as I said, I got this back in 2014 - meaning all of those changes might have been done already. 

My biggest hurdle I find is finding out where to start. There's no real break down of what to do, how long, etc. Nor mentions of how to approach singing along to songs. I am used to the format of doing warmups and then focus on singing a song, and then breaking apart certain areas for improvement. 

Any advice so I'm not going in so blind would be helpful. I have watched a bunch of the video lectures in order, and one video demo.

Oh. I forgot to add. I just signed up for singing lessons in Edmonton. A bit of a drive for me. One hour. But it's beside where I work, so that's good. It's also a music school/studio. Which means, I hope, that the lessons will be better than what I had before. The last time I took lessons it was at a music store. There focus was mainly on selling instruments and equipment. 

I don't think I have the option to access that "my training" area.
this is what I have... Are you using a different version?



I can open those pdf files you linked though. It looks like you're linking the TVS. That's different from the four pillars, is it not?

Thanks,
Rich.

You need a new login. @Robert Lunte?

I admit that TFPOS can seem rather daunting. Have you gone into the My Account > My Training side of things? "My Course" alone is difficult to build your own routine from without guidance. It's an incredible resource once you know it though. One of the first links under "My Training" ("Training Workflow Guide") will give you several workflows to choose from, so you know how to quickly put the coursework into a training routine. I always thought of the course side of it as the in-depth study, whereas the training side is where you learn how to implement it as training.
Consider online lesons too. It will open up a lot more options for finding someone who really knows there stuff, how to teach it, and meshes well with you. I have private students all over the world, as does Robert.

I totally agree. What a gorgeous, PERFECT song. I absolutely ADORE this song... the lyrics are so incredibly uplifting and it just rips your heart out. Love the heroism in this song...
... and a great song to learn how to sing if your a student of singing. My compliments to you for choosing to learn this song. It tends to be one of the songs that voice technique students learn. Its a student standard.
Feedback:
- Turn up your vocal sin the mix, your buried a little bit. 
- 2:52
- Pretty good!! ... it is a hair flat, the formant/resonance tuning, not really your ears... Barely enough to notice... But, I want you to Sob more on that part, put more cry into your voice and tune in a touch more /ae/="cats" to the formant tuning. This will lift your soft palate more and amplify brighter harmonics. These details will fix the flat formant tuning.
- 3:10 - "disappear" ... love the vowel on "... pee-uh"... nice modification.
- 4:33 - More of the same.. .Sob harder!!!! its too heavy... thin out your vocal cords with more Sob.
    - 5:04 - "again"... very cool... nice vibrato.
- Really like your passion. You definitely are enjoying this song and are connecting with it, what it means and what its about. You "get it" in regards to this song. That is genuine. Of course, it is hard not to be when you sing this song. What an amazing gift James LeBrie has to be able to sing THIS song, night after night... I would never get tired of it.
... GREAT JOB!
 
I have coached this song several times as well.
Here is Fabricio Fonseca from Brazil. 
 
Shigeki Morimoto from Japan:
 
... damn, this makes me want to finally get around to singing it, and making a video too. Thanks for the inspiration Aravind!

Hi Folks, 
This is one of my favorite songs.  I posted a version earlier, this is after I did some work on my musculature.  Now I am able to retain more of the muscular sound even on my high notes.  The verse as many will attest is one of James La Brie's finest performances. It has taken me several years to reach this level.  For now happy with the outcome.   Thanks to anyone who drops in a sentence or two.. 
 

YES, You Should...
 
 

YES, You Should...
 
 

You can sing in pitch, and that's a big one! You ask if you should continue practicing. Practicing what? If you practice bad habits, you reinformce bad habits. If you practice good techniques, you reinforce good techniques. If you practice guesswork, you reinforce guesswork (which is usually full of bad habits). You need to train if you truly want to get better. Check out The Four Pillars of Singing. It not only gives you a complete and comprehensive course of study, it also explains why you're doing each thing.
Your placement, tension, choice of muscle groups for different things, breath support, and and air pressure balance, are all off. Here's a good start. Just know that it only scratches the surface, give you a basic feel for things, and gets you pointed in the right direction. You won't learn solid technique from short YouTube videos. 
 

