If you are interested in becoming a good singer or even of understanding vocal song, you will find that it is impossible to move ahead without an understanding of pitch. Pitch is one of the building blocks of sound, along with loudness and timbre, and you’ll find that when you want to sing in a way that is appreciable to your listeners that pitch is definitely something that you need to understand very well indeed! if you are considering moving forward with your singing, make sure that you keep a few things about pitch in mind.

First, remember that pitch is used to represent the frequency of the sound. You’ll find that the sound that you hear has a certain vibration, and that to be in pitch, you will need to at least be able to recognize the vibration and synchronize with it. You need to think about what you can do to make sure that your pitch is on target, or else you will waver off from the true line of the song. When you are considering pitch, you should keep in mind that actual pitch may vary over something that you hear as a single solid note.

You will also find that there are other things that may affect pitch, and that they can affect it to such an extent that something that might read on a mechanical tuner as being true will sound off t o your ear. For instance, you;’ll find that pitch will depend, sometimes heavily, on the loudness of the sound itself. This is especially true if you are considering sounds that are coming in at a low frequency. A low bass note will sound lower in pitch if it is louder. This leads to the phenomenon that is known as audio illusions.

If you are looking to make your understanding of pitch a little bit better, you should keep in mind the idea of how how pitches differ from note to note. Figure out the relative “space” between two notes and concentrate on that. While some people are quite skilled when it comes to pitch right from the start, remember that it is a skill that can definitely be learned, and that the more you practice with it, the better off you will be. When you learn to judge notes based on their relative pitch, you will find that your ability to sing and harmonize can be greatly improved!

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I’ll be you never knew that singing could improve you health and make you live longer, I know I didn’t. The follow article is one I found on the internet and it hit home with me and I thought it would be great to share with everyone.

Title: Recreational Singing May Make You Live Longer

Author: Chris Chew

Article:

So you love to sing? Besides deriving the recreational pleasure of good singing, do you know that singing is actually good for your health and can even extend your longevity provided that you sing with the correct techniques?

The National Charity, Heart Research of the United Kingdom intends to get everyone in the world singing from 8-15 December 2008 to help raise funds to find cures for heart diseases and also because this charity believes that there are sufficient evidence to show that singing is good for your health.

Professor Graham Welch, who is the Chairman of Music Education at the Institute of Education, University of London has studied developmental and medical aspects of singing for more than three decades said not so long ago that health benefits of good singing are both physical and psychological.

Singing has physical benefits because it is an aerobic activity that increases oxygenation in the blood stream and it exercises major muscle groups in the upper body. Singing has psychological benefits because of its normally positive effect in reducing stress through the action of the endocrine system which is linked to our sense of emotional well being.

Psychological and emotional benefits are also pretty evident when people sing together as a group because of the increased sense of community bonding, belonging and shared recreation pursuit.

According to a research conducted by leading singer cum singing teacher, Helen Astrid from The Helen Astrid Singing Academy in London, regular vocal cord exercises are also thought to prolong life.

This was what Helen said, “Singing is an excellent way to keep fit because you are exercising your lungs and heart (cardio vascular exercise). Furthermore, your body produces endorphins (happy hormones), just like when you eat a bar of chocolate except that with singing is that you won’t consume any extra calories as in eating chocolates! Singing not only increases your lung capacity, it improves posture, clears respiratory tracks and sinuses and can even increase mental alertness through greater oxygenation. Singing often also helps to tone and firm up your abdominal and back muscles as well. However, that is if you are singing correctly using the correct singing techniques.”

“Another great benefit of singing is that it can keep you looking young since you are gently exercising your facial muscles”, added Helen who looks more than a decade younger than she really is. Isn’t this the most natural and inexpensive anti-aging treatment?

According to the findings of a joint study conducted by Harvard and Yale, singing can even help you live longer. The study showed that choral singing increased the life expectancy of the population of New Haven, Connecticut. This report concluded that this was because singing promotes a healthy heart and an enhanced mental state.

So if singing is really good for your health, then let’s have fun, keep fit and healthy by singing more often. However, do bear in mind that it is not just the mere action of singing that gives you all these health benefits, but correct singing that do.

Remember the song by Helen Reddy “Keep On Singing”? Go on, sing away!

About the author:
Chris Chew loves to sing and owns a music education website at Learn How To Sing Correctly and Learn How To Be A Lead Guitarist

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Title: How to Sing Higher Notes

Author: Lisa Lopez

Article:

Learning how to sing higher notes is very important, if you want to sing like a pro. If you want to be able to sing any song you want, it is important to increase your vocal range (the range of notes you can comfortably sing), after all. It is certainly possible for you to have trouble singing low notes, but most people have the most trouble when they try to sing higher notes.

You might not think it’s possible, but anyone can learn how to sing higher notes. It is not just an activity reserved for superstars. All it will take you to learn how to sing higher notes properly are time, patience and practice.

The first step to learning how to sing higher notes in the proper way is to understand the different main registers of the human voice.

The “chest voice” is the deepest register. It is also the most comfortable one. Usually that is the register in which most people talk.

The next vocal register is called the “head voice”. It is a much higher vocal register, so you might think that it is the key to learning how to sing higher notes. However, even though it is often the sound you hear at operas and in classical performances, it is not the key.

The true solution to learning how to sing higher notes is actually learning to use your “mixed voice”. The “mixed voice” register is between the other two registers. It is a middle ground. If you sing using your “mixed voice”, rather than your “chest voice”, you can learn how to sing higher notes without pain. You can also avoid causing permanent damage to your vocal chords. People who try to sing high notes using their “chest voice” are prone to developing nodules and cysts on their vocal chords. So, not only will learning to sing in your “mixed voice” teach you how to sing higher notes, but it will keep you healthier.

You may have also heard of using a falsetto voice, which isn’t really a vocal register at all. If you sing in falsetto, your vocal chords are not even going to fully come together. The sound produced will come out extremely light and airy. It will not have any depth or power to it.

So, in order to learn how to sing higher notes with ease, you should begin by breaking your old singing habits. Instead, practice singing up and down scales in your “mixed voice”, not in your “chest voice” or “head voice” or a falsetto voice. It will take you some time and it may feel strange to you when you first begin. However, in no time at all you will learn how to sing higher notes easily and comfortably.

About the author:

Learn how to sing higher notes at http://www.singinglikepro.com

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