freedompresence Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 Hello, I started singing a little over a year ago and had a goal to perform on stage not professionally but maybe like an amateur show or wherever it will take me. So I've been practicing almost everyday and took a few singing lessons but I got to the point where I feel burnt out and isn't leading me anywhere. I lost a lot of motivation just repetitiously practicing and lost all the fun... If anyone can give me an advice I'd appreciate it very much. I was thinking about finding an opportunity to perform so maybe it'll get me motivated again but I couldn't really find any. I live in OC california. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator Robert Lunte Posted February 4, 2015 Administrator Share Posted February 4, 2015 A very interesting post... I have felt this way before too... and if your a beginner, training can do that to you at some point. The first thing that comes to my mind is, sing! Start singing... what are you waiting for? Get in a band, or learn about home recording and start making recordings. Also, one thing that can help is, find some training content that is more fun as well... in my program, "The Four Pillars of Singing"... I offer 6 Pentatonic Blues workouts and some "groove" workouts that swing more... they are more... FUN! So that can help... but singing is the end game... so make sure your pursuing that for sure. Also, can you do us a favor and upload a picture to your profile... thanks! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Khassera Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 Try out new stuff, rap, beatbox, do musical theater pieces etc. Something totally different. Watch movies and imitate the actors just for the hell of it. You'll find ways to use your voice that you might not have thought of before and that will feed into your motivation to continue. Trust me, we've all been there. Just ask Phil Collins who still thinks he can't sing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Korzec Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 Take a break from vocal exercises for a while just to rediscover the joy of singing songs. Also find singers you love and listen closely to what makes them so great, that will motivate you too. Then bring the exercises back but put more time into songs than exercises. As far as getting performance opportunities it helps to make friends with a lot of musicians and then in conversation let them know you're looking to perform somewhere and they will recommend venues, people's basements/living rooms/garages/backyards that would make a good spot for a show at a party or something, churches, schools, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronws Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 What everyone else said. Get back into singing songs. Continue your training exercises, of course. It may seem boring but remember it will have some affect on how you sing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDEW Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Use melody lines from a favorite song with your exercises. Certainly with songs you are having difficulty with. Sing the melody line just using the different vowels instead of the real words. You may hit on the proper vowel shape that helps keep the melody line steady. Sing it with just the vowels of the words. Change things up a little. People learn faster and make better progress when having fun. Go ahead and imitate other singers and different styles. It can either bring awareness to a problem or help to smooth out a problem. You may even find a few sounds that you didn't even know you could make. The more uptight you are about not getting an exercise or song the more frustrated and tense you will get....That leads to its own problem......Relax, Have fun.....Sing like no one is listening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator Robert Lunte Posted February 5, 2015 Administrator Share Posted February 5, 2015 Use melody lines from a favorite song with your exercises. Certainly with songs you are having difficulty with. Sing the melody line just using the different vowels instead of the real words. You may hit on the proper vowel shape that helps keep the melody line steady. Sing it with just the vowels of the words. Change things up a little. People learn faster and make better progress when having fun. Go ahead and imitate other singers and different styles. It can either bring awareness to a problem or help to smooth out a problem. You may even find a few sounds that you didn't even know you could make. The more uptight you are about not getting an exercise or song the more frustrated and tense you will get....That leads to its own problem......Relax, Have fun.....Sing like no one is listening. Train the theme to Star Trek on open vowels... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Mohler Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Then forget about the exercises and just have fun with it man. Think back to what originally got you passionate enough to start training in the first place and try and find the inspiration to rekindle that flame. Also, I think it's important when you are practicing not to dedicate 100% of your singing time to doing pure technique stuff. Take some time out to just sing some of your favorite songs. Now, don't completely throw technique out the window or anything but don't let singing become this completely mechanical beast. It's supposed to be absolutely joyous. Wish you luck, peace. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aravindmadis Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Speaking from personal experience, if you regularly practice that long, you will see periodic improvements. Investment in equipment to record and frequent forums like this one. You will be amazed how much you can keep improving in your singing. There is really no limit. Once you see the improvements they will automatically keep you motivated. You will keep getting puzzles to solve and then once done, you need to keep pushing to the next level.. Always try to work on a song that is just beyond your current ability and experience the thrill when you are able to sing it like you have always wanted.. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDEW Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Train the theme to Star Trek on open vowels... Where no vocalist has gone before. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freedompresence Posted February 5, 2015 Author Share Posted February 5, 2015 Thank you everyone for great advice! I don't feel so alone anymore lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
