You are quite easily (in my opinion) one of the best instructors on TH-cam. You are simple, straight to the point, and honest when you teach. Thank you!
I have been struggling with vibrato for years and right after taking your advice to focus on sustaining notes in a controlled way, my vibrato smoothed out considerably. There are so many opinions out there about vibrato and I think your explanation, combining "it comes naturally" with "gaining muscle control" is right on target.
Astrud gilberto has a beautiful voice. I looked her up after you mentioned her. I recognised her voice straight away but I never knew her name until then. Thank you for your videos.
Thank you! I've been singing regularly for a year and a half and still have not even a hint of vibrato. I'm shy, so I tend to sing kind of quietly so the neighbors don't hear me. Is this holding me back? I'm only loud at opec mic and while in the car. It's probably not good to practice in the car due to bad posture though...
I'm also struggling with my vibrato... I can belt straight notes pretty high up in the range for a guy but I still can't do it perfectly... So this video helps me understand about it a bit... good on you that you can do it naturally... *:D*
Nicola, i experienced that vibrato fluxuation for the first time yesterday. However i seem to get it easier holding higher notes.. the low end is real real suttle.. what do i need to do to develop that low end vibrato... ? Thanks :)
It does happen naturally, which is why all those "methods" for artificially creating forced vibrato fall short. Here's why: holding a long note for most of us is done with force (often with too much force), so it isn't a huge leap to think that we can somehow force vibrato to happen. But true vibrato is the underlying natural nerve pulse (the nerves that supply the larynx), which creates a totally natural and inherent pitch waver; it was there when you were born. Until you can relax and allow that pulse, and "hop on" its natural flutter, no one will really be able to find vibrato. It's there already; you just have to relax and find yours, NOT create it from some technique "outside". Nobody ever says that, but it's true; it's a simple physiological truth.
+Robert Davidson As a singer I'd have to completely disagree. I appreciate your point of view but I can tell you from experience that vibrato is a technique that can be applied to singing. I sing both with and without vibrato and can choose to add it where I like. I also change its speed.
+Singers Secret Of course vibrato can be applied to singing! I never said it couldn't; that would be ridiculous, so putting words in my mouth isn't the best response. And of course once a person finds that natural pulsing of the voice then one can learn to make it stronger, and eventually control it by doing exactly what you describe. I did too. I referred only to finding what is natural and inherent FIRST, then learn control. This suggestion is one of two approaches to developing vibrato: "outside", and "inside". There is in fact an "inside", whether you realize it or not. That's my point.
+Robert Davidson Ha! I got a chance to come back and finish the thought. Consider this: I hope you know that there are any number of teachers out there who completely disagree with both of us. They maintain that vibrato cannot ever be taught. Now, they aren't saying it can't be discovered and developed, just that no teacher can teach it. They are against the "outside" approach ( for a good reason), until you find your inside. If you and I stand back and look at it all, you will realize that we all are saying the same thing: the student has to discover their own natural, inherent voice frequency i.e., vibrato. You implied it (which is why I responded to your video; your comment was honest; you and I actually agree more than you might think), and I stated it from the viewpoint of an analyst who went through the process. I tried every "outside" technique I could find, but my ear said 'nope, not there yet'. It wasn't until I stumbled over a reference to the physiology of the larynx that I had an aha moment. So I developed my own technique: very thin head voce, and just did scales with that until it happened. So for those few out there who can read these words for what they are, try that particular "outside" and with the time and experimentation that SS is rightly suggesting, you might reveal your natural vibrato.
Really good explanation! I loved it. Lots of people say that vibrato comes from our throat too which is incorrect since I've experienced such thing in 3 years of singing and it was exhausting everytime, I couldn't sing more than 3 or 4 songs like that...(plus I wasn't breathing at all sometimes xD) By the way, lately I've been using more breath and I've experienced vibrato at the end of the notes, something that came pretty effortless and comfortable and really pleasant to hear... I sure have some other issues since I've never been able to take singing lessons. Great job on the video! +1, +1 subscriber! :) (I've noticed that your vibrato is somehow connected to a jazz technique...am I right?)
