Learning to Sing: Yes, Anyone Can Do It!
Many people believe that singing is a talent that you are born with – either you can sing or you can’t.
However, this is not entirely true.
While some people may have a natural inclination for singing, the reality is that almost anyone can learn to sing.
In fact, according to a Canadian study, about 98.5% of the population can be taught how to sing.
If you have a pair of vocal folds that can produce sound, and can tell the difference between a higher note and a lower note, you already have the basic tools to become a singer.
The only exception is for the 1.5% of the population who suffer from a condition called “congenital amusia”. This condition makes it difficult for people to discriminate between different pitches, tones, and sometimes rhythms, which makes it hard for them to sing in tune.
But for most people, learning to sing is a matter of practice, perseverance, and a willingness to learn.
Natural talent aside, most of us can be taught to sing with the right approach and training.
So, you’re saying almost ANYONE can learn to sing?
Yes!
A good example of this is a woman who came to a singing teacher several years ago with a request for private vocal lessons.
She wanted to sing one song for her husband’s birthday in six months’ time.
At first, the teacher noticed that she was unable to accurately match pitch.
However, the student was dedicated and worked hard, attending lessons each week and practicing diligently.
Within six months, she was not only matching pitch, but was able to sing one and a half octave patterns slowly through her entire range.
What made the difference for this student was her work ethic and her ability to identify and correct her errors quickly.
According to research by German researchers, it’s not just how much you practice that counts, but how quickly you can identify and correct your mistakes.
With deliberate practice, even the most talented singer can reach a plateau and get stuck.
So it’s important to keep pushing yourself and to seek feedback from a vocal coach.
But how does singing actually work?
It’s a surprisingly complex field of research.
Singing practice and training involves generating a sense of vocal freedom – the ability to sing movingly and beautifully, seemingly without effort. For most singers, this takes years of practice to develop.
Celeste La Scala, a singing voice teacher, says that it takes about 10 years to be a master singer.
“Ten years of study, investigation, involvement, experience, experiment, exploration, and development, and in some way, that’s when you start really being an artist.”
The good news is that we are all born with the key ingredients of a singing voice.
The early gurgling and bubbling sounds we make as babies contain some of the key components of singing – a variety of pitches, dynamics, rhythms, and phrases.
While some people may have a genetic advantage that can be enhanced by training, everyone has the potential to learn how to sing.
Learning to sing involves developing physical skill and control.
Well, how easy is it to get started learning to sing?
Singing may look simple, but it actually involves highly skilled control and coordination of muscles – and these muscles need to be both flexible and strong.
True control comes from training.
A person needs to be able to control the air pressure in their lungs and use their abdominal muscles to push air through the trachea, where it meets the vocal folds, which start to vibrate.
In a really good singer, vocal health, posture and alignment, breath management are matched with imagination, self-expression, and creativity.
A good contemporary professional pop singer isn’t just born that way. See the article I wrote on how long it takes to get ‘good’ at singing.
They also need an inquiring mind, dedication to understanding the physiology of the vocal anatomy and a willingness to practice over and over again.
There’s no instant gratification here!
Film stars learn to sing all the time for a role, usually surrounded by a team of vocal teachers and months of daily practice.
The results aren’t always perfect, but that’s not necessarily what is important.
Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, for example, has a small, breathy voice but it suits her role and enhances her character.
So if you’ve never sung professionally but want to try singing, I encourage you to give it a go!
Chances are that you can be taught to sing – and even if you can’t, there are health benefits to trying.
Overall, singing increases breathing control and lung capacity, it can improve heart health, and release the happy hormone oxytocin, elevate your mood and reduce pain, and may even increase your immunity.
Even practicing a new behavior, like singing, can be good for the brain.
Therefore, if you are interested in learning how to sing, find a singing teacher who loves singing and teaching, performs regularly and incorporates their knowledge of anatomy and physiology into their vocal teaching.
Once you start, you’ll likely realise that singing can bring benefits for life!
Until next time,
