Conference napalm::guitar

    How do professional singers deal with performing when they have
    colds, coughs, sore throats, etc.?
    
    joe.

   >> How do professional singers deal with performing when they have
   >> colds, coughs, sore throats, etc.?

   I sing loud, smoke @ 2 packs a day, and have occasional problems with
   asthma, so I've had some experiance with sore throats.  I'm *far* from
   a professional singer, however.  :-)

   DONT'S:
   No milk, juice, or soda before a gig -- they build up phlegm.  Likewise,
   no beer (sorry).  Alcohol tends to dry your throat, the same for ICE COLD
   water or soda.  Cool is OK, but not frigid.  Don't smoke any more than you
   need. :-)

   DO'S:
   *Extremely* spicy food helps to clean out the pipes.  Cayenne, crushed
   red chili's, and chinese mustard are all superb antihistamines.  Drink
   lots of water.  If you can, crank the monitors louder than normal -- you
   may be fooled into taking it a little bit easier.

   Good luck,
   Dave

>    < Note 916.2 by NEWFUN::GEORGE >
>
>   >> How do professional singers deal with performing when they have
>   >> colds, coughs, sore throats, etc.?
    
    I've always had success with "warming up" the singer's voice on
    the mixer's voice EQ :-).
    
    Mike
    

    I carry a box of those cherry throat losenges (smith brothers or
    similar) and literally eat them when I'm having throat/cold symptoms.
    Once I even spt one accross stage by accident and on to the dance
    floor....talk about embarassed, even if I was the only one who saw
    it....
    
    Lambrusco (sp?) is another possibility if you like to drink...
                   
    dbii

    
    I swear by Halls!!! also it's nice to chew gum while your singing
    cause it keep the old throat wet...
    
    	Roger Daltry said he eats ice cream even tho doctors told him
    it's not good. He said he didn't care as long as it works...
    
    	b.g.

    I myself do not use much because I can notice a difference in my
    voice it does change somewhat when you use coughdrops or something
    of that nature, I do drink alot of water just to keep the pipes
    wet. But the other people in my band use those little "tic tac"mints
    they claim it helps them, also you can avoid the embarrassment of
    clocking someone in the back of the head with a large sticky object.
    ( no offense to the guy with the red face but its happened in my
    band before so I know where your comming from)
    
    
    see ya
    sonny "mad dog country music lover" 

    When I used to play professionally I always carried a bottle of
    Chloraseptic spray. The stuff absolutely numbs your throat, and a few
    hits will keep you operational for a set or so. I offer this not as a
    holistic health remedy, but as a practical solution for the working
    musician. Having a numb throat does, of course, have some effect on
    your ability to control your voice, but I generally found it was
    preferable to being hoarse.
    
    As far as singing while playing bass goes, I used to do that too.
    I think it is very difficult to sing lead and play a good bass line at
    the same time. When I sing I tend to work around the rhythm of the rest
    of the group, and I need that freedom of expression. Unless you stick
    to real simple things on the bass, this is very difficult to do without
    throwing everyone else off. I'm sure there may be some people who can
    do it, but I never could. Now I only play guitar, partly because I like
    to sing, and I find it easier to sing while playing guitar than bass.
    There are still times, however, when I like to just let the rest of the
    band carry things so I can really get into the singing. We have three
    guitars in the group I'm playing with now, so that's not a problem.
    
    - Ram

    
    	I've also had trouble with the switch from singing with guitar
    to singing with bass. I think the key is in developing complete
    independance between the two - i.e. the bass just comes out
    automatically when you sing -or- the voice just comes out automatically
    when you play bass. Since the bass usually has frets and the voice
    has no such "quantized" steps, it's easier to just set the bass on "auto".
    
    	I find the memory of doing both is holistic. Just the other
    night, I was trying to play a song that I had'nt played in years,
    and when I sang the words, my hands found the correct changes -
    as if all on their own. Wierd.
    
