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How to get started with classical singing

What do Mariah Carey, Elton John, Ed Sheeran and Katy Perry have in common? Apart from the fact that they are all famous pop singers, they all once received classical vocal training. Elton John and Ed Sheeran were trained in a choir, Mariah Carey’s mother was an opera singer and Katy Perry even studied Italian Opera! There are many good reasons to start classical voice training, such as gaining a high level of control over your voice. But getting started can be a little intimidating at first – you may not know where to go or what to do. Don’t let that put you off!
This article gives you some tips on how to get started with classical voice training, which will hopefully help you to realize your plan to become classically trained.

Finding a singing course

Nothing is more effective than a personal vocal coach. A trainer who has studied classical singing for years can give us a comprehensive education, addressing our strengths and weaknesses in detail.
But given that this can often cost a small fortune, depending on the city we live in, there are alternatives that are almost as good as the first option.
The best alternative is to join a classical choir. Here you can learn a lot and have fun singing with others. The rehearsals may not be as individual, but they are free and all it takes is motivation and time. One challenge you may face is finding a classical choir that welcomes singers with no previous experience. Universities, schools or churches often have their own choirs that might be suitable for you.
If there is no other option, you can always find something useful on the internet. There are thousands of different online singing lessons via video or video calls, and an endless amount of completely free content on classical singing. Websites run by passionate singers or YouTube videos, such as those published by the VoiceHacks channel, are a good source of information and can teach you a lot.

Basics

I can give you a few tips that might help you prepare for singing:
Before you start belting out a song right away, take some time to prepare your body for singing. This is one of the first things to learn in classical training: Think of yourself as an athlete – you need to take care of your body to perform. This includes a proper warm-up to protect your voice from injury.
Our body produces the sound; it is our instrument that determines the quality of our voice. So, the first thing we need to do is relax our bodies. Tension prevents the voice from vibrating freely in the body, so relaxation is the key to a strong voice! A good exercise is to let your arms dangle loosely like Bert from Sesame Street, or maybe even your whole upper body, until you don’t feel any tension.
Then make sure you have the right posture: Standing relaxed but upright, with both feet on the floor and your head in a neutral position is a good start. Something that helps me personally to sing with a strong voice is to imagine that I am ” placing ” the sound in a particular part of my body that is suitable for the style and pitch (so it could be somewhere in my mouth, my head or my chest). You may want to stretch your arms backwards, sideways and upwards, or just lift them a little to the side as you sing, just to open up your chest, feel your whole body better and imagine where the sound should be.

Many singing teachers say that your breathing is the key to correct singing technique. Here too, relaxation is important. A good way to prepare your breathing for singing is to let your shoulders relax, open your chest and exhale fully once, then take a few deep breaths. When singing, it is often recommended to take low breaths into your stomach.
Last but not least, and of course essential for singing, is your voice! Vocal warm-up exercises can sound very funny, like a howling dog or a singing child. Although this may make you feel a bit awkward at first, it is a great way to become familiar with your voice, gain confidence when you hear it singing out loud, and prevent injury. It is always a good idea to start carefully by just talking, then humming and then singing, and to use a low range of voice at first. As you practice, you can slowly try to extend your vocal range to higher and lower pitches.

Gaining knowledge

Peter H, 2/7/2018 – https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2018/07/01/20/01/music-3510326_960_720.jpg

Apart from learning vocal techniques, there are a number of other sources that can help you. Classical singing always involves learning a bit of a foreign language. Most of the arias you will find are written in Italian, French or German. So it might be helpful to learn something about these languages to make your rehearsals easier.
Trying out different musical instruments would provide you with a lot of additional musical knowledge if you have the opportunity to try them out. The piano, in particular, will meet many of your needs as you can accompany your singing, practice reading music and play the tunes you want to sing. There are also some apps or websites that simulate musical instruments and help you find the right tune – which is one of the most difficult challenges in the beginning.
Even if you are not able to actively play an instrument, listening to music a lot will help you learn about rhythm, pitch and harmony. Only when you have access to a large number of examples will you have an idea of how you want to sound and find your preferred singing style and sub-genre. For me, this is one of the most fun parts of practicing – putting on the headphones, lying on the sofa and relaxing as you listen!
Practicing, experimenting with your voice and exploring different songs and composers can also help you to discover your strengths and singing abilities. If there is someone you trust and feel comfortable singing in front of, it would be helpful to ask them for honest feedback. Another option would be to record your voice on the phone.

Whatever you decide to start with, and however you choose to practice, keep in mind that getting it right all the time is not the most important aspect of singing! It is a challenge to perform in front of others and yes, it takes some confidence. So don’t be intimidated by the many highly ambitious classical singers out there. In my opinion, having fun making music and feeling comfortable with it is the most important part.
I hope this article has helped you take the first step towards learning classical singing and that you feel ready to start!

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