Thursday, August 26, 2010

Finding The Right Key To Sing In: Best Tips

By Jack Flagg

Have you ever wanted to perform a favorite song, but you just couldn't get your voice high or low good enough? Every song is written in a specific key. If your vocal range doesn't complement that key, you'll need to set the song into a key you can simply sing.

However the song itself isn't just a consideration when you're figuring out which key to sing in. Here is a guideline to find the right key for any song, despite of your vocal scale:

Step 1: Find Your Vocal Range

The first move to find the right key to sing in is to find your natural vocal scale. With the help of a piano or guitar, pick out notes on the C chromatic scale, beginning with middle C.

Go up the range, pairing your voice to every note as you play. Look for the highest note you can easily sing. That is the top of your normal range. Then return to middle C and drop to the lowest note you can comfortably sing. That is the bottom of your normal scale.

When you get near the top of your range, you will naturally turn from your chest voice (which is deep and strong, like a speaking voice) to your head voice (which is light and airy, but nevertheless engages the vocal chords).

With exercise, you can deliver your head voice better control and quality. Don't go too far up the range after you switch to your head voice; you are searching for the notes you can comfortably sing, not the highest note you can screech out.

Most women tend to be altos or tenors, with lower number being sopranos. Nearly all men tend to be tenors or baritones, with a smaller number being basses.

Step 2: Find the Song's Range

The next step is to analyze the range of your chosen song. Pay attention to the highest notes that the song, as written, requires you to sing. Then find the lowest notes. If these notes fall within your range, or very close, you might sing the song in its original key.

If the song has a far broader scale than your natural one, you may possibly need to try it in a different key. You can sing a high song in a lower key to ensure you hit all the notes, or you can merely drop the high notes down an octave to make them simpler to sing.

Step 3: Contemplate the Genre, Volume, and Venue

Some keys are more appropriate to certain musical genres because of the musical style and the volume of the additional instruments.

For example, a song sung in a lower key could possibly work well for a jazz gig in a restaurant setting. The soft music would provide a smooth backdrop that did not compete with the singer's vocals.

But if you're intending to play rock music backed by screaming guitars and crashing drums, you might not be heard if you sing in a lower key. Higher notes are normally louder and very easy to hear over loud music.

Basically, if you're likely having to compete with the music for audience's interest, sing higher and louder. If you're in a more peaceful, more relaxed venue, you can sing in a lower key and still be heard.

Choosing the right key to sing in requires you to know your voice, your song, and your venue. You can take any song into your range by transposing it; it's just a matter of practicing the song to make it sound good in a different key. - 40724

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