Jump to content

Am I too muffled?

Rate this topic


Recommended Posts

I have a friend (great musician, but not a singer) who tells me that my singing is very unclear. I do admit that my articulation could improve a fair bit, but I don't think that there are any serious problems with my projection. I have a warm and mellow voice, and I tend to think that this is the real reason why my vocals might seem to lack clarity.

I would just like to hear a 'third opinion', so to speak. And please, be brutally honest if need be.

The song in question is my original song 'Where have you gone now?'. I have just recently uploaded it to my webpage: http://www.myspace.com/andrewywu

Thanks for your time

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I listened to your songs and I was pleasantly surprised! I liked what I heard. Good compositions and a good voice! Muffled or unarticulate are not words I would use to describe your voice. It's slightly breathy at times, which actually sounds well but could give you problems in other songs. You're also ever so slightly off pitch on occasion, which vocal exercises are great to fix, but I'm guessing that it was pretty much a one take and unedited. On professional recordings, vocals are cut and paste where singers get out of tune so just know that it happens to most singers from time to time. The instrumental song is also very beautiful.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll echo what the others have said. Your tone quality is easy and free, and just slightly on the breathy side, which is fine for this song. Its pleasant to listen to.

I see from your pix that you may be recording while sitting. I'd like to suggest that you try this song standing up, and with the accompanyment separately mic'd. Singing while sitting, especially while playing a guitar, tends to crunch the body forward a bit, which puts a bit more air on the voice than would result if standing. Give it a try, I think you'll find that your tone quality becomes clearer automatically.

When performing this song for a group of people in a larger room, when there is no amplification, I think you will want to add just a bit more energy to the consonants, and use a slightly firmer tone. Soft consonants tend to get covered up by the reverberation of vowels in a room, which will affect the clarity of the words.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Andrew, same feedback from here. I didn't find your tone to be too muffled. Its quite nice. Also try what Steven says, standing up will change the sound for sure. Also, being an asian myself, I think there is ever so slight a difference on how we sing English (because its not our first language). So that might also be a reason why your friend says you sound muffled?

you can check out my reverb page if you have some time: http://www.reverbnation.com/ashiquemfahim

Keep on singing!

Fahim

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Thanks to all those who have provided feedback so far.

To Steven,

The photos you see are snapshots from my YouTube videos. When I am actually recording audio, I record each part separately separately and with my body upright. You're right, being slumped over the guitar does restrict the airflow a bit. I just haven't quite become comfortable at playing the guitar standing yet.

To Fahim,

You are one wicked guitarist!

I also wanted to ask a few follow up questions:

1. Do you think that my voice is suited to the acoustic, adult contemporary and soft rock styles that I am currently involved with, or is there something else that would suit me better? I have dabbled around in rock and pop rock before and my assessment is that my voice lacks the power and brightness needed to really cut through the music.

2. With my mellow and breathy tone, am I better suited to background vocals than lead vocals?

Thanks in advance

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Andrew...i think i am not learned enough to comment on which styles you should follow...I will let the experts comment on that. Personally, I would decide which style I want to sing in, and then try with everything I have to learn that style. I also think I have a weaker voice than is needed in rock but I will not try other styles because my heart is not in it...

Ashique M. Fahim

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks to all those who have provided feedback so far.

To Steven,

The photos you see are snapshots from my YouTube videos. When I am actually recording audio, I record each part separately separately and with my body upright. You're right, being slumped over the guitar does restrict the airflow a bit. I just haven't quite become comfortable at playing the guitar standing yet.

To Fahim,

You are one wicked guitarist!

I also wanted to ask a few follow up questions:

1. Do you think that my voice is suited to the acoustic, adult contemporary and soft rock styles that I am currently involved with, or is there something else that would suit me better? I have dabbled around in rock and pop rock before and my assessment is that my voice lacks the power and brightness needed to really cut through the music.

2. With my mellow and breathy tone, am I better suited to background vocals than lead vocals?

Thanks in advance

1. Anyone can sing any style, if you learn abit about the techniques a certain style often involves. You talk about lack of power and brightness. If this is something you wish to be able to do then I recommend you start looking into twang. Twang will increase your volume and make your vocals abit sharper.

Go here(http://vocalcoach.dk/uk/onlinecourse/) and do the following:

1. Scroll down the page and click the button neutral with soft closure.

This is the technique you are doing mostly. It is soft, airy and always has low volume.

2. Now click compressed neutral.

This is abit stronger and sharper. But still very similiar. The easiest way to find this would be by simply adding abit twang. Try singing with a smile. Also, just as a picture in your head, try to sing with a with a more compressed sound. If a regular smile doesn't get rid of the air you could always do the joker smile http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f9/Manwholaughs.jpg then you should really get to feel what alot of twang feels like. And singing like that can sound very piercing and sharp. The key then is to feel how much twang do you need for certain notes to get the sound you want.

Now I don't want to overwhelm you with new techniques, so I recommend you try this first and then if you wanna wake the neighbours you should push the button overdrive on that page and I'll give you some tips on that. :)

2. Do what you feel like, I believed a year ago that you had to be a natural talent to be a great singer and that I was born with a certain voice type, and that I only could sing loudly(Yes I could almost only sing in overdrive, too much metallica in high school did that to me.). It was all lies. Some people has to work harder than others to be learn to sing certain things though, but that's life.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1. Anyone can sing any style, if you learn abit about the techniques a certain style often involves. You talk about lack of power and brightness. If this is something you wish to be able to do then I recommend you start looking into twang. Twang will increase your volume and make your vocals abit sharper.

Go here(http://vocalcoach.dk/uk/onlinecourse/) and do the following:

1. Scroll down the page and click the button neutral with soft closure.

This is the technique you are doing mostly. It is soft, airy and always has low volume.

2. Now click compressed neutral.

This is abit stronger and sharper. But still very similiar. The easiest way to find this would be by simply adding abit twang. Try singing with a smile. Also, just as a picture in your head, try to sing with a with a more compressed sound. If a regular smile doesn't get rid of the air you could always do the joker smile http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f9/Manwholaughs.jpg then you should really get to feel what alot of twang feels like. And singing like that can sound very piercing and sharp. The key then is to feel how much twang do you need for certain notes to get the sound you want.

Now I don't want to overwhelm you with new techniques, so I recommend you try this first and then if you wanna wake the neighbours you should push the button overdrive on that page and I'll give you some tips on that. :)

2. Do what you feel like, I believed a year ago that you had to be a natural talent to be a great singer and that I was born with a certain voice type, and that I only could sing loudly(Yes I could almost only sing in overdrive, too much metallica in high school did that to me.). It was all lies. Some people has to work harder than others to be learn to sing certain things though, but that's life.

Really liked your advice & outlook on singing. thanks!

Ashique M. Fahim

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...