<p>Kind of an off topic thread here but still could be relevant. When is the first time you have ever heared your own voice on tape and what was your reaction to it.</p>
<p>I have been hearing from everybody for a while how great they thought my voice was, however the first time I heared my singing played back to me I cringed, I didn’t sound at all like I thought I did, not necessarily bad but definatley different. Did any of you have the same reaction when you first heared your own voice and did you do anything to change it?</p>
<p>Absolutely! Your bones are going to conduct sound in ways that change what you think you sound like. The first time I really heard my voice was very embarrassing and, yes, I did much to change it. But that was because it needed changing. If many other people think your voice is wonderful, it may not need changing.</p>
<p>I remember a childrens group (ages 6-13) who were rehearsing a song and dance revue. Each child had a small solo. After they had rehearsed several days and each knew his part, we brought in a karaoke machine with two microphones so that they could get used to hearing the sound played back to them and also get used to holding the mikes. About half-way through they were all crying because they thought they sounded so bad! It was like it was the first time they had heard themselves.</p>
<p>I think it’s really important to record yourself and really judge for YOURSELF what sounds good. First, you most likely know what sounds good to you more than “most people.” Second, I read somewhere (I believe here: [Nasality</a> in the Tenor Voice](<a href=“http://www.voiceteacher.com/nasal_tenor.html]Nasality”>Nasality in the Tenor Voice)) that tenors love the way their voice sounds interally, but externally it may sound HORRIBLE! Something to do with the bone’s vibrations. So getting that second opinion on how you sound with a recorder can really help.</p>
<p>I’ve been recording myself for years so I don’t know if I’m just strange, but I really like the sound of my voice recorded. And I can really judge it now, which is SO important. So don’t let the initial fear of your voice discourage you from doing it further!</p>
<p>Also, with some performers they sound ten times better live than on a recording. Julia Murney for instance doesn’t sound half as good as she really is live when she’s recorded. Some performers sound good both ways and some don’t. For me personally I sound better at a live performance.</p>
<p>some people aren’t good “recording” artists, which is understandable in musical theatre as a lot of people sing LOUDLY and with bravada. But, I wouldn’t let that be a reason for NOT recording yourself. Achieve the best recordablity you can, even if live is better. Afterall, I have 3 schools that require a CD with my audition</p>
<p>Do these schools require your accompaniment on CD for auditions or do they want you singing on the CD? If the latter, which schools? I want to make sure D didn’t miss that request from any of her schools.
Thanks!</p>
<p>For my schools it’s because I’m auditioning at the Unifieds for them and it is supposed to be me singing. A lot of schools will have kids do this–like CCM–for a Music major. Webster and another (can’t remember right now) has me sing the entire song on the CD because of the Unifieds, so I’m just making a bunch to bring with</p>
<p>I knew Webster wanted a CD if you were at the unifieds to take back to the other faculty but I didn’t realize any other schools did. D is going to the unifieds too so I was just checking.</p>
<p>I still am not keen on hearing myself, but I used to HATE it.<br>
I remember a guy I was doing a duet in a show with bursting into tears after hearing a tape we made up of it because he thought he sounded so bad.
I never feel like I sound like me when I hear recordings - I got asked to sing on a video for people marking music exams about 4 years ago and when I finally saw it I actually felt like I was lipsynching to somebody else because that voice (which I was quite happy with in that case) was like nothing I’d heard while singing in the shower!</p>
<p>Listening to recordings of your voice can be a great tool for improving it. Once you get used to it (and that can be painful!), you can be more objective and work on correcting problems. I use tapes with my voice students all the time – it can often be much more effective than trying to explain something like “focusing your tone”, especially with younger students.</p>