    	Joe Jas
    

    I keep Vitamin C, Tylinol and Advil in the glove compartment. Advil
    does wonders when it comes to getting rid of the pain.

    It's fun to use some of my guitar effects with my vocals (the chorus
    unit, Phaser, Distortion box, Analog Delay), as long as you don't do
    this for each song that you sing. I like a clean channel and an
    effected channle that I can mix together - in other words:


		      +----------> to PA
		      |
    ------>signal---->|
		      |
		      +---Effects---> to PA

    I bult a switch box that allows my guitar effects loop to be switched
    into the vocal loop in this manner. I don't used it often, but an
    OCTAVATOR (gives you square waves an octave or 2 lower than the
    fundamental) adds a surrealistic accompaniment to my voice.

					    Jens

    Thanks for all the tips/remedies for dealing with colds when you
    have to sing.  I'll try 'em tonight.  I'll let ya'll know how
    it goes.
    
    joe (who's been drinking like 10 cups of herb tea a day all this
         week and actually feels better, but still not 100%)

    
    The professional approach to singing is to continuously take
    singing instruction, regardless how good of a singer you are.
    Singing instruction mainly concentrates on singing excercises
    to increase range and keep the voice in top shape. It's like
    playing sports; if you don't excercise regularly, when you go
    out and try to perform, you are bound to get hurt (pulled muscles,
    sprains, etc). People that are into Marshall arts spend a great
    deal of their time doing stretching excecises. If they didn't,
    one kick and the legs would be hurtin'. Excercising also increases
    power in their punches and kicks. The same thing goes for singing.
    If your voice is in top shape, it can take a pounding without
    cracking on you. Also, your resistance to colds, laryngitis, sore
    throats, etc. will be high. Any kind of bodily abuse (alcohol,
    smoking, drugs, screaming) will wear your resistance down and
    make you much more susceptable to problems. 
    
    	A person should also try to stay within a reasonable range for
    their voice. Trying to sing Led Zep "Black Dog" when you have a
    low voice to begin with is silly. Personally, I love the Doobie
    Brothers, but I find I have a rough time singing many of their
    songs in the original key. If you try transposing them into differant
    keys, they tend to lose some of their zing. I sing the tunes that
    fit my voice, and avoid tunes that are meant for a tenor voice.
    
    	A good practice for people singing in bands is to crank the
    monitors up good and loud and skip the compression. This tends
    to force you to sing more softly, and makes you much more aware
    of dynamics. It also leaves you some headroom for when you need
    to belt out a line. I usually tend to eat the mic and sing at
    a moderate volume, and then when I want to belt out or rasp
    out a phrase, I back off about a foot from the mic, and let er
    rip.
    
    	As far as playing an instrument and singing simultaneously,
    practice makes perfect. I like BB King, but I could never understand
    why the man can't sing and at least play rhythm at the same time.
    Come to think of it, I can't remember BB ever playing much rhythm
    to begin with. I guess when you have a 10 piece back-up band, it
    isn't necessary. I have been playing and singing simultaneously
    since I was 7, and I have found that I have a hard time singing
    without a guitar in my hands. At the summer sweat jam, I was invited
    up to sing backup with Larry V's band. Without a guitar in my hands,
    I felt naked, and had a tough time keeping my harmonies tight. I
    suppose if Bass was my main instrument, I could probably sing and
    bring up the bottom simultaneously with enough practice.
    
    	One person I admire most is Jerry Garcia. I realize that many
    people don't share that admiration, but if you ever heard the man
    sing a soulful ballad, while adding fills and licks, I think you
    would be impressed. It's hard enough to play lead and sing, but
    with electric guitar, effects, and DyNaMiCs to think about, it
    is very difficult to do this well. Jerry has the advantage of
    having a real good handle on his equipment. If you ever see him
    in concert, you will notice that the only thing on the floor in
    front of him is an Ernie Ball pedal, which he uses to control
    his delay. He controls everything else right from the guitar
    with his hands. This enables him to keep his head held high,
    in stead of having to look down at a pile of effects. I believe
    that the less external things you have to worry about, the
    better concentration you have. A persons' concentration is probably
    the single most important thing when they are performing. Avoiding
    distractions is the best way to maintain good concentration.
    
