Hey everybody. This might be a stupid question but ill ask anyways. When im singing along with a song i get really good resonance/placement/feels natural etc. but when i try it out with just me and my guitar i get resonance sometimes..but not always, and sometimes i try and force it. can anybody explain this? I know there could be alot of factors causing it:S or is it all just in my head lol.

It's all in your head. You sing along with someone, like at a concert or with the music turned up, and you are hearing their tone and combining it with yours, so it is sounding fuller. It's your temporary crutch. Don't worry about it;)

If I randomly try singing around people without a guitar, or its not at some musical event, I can't sing. Its a weird thing. You pretty much have to say, eff what anyone thinks, and then go for it.

thanks for the tips! I was thinking that maybe when singing along with a song its easier to match the pitches and hit the right notes which causes more resonance (fuller sound). and when singing alone maybe im not hitting all the right notes and lacking resonance and fullness? thats just my thought.

Hi AndyK,

Do you record yourself whenever you sing with songs? If not, you should. Especially, if the music is loud or you're wearing headphones. Sometimes people don't realize how off-pitch they are, how monotone their voice is, or just how loud they really are and don't realize they're pushing their sound. It's because they only hear their voice through the inner ear and think they sound good and are on pitch when they're actually not even close. I had a friend think he could hit higher notes better when he was singing in the shower. Instead of telling him he sucked, I told him to record himself sometime in the shower. He did, and realized just how deceiving the acoustics in the bathroom really were. I admit, I used to have that same false sense before I started learning how and where my vocal placement should be and feel.

As far as the resonance goes, I suggest doing the buzzing or "z" exercises that Jaime has. The buzzing sound gives you a good focal point too. You want to start and maintain a "big" sound throughout your entire range instead of lightening up as you ascend. And if you can maintain the same volume you start with as you ascend, you shouldn't have to strain at all. You will sound louder without having to force the volume. That's what works for me anyway. I hope that makes sense.

In my experience nothing gets the resonance going like that 'z'. :) Just go 'zzzzz' to help you find your resonance... don't push on it or 'try' to make the resonance, just make a nice clean 'z' (note: don't go 'zeee' like some people try to... stay on the 'z' without ever opening your teeth/dropping your jaw).

Let that help you feel the resonance all over your face... your nose, across your cheeks, in your teeth, behind your eyes, on top of your head... where-ever the resonance wants to go :).


Then I like to follow that up with the humming exercise (just hum one pitch till you start to run out of air, and let it slide down to the bottom of your range).



From there I like to do some really relaxed 'maah' stuff, with an elongated 'm' to get the resonance started.


P.S. I personally always keep it in the middle and lower register at first. I don't try to take people up high till they've got a decent grasp on resonance in the 'easy' stuff :). I think it's better to start where they're comfortable and let the resonance become a more natural thing before try to get them to bring it into their high notes, which can be more tricky.



Typically after a week (or less) of doing that kind of stuff, I've found that people just start being able to tap into it. Maybe not perfectly, and maybe it's not their max resonance yet. What I'm talking about is more for people like yourself who aren't sure how to really start accessing it on a regular basis.