Hello! I've been kind of in the dark as to whether or not my singing is ok or not, because the feedback I get from people I sing with might be them being to nice, and it's difficult to get an honest opinion from family members and friends on your singing.
I've been singing on smule (the only way I get singing practice) for about a year now, and I can hear some improvements from when I first started; however, some days im able to hit high and low notes while other days I can't. High notes are still difficult for me to sing full without sounding like I'm straining (because let's face it, I am), and low notes will tend to go off key. I'm able to add some vibration to some keys so it doesn't sound flat, but it's difficult to do on command (usually it just sort of happens, you'll hear what I mean when you check some of my songs). 
I'm new to this site so I want honest opinions, what do I need to work on, and what are things I should be practicing daily, and for how long? Thank you! 
https://www.smule.com/DevanR

Well now... Iron Maiden, good for you.
You sort of have that Bruce Dickinson color, but it needs some work.
It sounds like your getting tired. Are you getting tired in this configuration?
You are really fighting against yourself a lot in here. I would enjoy giving you specific advice on what to do.
I think  you have a good start and could sing this better. It sounds like you have the strength, but need to work on resonance/vowels, etc... pitch in $20 and I can give you specific instructions.
 

Hello
I tried to do a soft song but i dont know if it sounds good to others ears.
 
https://www.smule.com/recording/meat-loaf-heaven-can-wait/713794929_1572557332

The opportunity to request a review of your singing is FREE. 
A guaranteed review requires a reasonable fee of $20.
Here is the link for a guaranteed review :
 
http://www.themodernvocalistworld.com/store/category/2-membership-plans/
 
Respectfully,
Adolph

Hi
 
What do you think of this performance?
 
https://vocaroo.com/i/s01pqIs5CGmG

Hello
 
Doing another Iron Maiden classic. What do you think?
 
https://vocaroo.com/i/s1NQ5Yk8eu5U

Hello Sophia,
I look forward to helping you.
 

Hello Everyone,
This is the first song that I wrote both the lyrics and music for and worked with a local producer that helped me put the instrumental track together. Just wanted to get some feedback from you.
Thanks
~Sophia Grayce~
 

Yes, it was very cool. Reminded me of Fish from early Marillion.

Yes, it was very cool. Reminded me of Fish from early Marillion.

Hi, I posted this a few days ago, but for technical reasons the post was lost. Robert Lunte already kindly reviewed it, but if anyone else feels like giving me (constructive) feedback on singing, songwriting or recording, that would be great. 
It's a prog rock piece just over 8 minutes long, hopefully you'll stick through to the end (which was the hardest part to sing due to the challenging harmonies).
George
 
 
 

Interesting.
This recording is either one of two things:
1. An attempt to tune the heck out of it with pitch correction software ( which can also be autotune software, same thing sometimes ), in which case, I agree with Draven. This would be WAY too much AT. It should not sound cyborgish.
or
2. This is intended to be an effect, and autotune or vocoder software was used. Consistent with current trends where singers are using gobs of autotune or vocoder and pitch shifting effects to actually create a similar result, but the intentions and the plug-ins used as different. I've also heard it referred to as the "T-Payne" sound? I'm not a big T-Payne fan, but apparently he must of been one of the first to popularize this effect. My God, you hear EVERYONE doing now.
One is designed to help you on a few notes that should not be noticeable. The other is designed to caked on and heard, very noticeable.
I am willing to bet that the trend toward vocoder / autotune effects came from producers that were trying to pitch correct the artist and were getting nowhere and decided to just turn autotuning into an effect. Sort of like when your playing pool and you make an amazing shot and say, "... ya, I meant to do that", to save face. Autotuning and vocoder effects are cool. Its all just art and creativity. If I have a concern it would be that it is way over used these days in my opinion.
So Flor, what was your intention here?  Were you trying to correct your pitch, or were you trying to create an autotune/vocoder effect?

Do you have something with less autotuning on your voice? It's hard to hear your technique for the pitch correction. There are other ways to achieve a similar effect, but many years as a recording engineer, it's rare to hear a voice without very little variation that doesn't have pitch correction or a massive amount of other effects to achieve the same sound. Sadly, it makes it almost impossible to analyze your voice as a coach.

Hi there, 
I was asked from a friend to record Love Me Tender (Elvis Presley) for his wedding. 
I have at the moment only piano. Would you think it requires adding some other instruments?