learn to sing

I FINALLY learned how to put the sound in the front of my mouth, just behind my teeth and resounding off the hard palate, in order to project more easily. I’d only ever read about it and I didn’t understand how to do it at first. I was just yelling and it hurt my voice. Now I think I sound a lot better and the sound is fuller. Yay. I can also use vibrato more easily this way, too. Hooray! Let’s hope I don’t forget how to do this.

I’m just glad, because I usually really hate my voice, and for the first time in my life it actually almost sounds pleasant. I still have to improve, of course, but this is the step that I was looking for, the sound that I was trying to achieve.

When I sing everything comes out slightly flat, and I can’t fix it. My speaking voice is flat too.

Flatface. _

No, I’m not a complete moron – the easiest way would be to take lessons, I know – but I can’t afford them, I can barely pay my medical bills at this point…maybe someday in the future.

But I’ve been listening to amateur singers’ Youtube videos and reading their comments for tips on things I could be doing wrong, and of course I practice whenever I can. I figure that eventually I’ll need professional coaching to get where I want to be, but at least I’ve improved a bit on my own. And I do really enjoy it, I just wish my voice would be better so I wouldn’t cringe so much when I don’t hit the notes or when it doesn’t sound the way I want it to. I’m also concerned that I might be damaging my vocal cords, and I don’t know how to keep them intact.

...sort of. At least, I’ve improved. I can stay on key (usually) and I don’t sing out of my nose (which I’ve heard is bad). And I sing in church, and people have said I have a nice voice. They tell my mother she has a nice voice, though, and she sings loudly and off-key…that’s okay, at least she sings. But then that doesn’t give me any way of judging if I can sing or not.

I guess I could say I can sing, but my voice is nothing to write home about. I guess I’d like to improve, but the question is, when am I supposed to mark this goal as “done”?