[Smkndofpnutdssrt]

So I need advice. I have a nice voice, but it's too nice. Too soft and angelic sounding. Too much of a pretty soprano voice. So I have hard time singing loud and strong and full. And belting...well forget it. Anyone have any ideas on ways to practice?

[JIJane]

See a really good singing teacher once a week.

[blue wind]

^ yes. this sounds exactly like my friend. PLEASE go take voice lessons, she's been taking them for a few years and she actually has a chest voice now! lol.

but whatever you do, do NOT force it or try anything whacky without a teacher, because you could really hurt your vocal chords.

[erinmylungs]

I'm the opposite way, kind of. I have a stronger, alto voice but I'm working on making my head voice stronger. My teacher thinks I'll be a dramatic mezzo, which apparently, is rare. Hm.

[kozafluitmusique]

Get a voice teacher. I've never had one (I may next year) but I've heard it helps sooooo much.

[Smkndofpnutdssrt]

I used to take voice lessons and I'm thinking of starting up again, but the problem is she's an opera singer and I know she would kill me if I came up to her and said, "Please teach me how to belt."

[JIJane]

Definitely find another teacher then.

[MaryMag]

Not all opera teachers are anti-belting. I'm more anti belting than my teacher is.

And most opera teachers will teach you to utilize your chest voice/register, which you employ in belting.

I'm so wary of non-classically trained teachers teaching how to belt. I think only classically trained teachers fully understand the human voice. I had one teacher who was a teacher to rock singers who tried to teach me to sing and that was worthless at best. However, I'm not horribly satisfied with any opera singers I've heard "belting."

I guess I just think belting is ugly, period. A nice strong chest voice like Lea Salonga's is preferrable to all out belting a la American Idol, in my opinion.

Anyway.

Ultimately, if you're under 16 don't try to belt. You'll callous your vocal cords and it'll take a long time for them to become soft and pliable again. I speak from experience! I belted my stupid face off for 2 years and have been paying for it for 5.

[curlyhairedsoprano91]

I just turned 17 and have been taking voice lessons for about 9 months at this point. I used to "belt" (not really belt, but sing really loudly in a constant mix) and she trained my head voice so that it's all I use at this point. I'm not as loud as I used to be, not close, but I don't have sore throats for days after a performance and I don't have upper range breaks any more (like, my C5-C6 scale isn't riddled with shrieks).

"Don't belt," said she (my teacher). "There are other ways to be annoying. ... And besides, it'll ruin your soprano."

[LaurelDP]

My voice teacher is an internationally acclaimed opera singer who also happens to have a secret belting life. So obviously, she teaches me both.

[JIJane]

"I guess I just think belting is ugly, period."

I agree with a lot you say Mary Mag but in regards to the above statement - not if it's done properly. It can sound magnificent when the person was born to sing that way and does it naturally without strain. The problem is that we hear too many people doing it now that really shouldn't (especially in the West End). My personal frank opinion is - if someone has to teach you to belt - you are not a natural born belter and most probably should not be singing that way.

[star2ballie]

A classical foundation sets you up for any style of singing.

One of my friends took lessons with a lady who told her that "if she sang classically, she wouldn't be able to sing musical theatre without sounding like an opera singer". AGH! Her TEACHER told her that! Can you believe it? So, she started taking lessons with my teacher (also an internationally acclaimed opera man...Laurel, I'm sure he knows your teacher through the opera mafia. He's performed everywhere.), and he was just floored when she told him that.

I belted all as a youngin', all through my Annie years and stuff, and if I hadn't met my teacher when I did, there is no doubt I would have some serious vocal damage. I already was starting to have issues when I met him. I've been with him now for almost 3 years and just this past year have we been starting to really utilize my belt voice. But by working with him, I can easily switch from a rich chest sound to a more resonant higher belt sound to my legit head voice, and I am finally happy with all three.

If you just want to belt, and you find a teacher who will just start off teaching you to belt, chances are you are pretty much...screwed. I agree completely with everything MaryMag said. I know it stinks when you just want to get out there and soung like Sutton Foster bumpin out those money notes, but you need a safe, strong, beautiful foundation before you add the icing on the cake.

[broadway babii x0]

I agree 100% with Allie.

I'm 13, and I've been taking lessons for a little less than a year. I honestly, used to SUCK.

But then I found my current voice teacher, and she really is a miracle worker! Now and my first lesson is like night and day.

She does mostly mix-y stuff with me, because as Allie said, you need a good, strong foundation. But she also does some belting with me, and I do it properly, zero strain, but what sucks is I can barely hit a D in my belt voice. This is where having a good foundation comes in, I can seamlessy switch into mix. [:

She knows I really like belting, so she usually has me do soprano stuff to really work on my upper register, so I can learn to control it. Oh, the joys of puberty.

So, if you have an amazing voice teacher basically anything is possible. ;]

[MaryMag]

[JIJane]

I don't want to go into a lot of boring technical babble... But there is no such thing as a chest voice, We never sing from the chest, I honestly have no idea who thought up that terminology but it's something we try and avoid in the UK, as it's just wrong really. I do know what you mean about Lea Salong, I like her voice too. She is not what I consider a natural belter, she is a mezzo that has been trained to belt to a degree. And yes, Block (though a natural belter) forces her voice. Indeed. Some people like that but I like you also find it forced. But there ARE belters where it does not sound forced, mostly the old time belters and not the new ones as they (like Block) are very pop/rock influenced where singing a note sharp and pushing is "the fashion". I guess it really is down to personal taste what kind of singing one prefers. But it's interesting to keep in mind that Billie Holiday who had a tiny range and never belted still sells thousands of albums every year and she has been dead for 60 years. In the end what matters is the STYLE you sing in, your vocal quality and tone and whether you can interpret a lyric that will make you stand out from the crowd and have a lasting career - and a healthy voice.

And you are not full of shit.

[~GertrudeMcFuzz~]

I would definitely agree with everyone above and say tog et a good voice teacher.

I studied with a classically trained opera singer for a few years, up until recently, and never really belted. I was trained for choir and opera, and had a good soprano voice. But because I want to do musical theatre throughout college and beyond, I have to learn to belt. I've been doing musicals since I was seven and never truly belted (I used a mixed voice and projected), and I just got a new teacher who is also trained in opera but also belts. She's currently teaching me to sing for theatre in preparation for college auditions, and she agrees with me that it was good that I started classically.

I guess my point in that rant was to say that a classical base is a really good idea to start before belting. Belting can be dangerous if you do it constantly when you're younger, and it will be easier to learn to belt after you learn classic vocal technique. It sounds like you've already been started that way, though, so I think you'll be on the right track with a voice teacher to help you learn to belt. Good luck!

[mercurialasaka]

Please Please PLEASE find a good classical voice teacher. I was classically trained in opera/classical musical theater (ODed on Rogers and Hammerstein) and it helped so much. First of all within three months of working with a private voice teacher, my voice was changing and maturing. I was the opposite, I was never the 'annie' type so I never learned how to scream my face off. I had a big "operatic" voice that then developed into a voice that is operatic AND has a high belt. With strong classical training, you learn how to smooth over breaks so you dont' sound like two different people singing and develop proper breathing technique that you will need to use while belting or else you will hurt yourself. I never considered myself a big 'belter' until about two years ago when I finally started to work on that type of technique and it developed in a way that was healthy because I knew how to support it and where to place my voice. It's better to start with a classical teacher who knows how to build foundations that then will help you 'belt' safely and nicely without sounding like a screamer and hurting your voice.