    	As far as dealing with the inevitable colds, etc. I would avoid
    most home remedies. Get plenty of rest, and try to beat the cold
    early on, in advance of your playing engagement. If you must play
    with a cold, take it easy to conserve your voice. One thing the
    Grateful Dead do is to trade off singing lead. Usually Bob Wier
    will sing one, then Jerry will sing the next, and they alternate
    like this all night. The solos and improvising gives them time to
    catch their breath. I'm not suggesting you play Drums, space, at
    a GB gig, but you should try to arrange songs to give yourself
    an occasional break. Maybe throw in a couple of instrumentals to
    give your voice a breather.
    
    Take care, 
    Mark Jacques
     

>    < Note 916.5 by CASV02::GOSS "TWO WEEKS!!!!" >
>    
>    	Roger Daltry said he eats ice cream even tho doctors told him
>    it's not good. He said he didn't care as long as it works...
    
    It does? :-)  His voice sounds a little rough/scratchy to me.  He'd
    probably be better off with tea with honey.


    Mike

    
    Any tips for those who have difficulty playing and singing (i.e.
    coordinating the two things? I'm Ok so long as it's a question of
    strumming a simple Dylan tune, but as soon as things get remotely
    irregular (e.g. Jumping Jack Flash), I just can't combine the two.
    
    It can't just be a question of practice!!
    
    Regards,
    
    		Dom
    

    When I reach the point where I don't have to think about the part
    I'm playing on the guitar, I can usually hold conversations with
    people, and get the timing the same as if I was just playing. This
    wasn't always the case. I still can't solo and sing (or talk), unless
    it's a pretty simple solo.

    In reality, I think that it is a question of practice & comfort levels
    with your guitar. I find that I can't casually swap scale lengths (from
    24 3/4 Gibson -> 25 1/4 Fender Strat/Tele) and do the same thing.
    Consequently, I try not to surprize myself by keeping all of my guitars
    at approximately the same scale length. Try playing guitar completely
    in the dark some time & see how well you do. It may just be a matter
    of gaining trust in your instincts. Like many other things that seem to
    happen when you play guitar, you just discover one day that you can do
    what you need to, when you need to.

								Jens

    RE: .13
    
    	>> It can't just be a question of practice!!
    
    	Sorry, but it is just a question of practice.  There are some
    songs (that my band does) that I have a very hard time singing over.
    Eventually, they come.
    
    I have a problem keeping my eyes off the fingerboard of my guitar.
    
    joe. 

    As someone who recently has thrust into the position of singing
    lead vocals while playing bass or lead guitar....
    I think it really pays to know the piece that your playing inside
    out before you attempt to sing as well.
    This has to do with the concious and the pre-concious I guess....
    I have yet not tried to sing or play while I'm playing any complex
    parts...I imagine it would sound a mess..
    Regards
    Jeff Jansen  P&T  @ F1/10 SBP UK 

    Oh to sing *AND* play like Dann Huff!

    Yeah, that would be nice.  
    
    gh (trouble with SIMPLE rhythms and "vocals"...)

    Does anyone know of some exercises to improve your vocal range and
    strength?

Yeah sort of. Once I took lessons from an opera singer (in itself a sometimes
painful experience).

General rules:

1. Sing from the diaphram not the throat
2. when you have to streach for that high note, squeeze from the waist down, 
attempt to relax your chest and throat. I use the "push hips slightly forward
and squeeze buttocks hard" approach


exercises:

What she did with me was to play a scale on piano, say c major and I would then 
sing ah, ah, ah, ah, ah ....etc an ah for each  note, as she gradually worked
the scale higher and higher. At the same time she had me grab my voicebox and
move it from side to side with my hand. If it doesn't move you're throat is too
tight. Don't attempt to push yourself too much higher than you can reach, but
rather over time work to extend your range as your voice box loosens up.