Michele Panarosa Sorry for the ridiculously late reply. I missed your message somehow. It's good to hear you have been having more luck with your vibrato and to answer your question, I am a jazz singer but vibrato is a technique that singers from any musical style can learn. I hope that helps! :)
Oh don't worry :) In the meantime I've started taking lessons and I'm improving that breath support I needed to sing....it's amazing how things change with these kind of lessons...
I've actually been able to sing with vibrato since I was very young--I didn't even know it was a learned technique until recently when people everywhere, even in the honor choir I was in, started commenting about my vibrato and how strong it is (which implied that not everyone has it, especially if it was in an honor choir). Even in 7th grade, someone asked me if I'd been taught how to use vibrato because it was prominent in my every note. I know it's not just a shaky voice because I've been dubbed the most colourful voice of my entire choir (and there's a lot of competition for that spot in my choir), and I don't even think about vibrato when I sing--I should, though, because like you said, vibrato is the result of muscle control and air flow, and I really want that if I wanna be in All-State someday. Thank you!
My vibrato is good but at lower levels. I have a sort of a Bob Crosby vibrato but I'd love to be able to achieve vibrato at higher levels. I do sing all the time and I practice lip rolling and I also sing notes a pitch apart, slowly increasing speed. I've noticed that my vibrato is getting better but the higher notes are kinda shaky. I guess I'll need to practice more =)
When singing, should you breathe through the mouth or through the nose or both? I'm asking which is best. I love your videos. I hope you reply. Thanks :)
There are a number of ways to develop a vibrato. I have seen "Pause" method and "Semitone" method. Your method is undoubtedly best as it is natural, but I wonder about other methods mentioned above. I myself can do as you say as the abovementioned methods, but I notice that my "natural" vibrato is slower and not as prominent as when I use "Pause" method. Some even says those are "manufactured" vibrato, not a true one. Some even goes far to say manufactured vibrato harms your voice. Could you please kindly explain these? Thanks!
arm nakornthab No harm done except a bad-sounding vibrato. I'm not her but my method personally is basically "fake it until it's natural". I try to base myself on scientific research when there is any, and vibrato is the moving up and down of the larynx. It's linked to runs and riffs, so practicing those can help gain the agility and release needed to learn vibrato. All three methods (pause, semitone, and hers) work, but the one I find works best is the one I just described, working on agility to develop vibrato.
hi good day to you,i watched your video,its awesome,however i cant sing like you do,pls give me tips on singing,im a filipino,i really love singing,thanks.
Inharo Heartliey I'm glad you found the video useful :) if you would like more tips on singing, head over to my website www.singerssecret.com - I have a lot of free singing tips and information up there.
I hold long notes very straight with a piano, for about 10-20+ seconds with each note with my voice and I go up and down chromatically, is that the best way to build vocal strength and control?
I understand that vibrato will come soon after developing as a singer, but just for technique, should it come from the back or your mouth (soft palate) or near the front (hard palate)?
But some people have a natural vibrato, even though they don’t have good breath support from their diaphragm, and they sing from their throat. How is that possible???
Usha Mahentharan just sing relaxed with good air support and it will come out one time or another, mine appeared from nothing. The actual hard part is how to control it, sometimes I have it when it's unneeded and other times I don't get it when I'm trying to get it to come out.
If you do vibrato on every note it would not sound good either. Singers use vibrato selectively on particular part of every line song. I tend to overuse it :/ how to you use it sparingly and strategically so it's at the right time? Could you please do a video on that, or is there somewhere an explanation of that already, and if there is, could anyone refer me to it? I'm not sure which keywords to use to search.
I have played the trumpet many years. There is lots of controversy amount trumpet players on how play with vibrato I never realized or knew until I just recently started working on being a vocalist the disagreements even Among teachers it's even worse than the trumpet world. This lesson on vibrato sounds like a lesson on a " diagram vibrato". Where the singer creates the pitch variation via controlled pulsations of the airflow. I have heard that this is not the correct way to produce a vibrato. There seems to be a lot of conflicting information out there on vibrato.
