Hi guys, which is the best method/book/dvd to learn harmony vocals? (i mean the art of instantly sing a background vocal).

Thanks.

Listen to the Beach Boys and the Everly Brothers. They wrote the book on harmony vocals. In hard rock, there is no one better than Michael Anthony. Also, check out Chris Squire from Yes. As far as method and technique goes, I am not sure how to do it. If you can sing already, just sing like the lead singer, but go an octave higher.

If you play guitar or piano, try adding the 3rd or 5th above the main melody to get the basic harmony triad going. Got to pay attention to the chord structure, i.e., major or minor keys...To make sure you got the right harmony.

JV

get a music theory book thats easy to understand if you aren't familiar with it.

Ooh! One of my very favorite things about singing!!! There's nothing better than good vocal harmony.

I don't disagree with anything that's been said so far. Beach Boys, Everly Brothers, and of course the BEATLES are like the early canon on harmonizing (especially if you're talking about male singers). I get the feeling that you know what it sounds like already, but you're asking more of a "how to" question.

The people listed above are a great reference for what I call "standard" harmonies. As Jaime said, the most common harmonies used are the major or minor triad notes. But IMO, the fun, and MAGIC, begins when you move beyond that. Every interval can be a harmony, it all depends on the feeling you're going for. The best uses of harmony, just like melody, will create a journey of tension, climax, and resolution, for the listener. As others have said. The key to this is learning your basic music theory. Learn what function each degree of the scales have. (which tones lead you back to the tonal center, or root note, which tones create tension or dissonance, etc.)

I find that the problem most people have when singing harmony is that they hear what the other person is singing, and can't help but ending up on the same pitch. To fight this urge, some people think they have to mentally block out the other singer, but this will most likely lead to intonation problems (not singing in tune together) unless you both have perfect pitch. I say you MUST listen to the other note (or notes), you've got to learn what the harmonic interaction sounds and feels like, and work (pun intended) in "harmony" with your fellow singers.

So here's an exercise idea. Sit at a piano, play and sing a middle C. (for best results, try and match the volume of your voice to the volume you're playing) You're now in perfect unison. Then hold your C note vocally and just play up a chromatic scale on the piano. Go slowly and listen to the harmonic interaction! The first couple notes you'll feel lots of tension (minor 2nd, and major 2nd intervals) the next two will be more pleasing to the ear, but have different feelings to them (minor 3rd and major 3rd) Next you have a perfect 4th, this is neither major nor minor, this is great for harmony singing because it can have lots of uses, up another half-step and you have a great interval with many names...augmented 4th, diminished 5th, flatted 5th, this is also one of the so called "blue notes" that give the blues scale it's unique sound. The rest of the intervals, minor & major 6th, minor and major 7th, have their functions too, often giving a jazzy feel, but just experiment and see what feels cool to you.

You can then try the reverse. Play middle C over and over while you ascend chromatically, and same thing, listen to the harmonic interaction, and feel what kinds of emotions each different interval implies.

I didn't mean to go on so long...but let me also throw out another listening recommendation: Mr. Tommy Shaw!!! Not only his most famous works with Styx, but you'll hear amazing harmony arrangements on his work with Damn Yankees, his solo record 7 Deadly Zens, and ESPECIALLY his acoustic based duo with Damn Yankees mate Jack Blades, appropriately named "Shaw Blades"

Other great harmony bands that go way beyond the "standard":
Echolyn (very prog!)
Spock's Beard (prog)
Pain of Salvation (prog metal)
King's X (rock, art rock)

have fun!

oops, when talking about each interval I skipped a very important one: the perfect 5th! This is like a power chord on guitar, or vocally can sometimes sound like gregorian chant, lol. Again it's neither major nor minor, so it's very versatile...and like Jaime said, this, along with the major & minor 3rd, is one of the most commonly used harmony intervals.

Thanks guys, its somethin i never really worked on...
I always been a huge fan of the vocal group "take 6"
and id like to start to improve my harmony vocals.

Paul,

It blows me away how much there is to vocals and how truly intricate it is as an instrument. Its kind of cool though because intervalwise(not sure if that is a word) If I learn this, I can apply it to guitar as well..... Its kind of funny that I originally thought that vocals were something that you either have or don't (although some people are naturals) most people
have to work hard to get to where they want to be. This is a huge relief for me because before I found this board I was very discouraged and because of ryv, this board and my sls teacher I have made huge strides I appreciate the fact that all people on this board are willing to share their knowledge and experiances!!!!!!!

there also are some rules in choral music for harmonies that you can follow to give yourself a solid basis. for example, the 7th of a chord always goes up to the 8th; the 2nd goes down to the root; the 4th goes up to the perfect 5th; etc...

I personally prefer to forget about the rules and trust MY EARS Record the part you want to add harmonies for and sing along. Try different harmony lines until you find something you like. Be creative!

oiselle (glad I don't have to try and pronounce that!)

I agree with everything you just said! Learn some basic rules, try them out, see WHY they became rules...then forget about them and see what cool things happen when you break them on purpose! ;)

And yes, to the earlier comment. This board is great. People are pretty much universally generous about sharing knowledge here. Very cool!

It's pronounced wazelle (elle as in gazelle) and it means bird(sort of)