When in Doubt, Sing Out: The Secret to Fast Note Learning

Whenever I direct music for shows, I often tell the cast to sing out because it makes your brain work faster. Very few believe me at first, but the few that do always get results. Yes, we will hear off-notes. But that is OK, because after a pass or two, you will have it down. Why?

When you sing in a full voice, your Singing Center (brain stem, cerebellum, various reflex arcs etc.) says, "Woa, wait. I don't even know the note yet. Um, OK let me figure it out." And that is what happens; it figures it out. It listens and makes the note for you.

The secret is that music is already inside of us. We are programmed to sing and make music. Convince me otherwise. . . no one has yet. So, when you hear the Music Director or your Vocal Coach playing the notes on the piano or when you are following a singer or part track, sing in a full voice and your Singing Center will laser focus on the pitches make them happen for you.

By contrast, when you sing softly your Singing Center says, "Well, I have time. I mean, they aren't even singing very loud, so, yea, I'll just kind of half listen and get to the notes eventually." That's what mine says at least. He is lazy and unmotivated, so I have to snap him into attention by singing in a full voice. This, by the way, works for other things also. If you go too slow on a math test, your mind goes slow. If you go just the right speed, it stays active. If you are jumping on rocks to get down a sloped stream, going just the right speed is safer than going slowly--ask me how I know.

It's the same with voice. Put a demand on your brain by singing loudly, skipping rocks with rhythm, doing your math test just slightly faster than your comfort zone, etc. If you put a demand on your brain, it works fast. If you don't put a demand on your brain, it will get lazy.

So in practice, how does this work? Do you sing in the loudest voice possible and annoy your neighbors? No. You can. . . but it will annoy your neighbors. If they are singing loudly too, and your group has a culture to do that, fine. But if not, sing in a full voice, the kind needed to project to a small crowd in a medium sized room. Basically, sing just loud enough that the Music Director can hear you if you were by yourself in the same room.

This does two things. First, it forces your brain and entire Singing Center to fully engage and give you the notes faster and more efficiently. Second, it lets the director know what to address with the group. Rather than waiting 10 passes later when everyone is comfortable enough to sing out, if people are singing out in the first pass, it only takes around 4 passes to learn the same phrase or section of music. So it cuts the time in half.

When I work with children, they believe these types of things much faster than adults, and generally I can teach them songs in roughly half the time it takes me to teach a group of adults with similar skills.

This "sing out" method works whether you are by yourself or in a group. You can easily prove this by thinking about all the songs you learn by singing loudly in your car or in your room when no one is home. You just let it go, don't overthink, and the Singing Center takes over and gives you what you need. It's that simple.

I will, however, encourage you to sing with technique and never push your voice. Also sing with a focus on each pitch. Lazy singing with the radio often leads to wrong pitches, even if you get most of them right because you sang out. So focus in on the exact pitches while singing with a full voice with your best technique.

If you want a single quote to remember:

"When in doubt, sing out, and with your best technique and focus"

Go, sing out, and learn music fast. ;)