Kim Yuri Physiologically, vibrato is the moving up and down of the larynx, and the neck muscles are directly connected to those, so it can lead to shaking the jaw, head, tongue, etc. But that's just a side-effect of doing laryngeal vibrato. Trying to do vibrato by shaking your jaw primarily is not really a good idea because it just sounds weird if you don't have the underlying shaking of the larynx itself.
As soon as I became aware of vibrato, it has literally ruined all the songs and great singers I used to love, it drives me nuts. Sounds so fake and pretentious
You are quite easily (in my opinion) one of the best instructors on TH-cam.
You are simple, straight to the point, and honest when you teach. Thank you!
+I Bethany I Thanks Bethany! :)
I have been struggling with vibrato for years and right after taking your advice to focus on sustaining notes in a controlled way, my vibrato smoothed out considerably. There are so many opinions out there about vibrato and I think your explanation, combining "it comes naturally" with "gaining muscle control" is right on target.
Benjamin Harris Thanks Benjamin, I'm glad you found the video useful. :)
Thank you for the clear an straight to the point answer.
Thank u sooooo much!! This saved me! I have to sing for the relay for life tomorrow, this is a life saver!!
Good luck for tomorrow!!!
+Singers Secret thank you! 😊
i love ur voice as well as ur tutorials. thank u
oh my gosh! I've been working to get vibrato and it's been wobbly, but this video actually helped so quickly! Thank you so much!!!
+Olivia Leto You're welcome! So glad it helped :)
+Olivia Leto how long did it take???
Fan girls around two hours. I haven't mastered it, but I've learned to produce it. :-)
Thanks for this! I am guilty of using fake vibrato.
Ha! Me too. :c
Same 😑
thanks to i will always love you i discovered my vibrato
Astrud gilberto has a beautiful voice. I looked her up after you mentioned her. I recognised her voice straight away but I never knew her name until then. Thank you for your videos.
Thank you! I've been singing regularly for a year and a half and still have not even a hint of vibrato. I'm shy, so I tend to sing kind of quietly so the neighbors don't hear me. Is this holding me back? I'm only loud at opec mic and while in the car. It's probably not good to practice in the car due to bad posture though...
Mine is natural but I do know singers who can't seem to get hold of their vibrato. I'll give them this link 😀
I just sang treat you better and found my vibrato
I'm also struggling with my vibrato... I can belt straight notes pretty high up in the range for a guy but I still can't do it perfectly... So this video helps me understand about it a bit...
good on you that you can do it naturally... *:D*
Thank you.
this one is very helpful! thank you!
Nicola, i experienced that vibrato fluxuation for the first time yesterday. However i seem to get it easier holding higher notes.. the low end is real real suttle.. what do i need to do to develop that low end vibrato... ? Thanks :)
It does happen naturally, which is why all those "methods" for artificially creating forced vibrato fall short. Here's why: holding a long note for most of us is done with force (often with too much force), so it isn't a huge leap to think that we can somehow force vibrato to happen. But true vibrato is the underlying natural nerve pulse (the nerves that supply the larynx), which creates a totally natural and inherent pitch waver; it was there when you were born. Until you can relax and allow that pulse, and "hop on" its natural flutter, no one will really be able to find vibrato. It's there already; you just have to relax and find yours, NOT create it from some technique "outside". Nobody ever says that, but it's true; it's a simple physiological truth.
+Robert Davidson As a singer I'd have to completely disagree. I appreciate your point of view but I can tell you from experience that vibrato is a technique that can be applied to singing. I sing both with and without vibrato and can choose to add it where I like. I also change its speed.