We also worked on vowel enuciation, essentially she had me use sounds that were
heavy on a particular vowel and do the same exercises as above.

Also she stressed getting full nasal cavity reasonance without getting nasally
sounding, it's a trick believe me, I never really mastered it but the idea is 
that if you relax your throat and nasal muscle conjunctions then you will get
the reasonance from your nasal cavities and your voice will sound much fuller.

good luck! being a decnet singer is very hard work. She related to me that it 
took her years to raise her range 1/2 octave, but she did do it over time.

unfortunately this is about all I remember from the lessons but these were the
basics that we opened every lesson with. She had me do this at home daily as 
well as on lesson days (when she abused me mildly if I failed to improve).


dbii

 > good luck! being a decnet singer is very hard work. 

    You think that's hard, try being a TCP/IP singer ...

Yeah 5 years in system management and I can't even spell decent anymore...

I thought more about the lessons and I remember this:

when doing the scales she only did a 8 note up/down. This gets you used to making
the notes when moving both up and down in pitch.


dbii

    Thanks dbii!

    
    	o Fill up your belly with air, not your chest
    	o Feel it push against your guitar
    	o Your stomache should look completely different than it does
    	  when you're at the beach ;^)
    	o Do NOT stretch your neck to hit the high notes - do the
    	  exact opposite and keep it down
    
    	Tom
    

Imagine the voice going STRAIGHT up your windpipe and out the top of your head...
I find this helps me keep from tightening up...

jc (who doesn't sing much)

    Funny... I always imagine my voice goin' straight DOWN my wind pipe and
    coming outta my butt!   ;')
    
    
    Bob (Couldn't hold a tune in a bucket!)

    > Does anyone know of some exercises to improve your vocal range and
    > strength?
    
    Do you have any teenagers living in your house?

    For tone -- the idea is to try and resonate your voice in the 
    back of your throat, without, of course, obtaining too much 
    of a nasal tone.

    Are there any Bass players out there that know ANY tricks for singing
    lead and playing at the same time.?? Any clues/tips/tricks/etc. would
    be appreciated.  Some songs, the slow waltzes etc., I have no problems,
    but some of the fast stuff gets pretty interesting. I play/sing mostly
    country but occasionally do a 50-60's tune.   Just a general note, I'm
    very new to all of this so I find the coordination thing very
    frustrating.  There are so many times I wish I could just sing, but I'd
    really miss playing too. Oh well!
    
    Thanks!
    
    -Marjie

Singing and playing anything requires mucho practice, I had lots of trouble 
years past and these days unless I'm playing slide I can usually sing anything
without problems (within the range of my ability to sing which isn't great).

Essentially you need to learn the songs well enough that your hands run in 
"autopilot" mode so you can concentrate on singing.

dbii

re: .29

Don't kick yourself too much.  Bass is one of the harder instruments to play
while singing lead.  Definitely harder than guitar.  DBII is right, it mostly
takes practice.  You kind of have to get to the point where you can either
play the bass without thinking too much about it or sing without thinking too
much about it.  Which to do on a given song depends on the relative difficulty
of the bass and singing parts.

-Hal

    re: .29
    
    See note 1426.  The important things - and this applies to any
    instrument - are to choose your songs wisely and to practice a lot.
    The easiest songs to sing while playing bass have a very regular bass
    line: one note every quarter or eighth note, or whatever.  Syncopation
    is what kills you.
    
    Dave

	Hello,

	Does anyone know of any Vocal teachers in the Northern Ma or 
	southern NH area?  

	Thanks,
		Richard

    Hi Richard,
    
    Does it have to be personal lessons???  There is a video out on vocal
    lessons from 2 of the leading vocal teachers in Christian music.  They
    teach the likes of Twila Paris and Rick Florian (Whiteheart's vocalist)
    etc...It's in your local Christian bookstore who sell or rent videos. 
    They have it at the Good News Bookstore in Derry NH. I think it's there
    for rent but they can order it for you if you want a copy to keep.

