Any tips on learning to sing well?

As stated previously, piano is almost a necessity to learn how to sing with precise pitch without lessons/a teacher.

I'm in my all-boys chorus in school. When I need to practice singing (obviously I know how to play piano) I just look at the melody or what I am to sing and sing with the notes slowly. To hit very high notes (especially if your'e a Tenor 2) or low notes, pushing more air out of you will allow you to hit them.

Practicing slowly and with the melody will be very good especially if you're just singing recreationally.
 
Practice, practice, practice.

It is absolutely imperative that you practice every day, otherwise you'll never get good.
 
Mathew, you should totally bring back those Karaoke contests we had last year. it seems they start out great and die off by themselves until they are revived at random by someone with a song in his/her heart[or just the urge to sing on smogon]

anyways yeah, not only were the karaoke competitions fun, they provided great practice, and singing, like everything else, improves the more you practice or just..........the more you sing in general.

For reference
Karaoke round 8 [lol at the intro story, man i thought i was soooo funny back then]
Karaoke round 8 voting [man, some great submissions that round]

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I'm a singer, I've been singing for about almost three years now. I was in a beginner chorus class back in 2009 my junior year in high school. Although it was a good way to be able to find an excuse to just sing in the morning (other than being that social degenerate who randomly sings in the school halls), I honestly didn't find anything I really didn't already know that shouldn't be self-obvious anyhow. I was suppose to move up into the Intermediate chorus and then advance chorus, but I had to make up some credits and take a technology class at this technology high school (which I ended up failing anyhow because of I was distracted on other things). Too add a random boast, some advance chorus girls have praised my vocal ability.

Honestly I only have three things to list for singing.

01. Drink water daily (I usually try to drink about 4 bottles that are equal to 8 glasses)

02. Have self-confidence, do not be afraid to sing. I have a stuttering speech problem, but when I sing I NEVER stutter. If you have trouble hitting higher notes then just focus on the emotion you put into your vocals.

03. Try watching some live performances of some vocalists be it solo or in a band or group that you enjoy. Look at the way he or she sings, the way the words are pronounced between the higher and or lower registers.

I am in a thrash / trad. heavy metal band with my friend who plays guitar (it is just us two since we can not find a bassist or drummer into the same stuff as us be it the common mainstream bands like Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Megadeth, Deep Purple or more under the radar bands like UFO, Bathory, Dismember, Mercyful Fate). Think of a Mexican-American Rob Halford, Chris Cornell, or Ian Gillan and you have a good idea of my singing voice. I do a pretty good King Diamond imitation too add.
 
Is not a good idea to practice alone because your ears most of the time will lie to you, so i would recommend you to hire a coach, go to the church chorus or record your voice with something so that you can hear how your voice really sounds like.

Also try to breath with your stomach and not with your lungs.
 
Okay well I sing with the Australian Boys Choir so I guess I'll help out
Basically, one thing that will help you is to just sing around the house. e.g on the rare occasions I vacuum, I sing with the note of the vacuum cleaner and just stuff like that really helps.
I haven't had a voice coach (but might be getting one soon), but just sung with the choir for 6/7 years and the training with it has made me a good singer. I am in the main choir atm where we rehearse four hours a week, but as we are an internationally touring choir we rehearse a lot. There are lots of choirs that are cheap to join and will rehearse once a week and singing seriously in a choir with other singers will really improve you.
In terms of technique, some basic things that are mistakes that beginners make I can advise you against:
•open your mouth. Closing it closes up the spaces and makes your voice tense and squeezed
•When you breathe don't move your shoulders. A good way to get the feeling of this is to make a strong "Psssh" sound until you are nearly out of air, then just let all your muscles go and air will come to you without having to try. If you breathe like this with a hand on your stomach you will feel it move out when you breathe if you're doing it correctly and looking in a mirror can help for checking if your shoulders move or not
•Support the sound from your diaphragm not your throat. If you can feel muscles tensing in your throat then you're doing it wrong. Your throat should feel no stress, and the pressure should be felt in your sides. If you put your hands in your sides just below your ribs and laugh, you'll feel your sides move out and tense kind of. This is the support you should be aiming for whenever you sing
•Don't stick your chin out or lift your head when opening your mouth. Your chin should move down and backwards and open naturally
•Have good posture. Stand with your chest high and the back of your head high, not the front lifted up and stretching your neck cause that's bad
•Sounds are made by spaces inside your mouth and the connection of your support to the place where the sound resonates. Each vowel has a different space inside your mouth and slightly different for different pitches, and they each have different points of resonance and the same for different pitches. This is quite complicated with the various shapes and positions and this post is long so if you want me to tell you some stuff about it just ask.

Sorry if I've overloaded you with information, and I'm glad to see you wanting to sing and good luck :)
 
Well I take a music theory class this semester at my prep school and we have to sing very much. If I remember correctly drinking a lot of water can help wih lubricating your vocal cords. Also I found this a bit successful try to sing with some and match their pitch and tone. Preferably a talented person. If you just think ahead of time what you want to hear it helps a lot. I myself am no expert i sit in the back of that class.
 
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