Are singing lessons truly helpful?

[jayswett]

Perhaps this is a silly question, but I am curious how helpful singing lessons really are. I've been thinking about taking lessons, and I noted from Neil's weekly update that he is actually doing it, so I thought I would ask for an opinion from TG students who have actually taken lessons themselves.

1) Were they enjoyable?
2) Did they result in a notable improvement in one's ability to sing?

[willem]

Hello Jay,,ithink i can answer on your question a bit and i have a story,,it is like guitar playing you wanna know some theory and basic knowledge,,lets say everybody can sing and when you sang on your child hood school the child songs in a good way(more loud then shy inside) that is very important and give you advange on how trying it know,,i sing in a choir and on a certain moment i wanted to know more on how it works with breath and how to use it 'cos right breathing cary's everything and there is a lot more and that is to take over tone,,most people can do that and of course there is the right way on articulate the words and put them in front of your mouth,,it are most the things were you can work with,,i found a lot of fun in taking some lessons and get some basics but there is a lot more that can be very special and then i mean working with a teacher on a song that you wanna learn and get the best out of it and work on all the litlle isseu's,,i think it is alot of fun,,maybe you must tell that you wanna sing and play guitar 'cos i think that is very special too and think it is an other story then only sing..


I hope you do it,

Cheerse Willem

[tovo]

Hey Jay,

I've never had lessons and I suspect not many of us have so I hope you don't mind me jumping in with just an opinion.

I can't see why, if you have the time and are prepared to meet the expense, that you or anyone else wouldn't improve from lessons. I think there are a heap of techniques that a singing teacher can visit with you to help improve. If you were thinking about it, I would say make a modest commitment to do say 6 lessons and then sit back and evaluate. Then you can decide to continue or not. I think continuous learning is a good thing, so I would say go for it!

[suziko]

As someone who is vocally challenged and has done some lessons, I feel I should chime in here. I took a group vocal class about 16 months back. There were 10, 1 1/2 hour sessions in the class. We worked on things like breathing techniques, warming up your voice, expressing yourself in singing, and thinking about vowels. It was a lot of fun and certainly helped me to feel more comfortable singing in front of people. However, for me, it did not in any way address what is my real challenge: figuring out where the melody of the song is and figuring out how to stay on key. When I sang Landslide (and June Hymn) I sat down and worked out on my guitar the melody line, then spent a lot of time singing along to that, trying to make sure that I actually knew what notes I should be singing. That's the kind of thing that comes naturally and instinctively to some people, but is completely foreign to others, like me. When I hear a song played, I don't know what the starting note should be. I have to mess around on my guitar and find it.

I don't know if you have the same issue as me. But i do know that if I take vocal lessons again, which I very well may do, I would talk to my instructor about those issues, and I would try to work more specifically on that. Breathing techniques are all well and good, but if you can't stay on key, that's a much bigger issue.

Suzi

[neverfoundthetime]

Suzi makes a good point here... if the lessons are not about what you need most, it is not so helpful in a practical sense. I remember going along to voice training lessons about 20 years ago partly to accompany my girlfriend at the time. After the second lesson sat there with a bow-tie on an elastic band around my neck trying to move it up and down by manipulating my voice-box, I quit and got my money back. Biggest waste of time ever! I have always been able to sing so I have not learned much about the subject. I just listen very carefully and reproduce what I hear when learning a song. It's mostly just about "feel" for me. Suzi is right, staying on track with the melody and hearing yourself singing the notes accurately is the essence of it. Learning where to breath is important but is easily done by simply listening to the original version, you'll hear where the breaths are taken ... just note it down on your lyric sheet and you'll get that quickly.

My suggestion, Jay, is to get individual lessons where you tell your teacher exactly what it is you want to achieve. If your teacher can help you reach that goal, she's right for you, if she just wants to stick to her programme... look for someone else. But do go for it.

[thereshopeyet]

Thanks

[neverfoundthetime]

I liked the way she sang that... very strong Irish accent.
I think the last time someone sang like that was when Bob Geldof sang on the music film The Wall for Pink Floyd and he did the whole first take in a bog-Irish accent and when PF came back at him and said it sounded a bit Irish, Geldof jaust gave them more. As the consternation rose, he switched to singing it properly and wowed them. Their comment: "You bastard!"

[willem]

This could be lesson number one

[TGMatt]

So....

What If I told you all that I have a special gift coming for you guys that may help you answer your aspirations...

Maybe a few days away maybe a few more, but not far away

So maybe hold on to your thoughts..till we announce

Cheers Matt

[neverfoundthetime]

I like it when TG reads our every desire and has the marshmallows at the ready .