    	Hi Paul,
    
	I guess a video on vocal instructions would be good.  When you
	find out the name of it please drop me a line.  I'll probably head
	out to my friendly neighborhood Christian Bookstore and see what's 
	available.

	Thanks,

		Richard

    It's been said before and I'll also echo the bottom line. You really
    just need to practice singing and playing alot! There was a time I 
    couldn't sing and play anything worth listening to, but practicing 
    this over the years (I've been playing for over 20 years)...  I'm still
    not playing and singing anything worth listening to!  ;^)  After awhile
    you'll be able to split your brain into two or three parts (sounds
    gross) and be able to do more than two, maybe three things at once.
    I will admit that there are some songs I have a real hard time with
    even after all these years. You know...  the songs that have a specific
    time signature and the vocal timing is slightly different, but I bet if
    *I* practiced it more I bet I'd eventually get it. I might be ready to
    retire by that time, but I'd have it!
    
    Practice practice practice and when you're tired of all the practice...
    
    
    
    Practice some more!
    
    
    Rock on,
    	     Fred

    	It's particularly difficult task for a bass player or drummer when
    the vocal line goes against the rhythm of what your playing. Take
    Couldn't Stand the Weather is probably no problem for a guitar player
    but the way the bass line has to pump through that makes is damn near
    impossible for me. Now Rush on the other hand is much easier to sing to
    although those super tight pants are a real bitch to get into...
    
    FJE

Simultaneous playing and singing has been a problem for me for the 5 years I've
been playing.  I consider myself an adequate singer and an adequate guitar
player, but combine the two, and until recently you'd rather have earplugs on. 
It's heartening to know that the problem is not limited to myself.

I find that my big problem is when I'm strumming a chord, I tend to hear 1
particular note of that chord, and if I were to sing the chord that would be
the note I sing.  It could be the root note of the chord, but, more often than
not, it's not the root note.  Like for a minor chord I'd have to say the minor
3rd is the note that stands out.  Trying to sing the fifth (or even the root)
of a minor chord isn't too easy sometimes.

Compounding the problem is that I've been singing songs on the radio (which I
play along with as the basis of my practicing) for years before I was a guitar
player, and now I have to figure out which chords to play over the notes I
sing, which brings up the problem in the previous paragraph.

Is the note you tend to 'hear' in any given chord the 'tonic center'?  I've
been hearing that term for a while and I'm not sure what it means.

adam

    	I joined a band about four years ago as a bassist. Origanally I was
    a guitarist, but guitarists are easier to find than reliable bassists.
    I tried to sing and play at first, but I failed miserably. Which was OK
    because we found a singer. As all musicians know a band can be a hard
    thing to keep together. To make a long story short the band went
    through a few transitions. The only original members are me and the
    drummer. The band also started out as a six peice, and now we are just
    a three peice band. I was kinda forced to learn how to sing and play.
    I'd have to say the easiest way to learn to do both is to practice the
    bass line over and over again till you can literally play it with your
    eyes closed. Then the next step is to see if you can sing the words in
    your head while playing. When you feel comfortable with singing the
    song in your head, try to sing aloud. I had to practice every day for
    four months, putting in three or more hours a day to just start feeling
    comfortable playing and singing. You definately have to be patient and
    dedicated to acomplish this. If you slack off at all it will take that
    much longer to reach a point of comfort. 
    
    				This is just my experiences 
    							Thanx,
                                                               Jim
    

IMHO.

First thing of utmost importance is knowing
your range vocally, after that, confidence
and breathing are the two primary obsticles.

To me, it's more like finding the flow,, once I've
found the 'flow' I'm usually o.k. with even lines
that are complex to play on the guitar, and sing...

    	Yeah, but in order to find or capture that flow, the song must be
    second nature. The only way it is going to be second nature is by
    practice practice practice. All in all I totally agree with you.
    
    					Thats just my view,
    
    								Jim