Be extreme in your daily quest for greatness

I have always been a person that goes to extremes. If I were going to practice stretching I would stretch until it hurts. If I were to work out by lifing weights I would lift the heaviest weight possible. Basically any technique, I would take it to the nth degree, because that’s how to do it best, right? Wrong. 

Something has changed in the last year, though. I don't know if it's because I'm just getting older, if I'm getting further along in my jiu jitsu practice, if I'm getting older as a father, or what, but I've had a pretty seismic idea, extreme, if you will, of being extreme..

Maybe it occurred to me these past couple weeks as I've been working out almost every day at the Opera Colorado office. It’s not the greatest gym in the world, but, if you just work out with what you have, and keep on the slow and steady grind on this campaign of self-improvement, one begins to see results. If I just come in every day and work and go through the motions and lift the weights do my stretches my injuries heal, my body strengthens, and I feel overall, better.

The same thing can be said regarding our singing. In the beginning of your singing journey, you are building your voice, much the same way as you are building an instrument. You can't play a violin unless it's built, and you cannot sing to your full extent unless the muscles that are directly in control of producing the sounds have been strengthened...

The muscles allow you to sing softly, loudly, to add emotional textures to your voice, to add caricature textures to your voice, singing dark, singing light, singing clear, and have a ringing tone. All of these things are the standard, the baseline, the foundation of what it takes to add artistry to your song, to your band, to your life....

Once again, we come to this idea of extreme. I can't tell you how many students I've seen in the past few years that want a major change in one lesson. It doesn't happen like that. Expecting a change in one lesson… that is extreme. One must recognize that one needs to build the muscles that are directly responsible before producing those sounds over a period of YEARS! it took Arnold Schwarzenegger a long time to get that Mr. Universe body. It's the exact same way with the voice.

Slow and steady. Steady. Steady. Constant and disciplined workouts will get you to your goals.

Oh, and by the way, I can help get you there!

Singing Lessons schedule is a bit wackadu for a little while, but sign up on the Boulder Voice Lessons website for available lesson times.

Free Piano Lesson and Daily Piano Warmups

Boulder Voice Lessons Daily 7 minute piano warm up will make you a better piano player.

Daily Piano Practice will make you a better piano player!

If you don’t know what to practice, or if you are sick of practicing your assigned song, just do this simple 7 minute warm up, and you’ll continue to improve.

It’s like 7 minute Abs, but for your fingers.

Check it here:

Don’t listen to yourself while you sing.

That comes straight out of the Voice Teacher “Guru” handbook.

Mmmmm, OK, but how in the world are you supposed to change your sound if you don’t listen to yourself?

“Stop listening to yourself,” I always used to hear. I guess in hindsight, I can understand what a teacher would mean by that. If you are overdoing the technique, and by changing the structure of your sound, I suppose you could “listen” to yourself in a bad way.

However, we need to be able to help ourselves when we sing. That’s the only way we can more effectively go for that wider, deeper, Boulder Voice Lessons Technique sound!

Still others say that a microphone is the best teacher, and instead of going whole hog and not agreeing with anyone, how about we take a little bit of advice from everybody.

Here at Boulder Voice Lessons, we record a song or aria during the last part of the lesson. I’m wearing headphones, you’re wearing headphones, and you are listening to your voice. Want to sing like Norah Jones? Well, Norah Jones always sings into a microphone, and so does Adele, and so does every pop-star.

They also sing with great microphones, just like the one that we use here at Boulder Voice Lessons.

So step right on up, and work with some professional equipment while we on your professional vocal technique.

Yet another perk, and yet another reason to trust Boulder Voice Lessons for all your Vocal Technique Lessons!

Start listening to yourself here:

Peace!
Josh
Boulder Voice Lessons