Module Three Lesson Four: The Elements of Style In Song: Crafting Your Authentic Style
What is style? And why is it important?
When you're learning to sing, you start by imitating others. But eventually, you want to be able to craft your own style, so you don't sound like anyone else. After all, there's only one you. Your body, your life experience, and your musical style and taste are unique.
It's also important to sing authentically within a specific genre.
Whether you sing classical music, heavy metal, pop, or jazz, there are stylistic norms that you need to be aware of. Once you know what they are, you can find your own sound within them, or ignore them entirely.
Knowing how to use these stylistic tools will help you to sound more authentic within a genre, and you'll have more ways to experiment and expand your artistic possibilities.
In this lesson, you'll learn how to listen for the elements of style in the singing of others and your own.
Before you begin, make sure you have a way to record yourself. The kind of recording gear isn't important. All you need is a note-taker. Your phone's recording function will do.
Think like a sound scientist.
When you record yourself and then listen back, try thinking like a sound scientist. The object here is not to get down on yourself for how you sound, but to develop an attitude of curiosity. After all, you're experimenting! Notice what works, what doesn't work, make adjustments, and experiment again.
Pick a couple of songs that you already know well to use in your style experiments. Simple songs you can sing in your sleep are best. You don't want to be distracted by un-memorized lyrics or problem areas in vocal technique, so you can focus on each style element as you're singing.
I'm excited to share these tools with you. When I learned what to listen for in the recordings of other singers, and in my own singing, it changed everything. I'm confident these tools will expand your artistic possibilities too!
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TIP: Remember — all vowels have a natural tendency to be sung either bright, dark, or somewhere in between — which can make it difficult to sing an even color line. If you need a refresher on this concept, head over to Module Two: Resonation.
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