etekiller Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I've just found a way to practice with some fun. I got a copy of Guitar Pro 6 and I am downloading tabs for my favourite songs. It displays vocal parts too. Everything in a sheet music form. This way you can practice nailing songs the way they were exactly written (to the shortest note). It helped me to learn some complicated melodies, and in Guitar Pro you can play any selected part at any rate and tempo. You can even modify that sheet music to play different notes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VideoHere Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 Now stop feeling sorry for yourself and get back to work. Just kidding..... You got a ton of great advise from the guys and gals. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freedompresence Posted February 6, 2015 Author Share Posted February 6, 2015 what are some devices I can start with to record? I've never recorded before besides on my iphone lol. THank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aravindmadis Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 what are some devices I can start with to record? I've never recorded before besides on my iphone lol. THank you. You will need the following 1. A soundcard - I use the scarlett 2i2 and it is amazing for the price http://us.focusrite.com/usb-audio-interfaces/scarlett-2i2 2. A microphone - A dynamic microphone is good if you don't have a treated/silent room. Popular choices are Shure SM 58 or AKG D5 3. A DAW - You can use Audacity or Reaper. This is the software that helps you mix karaoke tracks with your voice There are details you can find on the recording section of the forum. You will take a while to understand how to use these, especially the DAW and effects, but this should be a good starting point for you to do some research and find out what you can do in your budget. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator Robert Lunte Posted February 6, 2015 Administrator Share Posted February 6, 2015 what are some devices I can start with to record? I've never recorded before besides on my iphone lol. THank you. I have a great answer for that... as I have gone through many levels of learning on recording... for a "real" recording, I advise that you read some of the posts on the "Recording" forum... you will need a DAW (recording software), an interface (I recommend the focusrite scarlette) and good mic ... that is probably a bit over-kill for you right now... Check out the home recording kits/bundles at the Vocal Gear Store... click the link. The best thing you could do is purchase the Olympus LS-14... its device that allows you to make live recordings... that are decent... as long as you have a karaoke machine or a PA system you can plug-it into. Has the ability to record the signal right off the board... so you can play your bed tracks and use the effects off your PA system to at least make some demo recordings. You can get the Olympus LS-14 at The Vocal Gear Store ... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronws Posted February 7, 2015 Share Posted February 7, 2015 I have a thread going on about Audacity. But one of these bundles could also work, as they will have all the hardware that you need and it is a good place to start. Even the cheapest large diaphragm condenser mic will be better than a smartphone mic. Everyone is loving the Scarlett 2in2. And it is good. I have the m-audio m-track, which costs a little less and so I supplemented my purchase with an xlr-to-xlr cable. Audacity is free. Reaper has a free trial and they also ask that you support with a fee of about $60 USD. The advantage of the Scarlett and the M-audio, as well as more expensive usb interfaces is that they have live monitor. This gets rid of most of the latency in digital recording. When you start, you will play with a couple of tracks that you can always delete (in digital, you can have as many tracks as you have memory for) where you will adjust the channel gain, and again, in software, adjust the input gain of your usb codec, which will usually look like a microphone. In Audacity, I keep it's input set at about 67 percent. On my interface, I will hold the longest and highest note and dial down the channel gain until it is barely tickling yellow. ALWAYS MAKE A CLEAN AND NON-DISTORTED TRACK. (was that loud enough?) One of the kits on this forum's gear store page is about 259. In my thread, I had mentioned you might spend a total of 250. Close enough. And this is bare bones just to make good recordings of your singing. You don't have to be a recording engineer or a mastering engineer. That is an entirely different forum and those guys get serious about analog gear outboard of their computer. Don't worry about that. And, if you don't play an instrument, that is okay. One of the neatest new things in this forum is a link to get backing tracks. I don't often get those, as I prefer to play and record my own instruments. But still, it is the cat's pajamas that it is there when I or anyone else needs it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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