Settle down and breathe right!!!

Breathing is a fundamental part of your singing process, and in our singing lessons, we like to make sure that our students know, not only how to breathe for health and well being, but to breathe for singing... there IS a distinction!


When we breathe normally, our ribcage expands as we breathe in, and collapses when we breathe out.  When we sing, we want our exhalation to create a feeling of firm support for the lungs, so that our rib cage doesn't fall when we use the breath!


In our singing lessons, we teach you how to suspend your breath, but it's worth thinking about how that might be accomplished, in an attempt to help you use your breath to it's full potential.


As we have said before, relax, don't put too much pressure on yourself.  Ultimately, it's breathing, you've been doing it since the day you were born!!!

Best Singing Method!

Cher vs Lene Nystrøm

You may remember Lene Nystrom as the singer from Poptastic Eurodance band, "Aqua", then again you may not!  We would not criticize her performances or singing technique, she has made a living from using her voice, but in the No.1 hit "Barbie Girl", her voice demonstrate, what we would consider, an undesirable technique.

It's all about the soft palate, and in our singing lessons in Edinburgh, we like to make sure that our students use the soft palate correctly.  If you're looking for the best singing method, would you choose, baby talking Lene, or rich and round sounding, velvet voice, Cher?


This is not to say that Cher is 100% perfect, her single "Believe", is rumored to be an example of auto-tune gone wrong.  However, in "If I could Turn Back Time", we hear the wonderful tones in her voice, like listening to an audible chocolate fudge cake!


Using the soft palate correctly, is one of the key ingredients of using the best singing method, practiced in our Edinburgh singing lessons.  It's not the only thing that you want to think about, but it certainly helps.


The next time you're doing your scales, have a think about where your soft palate is, and have a think about how you can make it work for you rather than against you!

Relax and Sing!!!

It is commonly known that relaxation has numerous health benefits, including improving your concentration, lowering blood pressure, increasing blood flow to muscles and boosting your confidence in your abilities to handle problems.


It's easy to allow your stresses to spiral out of control and leave you confused, disorientated and unable to handle simple tasks.  What's that got to do with singing?


Well, not only is music a well documented stress reliever, but relaxing into your singing will only make your singing voice stronger and more effective.  Taking a deep breath is something that is often said to people that need a moment to compose themselves, but how often do you think about it for singing?  Well the truth is, if you're not practicing your breathing techniques, you're doing yourself and your voice an injustice.


Tension will cause your voice to sound strained and will feel uncomfortable*.  After a gruelling day, do you want to hear stress and feel discomfort during your "me time"?  Take a few minutes at the beginning for your session and breathe deeply, think about now! What someone said at work, how someone has made you feel the other day, the presentation that you're scared of giving, whatever, they can all live outside the bubble that is your singing session if you choose it!  Breathing exercises are very important for your practice and singing lessons, which is why you will always be encouraged, particularly as a novice, to demonstrate your breathing ability! 


We encourage all of our singers, during their singing lessons in Edinburgh to use time wisely and to remember to be calm and present.  See how a singing lesson or practice can benefit your health?


*(see Adele, Someone Like You at the line "Don't forget me I beg", recorded version not live for an example of this - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLQl3WQQoQ0 1:26)