+Singers Secret Of course vibrato can be applied to singing! I never said it couldn't; that would be ridiculous, so putting words in my mouth isn't the best response. And of course once a person finds that natural pulsing of the voice then one can learn to make it stronger, and eventually control it by doing exactly what you describe. I did too. I referred only to finding what is natural and inherent FIRST, then learn control. This suggestion is one of two approaches to developing vibrato: "outside", and "inside". There is in fact an "inside", whether you realize it or not. That's my point.
+Robert Davidson Ha! I got a chance to come back and finish the thought. Consider this: I hope you know that there are any number of teachers out there who completely disagree with both of us. They maintain that vibrato cannot ever be taught. Now, they aren't saying it can't be discovered and developed, just that no teacher can teach it. They are against the "outside" approach ( for a good reason), until you find your inside. If you and I stand back and look at it all, you will realize that we all are saying the same thing: the student has to discover their own natural, inherent voice frequency i.e., vibrato. You implied it (which is why I responded to your video; your comment was honest; you and I actually agree more than you might think), and I stated it from the viewpoint of an analyst who went through the process. I tried every "outside" technique I could find, but my ear said 'nope, not there yet'. It wasn't until I stumbled over a reference to the physiology of the larynx that I had an aha moment. So I developed my own technique: very thin head voce, and just did scales with that until it happened. So for those few out there who can read these words for what they are, try that particular "outside" and with the time and experimentation that SS is rightly suggesting, you might reveal your natural vibrato.
Robert Davidson
I've seen that practicing runs, riffs, and general laryngeal agility helps a lot in developing that vibrato nerve reflex
Long straight (tone) notes to build up your strength... 💯
Beautiful voice! :-)
Really good explanation!
I loved it.
Lots of people say that vibrato comes from our throat too which is incorrect since I've experienced such thing in 3 years of singing and it was exhausting everytime, I couldn't sing more than 3 or 4 songs like that...(plus I wasn't breathing at all sometimes xD)
By the way, lately I've been using more breath and I've experienced vibrato at the end of the notes, something that came pretty effortless and comfortable and really pleasant to hear...
I sure have some other issues since I've never been able to take singing lessons.
Great job on the video! +1, +1 subscriber! :)
(I've noticed that your vibrato is somehow connected to a jazz technique...am I right?)
Michele Panarosa Sorry for the ridiculously late reply. I missed your message somehow. It's good to hear you have been having more luck with your vibrato and to answer your question, I am a jazz singer but vibrato is a technique that singers from any musical style can learn.
I hope that helps! :)
Oh don't worry :)
In the meantime I've started taking lessons and I'm improving that breath support I needed to sing....it's amazing how things change with these kind of lessons...
Thank you so much hihi i hope ill have a vibrato soon 😻
I've actually been able to sing with vibrato since I was very young--I didn't even know it was a learned technique until recently when people everywhere, even in the honor choir I was in, started commenting about my vibrato and how strong it is (which implied that not everyone has it, especially if it was in an honor choir). Even in 7th grade, someone asked me if I'd been taught how to use vibrato because it was prominent in my every note. I know it's not just a shaky voice because I've been dubbed the most colourful voice of my entire choir (and there's a lot of competition for that spot in my choir), and I don't even think about vibrato when I sing--I should, though, because like you said, vibrato is the result of muscle control and air flow, and I really want that if I wanna be in All-State someday. Thank you!
Don't believe everything you hear, lots of lucky singers already have a great vibrato without "training" or bogus explanations.
this was so helpful 💗
You explain things beautifully, Nicola! :)
very amazing voice
How long or how many times a day should I practice on singing low straight notes?
5 times a week for 5-10 minutes
My vibrato is good but at lower levels. I have a sort of a Bob Crosby vibrato but I'd love to be able to achieve vibrato at higher levels. I do sing all the time and I practice lip rolling and I also sing notes a pitch apart, slowly increasing speed.
I've noticed that my vibrato is getting better but the higher notes are kinda shaky. I guess I'll need to practice more =)
When singing, should you breathe through the mouth or through the nose or both? I'm asking which is best. I love your videos. I hope you reply. Thanks :)
I do both. :)
There are a number of ways to develop a vibrato. I have seen "Pause" method and "Semitone" method. Your method is undoubtedly best as it is natural, but I wonder about other methods mentioned above.
