[aageneral] Singing -The Tonic Of Life

Title: Singing - The Tonic Of Life
Author: Michael Oliphant
Website: http://www.exploreyourvoice.com
Email: mailto:michaeloliphant@exploreyourvoice.net
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Singing - The Tonic Of Life

Most people these days would associate singing with the popular
music they see and hear on the radio and tv. This can make you
feel like its beyond you , like it's some form of high skill
that you need to be born with. A natural talent if you like. In
fact singing is much more a part of our everyday lives than you
might realize, and it can be a tonic for an improved state of
mind and a recipe for stress reduction and better health.

The best example of this is ; think about the songs that when
you hear them on the radio make you remember something wonderful
in your past. The song that reminds you of your first kiss or
when you proposed to your partner, or perhaps just some good
times with friends at school or work. You can be sitting all
alone feeling sorry for yourself about the way life has treated
you and a song comes on the radio that reminds you of a great
time in your life.

I'm sure you have songs that do this to you. Songs that you sing
along to in the car at the top of your voice, ignoring the
strange looks from other drivers at the lights. It can be a form
of instant atitude adjustment and will often completely erase
the effects of a bad day. This effect is multiplied ten fold if
you can sing along with a favorite song. For the moments when
you sing along you get to journey through a personal fantasy, a
kind of mental movie of events that you recall related to that
song. When you sing along to a CD in the car you get to
momentarily exit this reality and visit another which is tailor
made by you.

There is even a flip side to it. I still find it hard to listen
to a particular Led Zeppelin song which I associate with
breaking up with my first wife. However, when I do hear it I
feel like singing along because it makes me remember how much
better things are now than when I was with her. Funny how that
works.

If you are the sort of person who has a lot of emotional ups and
downs in your life then you could try this little trick for a
kind of instant pick me up. Make a CD up of about 10 of your
favorite songs and keep it with you at all times. Make sure
these songs are related to great times in your life. When you
are annoyed or upset, or just need a bit of a boost put the CD
on and play one song at random. Do not play more than one song
and resist the urge to play the same song each time. Playing the
same song will reprogram you to associate it with your current
situation and it will loose it's effect. Then sing your head
off! Make sure you are alone and sing from the heart. Don't
spare the horses - just go for it. Make sure you take a good
deep breath to start and concentrate on the sound of your own
voice, not the voice of the singer in the song. This will help
you pitch correctly and make you feel like you are a real singer
on a stage.

Many people simply ignore music in their environment. They
regard it as background noise like traffic or the murmur of
people talking in a cafe. The truth is music is a custom built
emotional trigger. We all react to it in different ways. How
many times have you found a piece of music totally distracting
when you are trying to concentrate on something? This is because
music is created specifically to evoke a response, it is looking
to push your buttons, to make you participate. The next time you
see some motor racing on the tv check out the sort of music they
put behind it. It won't be Beethoven or Mozart, it will be high
speed aggressive guitar music. How does it make you feel? This
music is chosen to evoke an adrenelin response, to get you
excited and feel like you are part of the action. Conversely,
you are unlikely to hear thrashing guitars used behind a
documentary about gorillas in Kenya, you will hear thoughtful
music that is designed to create empathy and wonderment.

All this means that you should take more notice of the music
around you and try to participate whenever you can. Above all,
try to listen to music that allows you to sing and express your
emotions, let it all hang out and don't give a damn about what
other people think. The next step is to get better control of
your singing voice. Try getting some karaoke tracks and sing to
those regularly. From there you might consider some actual
singing lessons.
The benefits are huge in terms of improving your sense of wellbeing
and confidence. Finally, pay a visit to The Explore Your Voice Show
Podcast. It's a half hour downloadable mp3 audio show on the
net where we talk about all aspects of singing, performing, and
getting your voice into shape.
Just the tonic you might need.

About the author:
Michael Oliphant , musician, producer and songwriter, is one of
the inventors of Explore Your Voice Singing Lessons. He also
co-hosts a weekly free show called the Explore Your Voice Show
Podcast.
http://www.exploreyourvoice.com
http://www.exploreyourvoice.com/eyvshow/singing_lessons/eyvshow1.html

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