A Guide To Stop Singing Off Key
- Off Key Piano Ear Training
- More Effort Vs Less Effort
- Patience & Accuracy
Do you ever find yourself off key? This can happen when we’re singing and suddenly it doesn’t sound like we are on the right pitch.
It can be the octave we are in, or it may just be that we are flat/sharp.
You may want to take a moment and just listen to what you’re singing before jumping right into it.
Singing is about feeling the notes. Knowing exactly where in your voice the note is, and executing it. When improving pitch, the best tool you have is a piano.
If you don’t own a piano, there are free apps you can download. With a trained ear, you now want to focus on how much effort it requires to produce the note.
Lastly, you want to be patient and strive for accuracy.
Off Key Piano Ear Training
The piano is the most useful tool when it comes to the voice. Knowing the piano and how to play improves your hearing.
When you are flat, you are below the note. When you are sharp, you are above the note. If you can play a note and learn to tell what the next note is without playing it, your hearing has improved.
When looking at a piano there are octaves that help us differentiate how high you need to go to meet a note vs how low.
If you’ve ever been singing in a higher key, and then your voice automatically shifts down. This is because your voice is trying to find notes that feel more comfortable so it shifts down near your speaking voice.
Practicing your full range makes finding which octave to use much easier. You can take your lowest note, and sing each note until you get to the top of your register.
Practice sliding your voice from one note to another, this helps us create parameters for control within our voice.
If you have trouble hearing whether you’re on key. Use a piano tuner with your voice, and check each note to make sure you’re singing the correct notes.
More Effort Vs Less Effort
There is a certain level of push we use when changing notes. The higher we go, the faster our vocal cords vibrate to compensate for the sound.
This is why higher notes feel harder to sing than lower notes. Everyone’s voice is different, meaning some people may have a higher range. This is why it’s easier for some people to sing higher notes than others.
The important thing to note is; the higher you go the more effort, and the more air you will need. If you are singing low near your speaking voice, you’ll find that the effort is much less.
Think of singing like running, the faster you run the more tired you will be. Just like running, breathing is essential.
If you lack the air to meet the note, chances are your voice may crack, break, or go off pitch.
Understanding where your chest, mixed, and head are will make you redefine how much effort you put into what note.
Patience & Accuracy
Be patient with your pitch. Pitch can take some time to develop.
The fastest way is to try to remain as accurate as possible making chromatic(up and down) movements on the piano.
The voice works with familiarity so the more often you practice, the more likely you are to remember the correct notes. You want to do pitch exercises everyday to improve.
It’s the same as learning your ABC’s and 123’s. When you’re in preschool they spend ample time working memorization until you have learned it. Pitch is no different.
Try humming notes first to see if you can match the frequency. Then open your mouth to continue the sound.
This is a method that helps us feel the notes we are going for instead of just reaching for notes that are inaccurate.
Remember to take your time and spend enough time, until you feel your pitch has improved.
