Learn to Sing Through Building on Success

ByF Rudin

Going from the coarse to the detail is a successful strategy to understand something. Learning to sing is no different. But when do I know is it time to go to the next level of detail? Feedback will tell you.

Evaluation of your singing is the mean to improve. Having a score you can measure against, allows you to make it better next time. However, having an aggregated number for your singing skills does not really help. It is better to break down the score to more detailed aspects of singing. Some of the areas, ordered after importance, are:

being on beatsinging on pitchhaving appropriate loudnesscorrect breathing

To be on the beat includes also knowing the words at the right time. Singing wrong words or at the wrong time gets noticed by the audience immediately. That is why I have put this aspect on top of the list. Next aspect,- being off pitch, does not sound good or harmonically -, may be set off by a good accompaniment for a certain time. The third point loudness does not have such a negative impact on the audience, but for the positive impact it is very important: It helps to get synchronized with the crowd. The last position mentioned, - correct breathing -, may be less noticeable than your posture, but is important to get you through the whole performance. Having problems in these areas may lead to unwanted early fatigue.

Getting feedback on these four facets is your way to success. For humans it is difficult to give consistent and objective feedback, since we always take the whole picture into account. But with consistent and objective feedback we can measure our progress against a scale.

We can use the level we reach on such a scale, as a reference point to build upon. Knowing the success level we have reached, helps us through the times when we score lower: We know, we could do it before! And if we did not reach the top of the scale, we know that there is room to improve.

For two important aspects, pitch and on-beat accuracy, we can get consistent and objective feedback from computers. Computer always evaluates the accuracy the same way. Therefore, you can build on the success you have reached and continue from this point. Building on success is motivating and brings you nearer to your goals.

Even so, software can only give limited feedback on your singing as a whole, it can do it on two very important aspects: Pitch and on-beat accuracy. And if you succeed in these two areas, you leave the critics to the field where personal preferences prevail over objectivity.

F. Rudin is working for a small company called AlgorithmsAndDatastructures. A company which has developed Listening Singing Teacher: A program that gives feedback on pitch, beat and loudness. Also aimed at beginners, the programs flexibility allows to load midi files, which makes the program also attractive for professionals. Another program released, Listening Music Teacher, is to understand and get the feeling for our Western music style.

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert

View the Original article

Learn More About The Traditional and Pop Country Music

Country music started to gain popularity in 1930s. This music began in rural south of United States and spread quickly to the West, North and East. Today, the genre still places the top position in the heart of musicians and music lovers. In 2000s, young singers even enliven this music genre such as Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift.

This music falls into two primary types. The first is known as traditional country; it includes blue grass music, hillbilly, western and country. The second type is pop country; it is the combination between pop and rock that meets traditional country style.

Traditional Country

Traditional country is characterized by its simplicity. Originally, the music came from Appalachian Mountains where the people played musical instruments like guitars, banjos and fiddles. In 1960s, Johnny Cash, George Jones and Willie Nelson arose as the greatest traditional country singers. At the beginning of 2000, Alan Jackson appeared as the most popular traditional country singer. He gained popularity by achieving three Academy of Country Music awards in 2002.

Traditional country music itself is still divided into two types:

1. Country and western: This music type arose when western themes were mostly used by country musicians from Oklahoma and Texas. The popular western themes were horses and cattle, cowboys or life on the range. Two stars came as the most popular singers namely Roy Rogers and Gene Autry. This music gained more popularity in the 1940s and record industry used the words "country and western" to represent both genres.

2. Bluegrass: This genre presents acoustic music characterized by certain instruments such as acoustic guitar, bass fiddle, banjo and mandolin. To start writing bluegrass music, it would be great to immerse yourself in this genre. You can learn from anthology CD sets from Stanley Brothers or Bill Monroe. You should also learn the songs of current artists like Allison Kraus, Ralph Stanley or Nickel Creek.

Pop Country

This music type is quite different from the traditional one. Traditional country is characterized by its simple songs using three chords and present real-world issues. In the mean time, pop country usually has more chords than the traditional one. It uses 2, 6 and 3 chords more frequently and even the diminished or half-diminished chords. If you write pop country songs, try to avoid using negative themes since such songs will find difficulties in finding its home. To make the songs more interesting, stylistic elements have been added. Rock electric guitars, strings, drum loops and synthesizers are some catchy elements you can find on pop country songs these days. Some elements from traditional country are also added such as pedal steel and fiddle. Banjo and dobro are two instruments you can also find in this music.

Today, country music sales show positive growth. In 2011, around 31.9 million country albums have been sold. The fans also have made significant change this year. They have begun to purchase 20% of all country albums digitally whereas last year was only 16%. The success of country music in the 2000s is influenced by the rising of young singers such as Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and Lady Antebellum.

Download top country songs online today to add your country music collection and get ready for the upcoming top country songs 2012 from the most popular country singers.

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert

View the Original article