Ms. Chick + others w/ Serious Answers Can I Regain Singing Talent?!
Question: I am interested in singing again. I say again b/c 8 years ago I was a great singer and just stopped. Im 24 now and really want to try it this time b/c I want to experience my voice on record and making music sound good. I would listen to my cd player w/ headphones + imitate others but none the less I still got compliments. Subconsiously I was mimicking the artist I was listening to. I feel like my voice has changed. I want to know is it possible to get that gift back? Imitating others let me know I could make beautiful sounds and carry notes. I want to know is it possible to discover the talent I once had? When I try to sing now it makes me want to cry b/c I feel like I lost the talent. I am 24 now and sound so different. I feel like I didn't use it so I lost it. Can I get it back? and HOW? besides singing 2 cd player again. I love the gift of song and know what I gave up on now. Is there anything I can do?
Answers: I am interested in singing again. I say again b/c 8 years ago I was a great singer and just stopped. Im 24 now and really want to try it this time b/c I want to experience my voice on record and making music sound good. I would listen to my cd player w/ headphones + imitate others but none the less I still got compliments. Subconsiously I was mimicking the artist I was listening to. I feel like my voice has changed. I want to know is it possible to get that gift back? Imitating others let me know I could make beautiful sounds and carry notes. I want to know is it possible to discover the talent I once had? When I try to sing now it makes me want to cry b/c I feel like I lost the talent. I am 24 now and sound so different. I feel like I didn't use it so I lost it. Can I get it back? and HOW? besides singing 2 cd player again. I love the gift of song and know what I gave up on now. Is there anything I can do?
I am sorry I am just getting to reply to your question. I haven't been on in a while and I am always willing to help anyone who truly has a gift for singing, and sounds like you have it. Let me give you a personal story about how I returned to my voice.
I decided after graduating from college, I would take a break from operatic music. I was worn out, just starting a family (at a young age), and decided to change my focus. I taught chorus, gave lessons, did everything but my true calling. And, as you did, I started to approach my mid 20's, and I couldn't run anymore from my gift, and something was tugging me to truly come back to my calling. You, my dear, sounded like me at 24. I too, THOUGHT I lost what I KNEW what was there. Although I never stopped singing, when I stopped singing opera, I forgot a part of me that....although it took some time to rebuild.....it hasn't left.
I had to re-learn my operatic voice over again in my mid twenties. Since the voice does mature, and will keep maturing well into your late 30's (my voice has recently made more of a dramatic transition) you are going to have to re-introduce yourself to your voice. Meaning, you are going to have to take it for all its perfections and imperfections. Don't run from your imperfections and dwell on what you are doing WRONG. Remember, you are relearning your voice, and will have to MAKE patience with yourself. Your resonance is going to be different, and your approach is going to feel different since you are a full grown adult now.
Impersonations is a steering way to your real voice. Now that you know you do well imitating others, you know you do have a voice. If you couldn't imitate others, you would know you couldn't sing at all (LOL). Seriously, whether some of these stuffy voice teachers want to admit to it or not, we all imitated someone until we found our own voice. So don't beat yourself up over that. That is totally normal. But you haven't lost your talent. A gift is a gift. All gifts need to be cultivated and trained. Any professional with longevity have been through this, and didn't come out singing that way. You are no different from us.
How can you get it back? I totally agree with Lynn about finding a GOOD voice teacher. Also, tape record your voice with vocalization. You don't get a chance to imitate anyone when you vocalize. Sing the scales and go through your range. See if your voice feels comfortable in your higher register, your lower register, where you voice has the most power, where the voice has its weak point. Remember, especially now, you are going to have to deal with a transition spot or break in your voice (seems like adults have the worst time with this). I can almost guarantee your disappointment lies in this transition spot. This doesn't mean you cannot sing, or that you lost your gift. It just means you are going to have to learn how to connect the two voices together. Vocalizing in half steps have help my transition spot so much (my transition spot has drastically changed into a new voice this year). Wherever you hear that big break or change, begin vocalizing in half steps on EEE until it smooths or connects better. Do it on a daily basis, and it will definitely get better.
Don't give up on your gift. But more importantly, don't FIGHT against the gift anymore. I don't know what happened to you as to why you stopped singing (career, family, stress, etc.), but refocus. It hasn't left you. Regain your self confidence and dust yourself off. You will find it. I promise you will find a more beautiful voice than you ever had before. God bless!
Singing is much more about training then about talent, trust me. The only "talent" you need is a good ear (which you seem to have). The rest is all about getting acquainted with your body to get it to do what you want it to do.
Likely your voice has changed since the female voice change takes a lot longer than the male one and to have the same voice you had at 16 when you're now 24 is nearly impossible - but like I said, it's not "lost talent". It's just gone into a different direction.
A general help to find out where your singing voice is at now: choose a few songs that are within your range (comortably, might I add!) and HUM them a few times a day (say, 15 minutes of humming altogether - or more, if you want to) for one to two weeks. Then, start singing them, but with the same feeling in your body you had when you hummed them. Don't force, don't scream, don't try to do it any different than from humming.
Also, and this is something a lot of "inexperienced" singers do wrong: do NOT drink/eat anything minty before singing. It WILL numb your throat and you won't feel what you need to feel and you might strain areas you shouldn't strain. Best is to refrain from dairy products for two hours before singing, and about half an hour before humming/singing, try to stick to only water at room temperature.
Those are more "guidelines", I can't always stick to them (especially the dairy part - no chocolate!), but you ought to try it for these one to two weeks, because that way it is easiest to find out what the right feeling is that you need for singing, and to find out where your voice is.
Try, at least for now, NOT to copy other singers: the vocal tract is a muscle, and as long as that is not trained it simply can't do what other trained muscles can do, so you'd only hurt yourself.
Keep me updated on how it works!
edit: of course I agree with the reply below mine: a teacher is always the best option. My reply was merely to give you some "guidance" should your only goal for the moment be to get reacquainted with you voice. If you want to be really good you ought to look for a (good) teacher, of course.
you've proably gone through a lot of life experiences since t age 16, and these will also be reflected in the quality and quantity of your sound. Taking lessons would be the best way to get in touch with your voice again, and learn what it is to use only your sound, instead of being content to imitate others. ( this is a talent in of itself, not every singer has that ability, but it takes away from your own unique sound)
Since you have a feel for music, this element will not be missing, but you need the technique that will really allow you to open up and be able to express yourself thoroughly.
Check out community choirs in your area, or church choirs. Ask at music stores where lessons are given to see if there are also singing lessons offered ( some places stick to guitar and drums...) If there is a university near you with a good music department, chances are there will be people there who can help point you to a good teacher. Take some time and care on this search- you have only one voice in this life, and there are no replacement parts- you want someone whom you can trust. This is worth the search time.