I myself can do as you say as the abovementioned methods, but I notice that my "natural" vibrato is slower and not as prominent as when I use "Pause" method.
Some even says those are "manufactured" vibrato, not a true one. Some even goes far to say manufactured vibrato harms your voice. Could you please kindly explain these? Thanks!
arm nakornthab
No harm done except a bad-sounding vibrato.
I'm not her but my method personally is basically "fake it until it's natural".
I try to base myself on scientific research when there is any, and vibrato is the moving up and down of the larynx. It's linked to runs and riffs, so practicing those can help gain the agility and release needed to learn vibrato.
All three methods (pause, semitone, and hers) work, but the one I find works best is the one I just described, working on agility to develop vibrato.
Do you have any examples of "stylistically sound" tremolo?
hi good day to you,i watched your video,its awesome,however i cant sing like you do,pls give me tips on singing,im a filipino,i really love singing,thanks.
Inharo Heartliey I'm glad you found the video useful :) if you would like more tips on singing, head over to my website www.singerssecret.com - I have a lot of free singing tips and information up there.
***** thank you,and more power to you.
I hold long notes very straight with a piano, for about 10-20+ seconds with each note with my voice and I go up and down chromatically, is that the best way to build vocal strength and control?
Thanks how long does it take to do this
I understand that vibrato will come soon after developing as a singer, but just for technique, should it come from the back or your mouth (soft palate) or near the front (hard palate)?
But some people have a natural vibrato, even though they don’t have good breath support from their diaphragm, and they sing from their throat. How is that possible???
thankyou so much :)
+Kassie Polasik You're welcome! have a fab New Year :)
+Singers Secret hehe thankyou you too! :)
How long should I practice to get vibrato
all i have to do is to sing straight notes right????and how long will it take????
4-10 yearzzz
Usha Mahentharan just sing relaxed with good air support and it will come out one time or another, mine appeared from nothing. The actual hard part is how to control it, sometimes I have it when it's unneeded and other times I don't get it when I'm trying to get it to come out.
When I sing long straight note, my vibrato came naturally
If you do vibrato on every note it would not sound good either. Singers use vibrato selectively on particular part of every line song. I tend to overuse it :/ how to you use it sparingly and strategically so it's at the right time? Could you please do a video on that, or is there somewhere an explanation of that already, and if there is, could anyone refer me to it? I'm not sure which keywords to use to search.
ineptDolls I like using a little at the end of phrases and during sustained notes
I have played the trumpet many years. There is lots of controversy amount trumpet players on how play with vibrato I never realized or knew until I just recently started working on being a vocalist the disagreements even Among teachers it's even worse than the trumpet world. This lesson on vibrato sounds like a lesson on a " diagram vibrato". Where the singer creates the pitch variation via controlled pulsations of the airflow. I have heard that this is not the correct way to produce a vibrato. There seems to be a lot of conflicting information out there on vibrato.
You understand me..
Some good singers like Dimash Kudaibergen sing vibrato by moving his jaw, but you said that's incorrect? It still sounds good though?
Kim Yuri
Physiologically, vibrato is the moving up and down of the larynx, and the neck muscles are directly connected to those, so it can lead to shaking the jaw, head, tongue, etc.
But that's just a side-effect of doing laryngeal vibrato.
Trying to do vibrato by shaking your jaw primarily is not really a good idea because it just sounds weird if you don't have the underlying shaking of the larynx itself.
I wish I could sing like Bastille
*dan smith
+Mimi Ralph *jessie j
Justin Bieber his vibrato is awesome
You look like Peyton smith from one tree hill
love the accent, is that australian?
***** Yes it is! Good guess :)
Nicola Milan sounds sexy! ;)
As soon as I became aware of vibrato, it has literally ruined all the songs and great singers I used to love, it drives me nuts. Sounds so fake and pretentious
i find her attractive