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I can't sing PF songs on that KEY

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  #1  
Old 04-11-2005, 07:52 PM
iplaycheapstrat's Avatar
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Question I can't sing PF songs on that KEY

Ok, I used to think I just couldn't sing but someone told me i just need to find and know WHERE to sing. (what key)

Does anyone else have to tune down half a step to sing Gilmour songs? I used to think that since my voice was higher I had to play at a higher position. But Only when I tune down half a step I can sing DG songs.

If anyone knows anything about this I would greatly appreciate any input. Thank you people.
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Old 04-11-2005, 09:09 PM
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I actually find that, as a rule, Roger's songs are harder to sing.
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Old 04-12-2005, 12:19 AM
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Re: I can't sing PF songs on that KEY

I was singing Time and Comfortably Numb today and I realized that I have to change my voice to actually sound like him in order to sing it in the right key. If I sing the song with MY voice, it sounds realllly awful. You gotta get all breathy and whatnot.
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Old 04-12-2005, 12:47 AM
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Re: I can't sing PF songs on that KEY

Well, I'll share what I know.
First, how high or low your voice is has pretty much nothing to do with key - what is important is the range of notes you can reach, and this defines the key that you'll be able to sing in. One music instructor I had many years ago had me simply sing one note (LAA-A_A!!!) with no accompaniment, found that note on the piano, and told me that my key was F. I have no idea whether that's valid or not, but I find that I can sing pretty much anything in F, but I can't hit the high notes in C.

A lot of music for guitar you'll find is in the keys of C, D, or G - this is because they're easy to play. For instance, the chords in the key of C are C, F, G, and Am. Compare that to the key of B, which is B, E, F#, and G#.

But C is kind of high for most people's voices. So, you get a choice (if you want to stay with accurate tuning, which I highly recommend): Either transpose to a key you CAN sing in, or cheat by using a capo. Though it sounds weird, going up in pitch does exactly the same thing you do when you detune the guitar a half-step - because key has to do with the range of notes, not how high or low the note actually is.

Personally, I prefer transposing. Try D, it's a good range for most people.
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Old 04-12-2005, 05:05 AM
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Re: I can't sing PF songs on that KEY

One of the biggest factors that determines whay keys to sing in is the point at which you need to change between your normal and your singing voice (known as the head voice). With most people, these two voices do not meet, and there is a range of notes between the top of your normal voice range and the bottom of your head voice range (this can be eliminated with vocal training). For this reason, even if your voice is high, you may find it necessary to transpose songs in order to find a key in which your missing range is not required.
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Old 04-12-2005, 11:50 PM
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Smile Re: I can't sing PF songs on that KEY

Well, I got a Capo today, and VOILA!! It works! My voice is not of my liking really, but at least i'm in tune. I guess Practice is all I can do.... Thank you everyone for your help...

BTW I cannot sing Roger's parts.... Strange
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Old 04-16-2005, 10:04 PM
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Re: I can't sing PF songs on that KEY

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mother
One of the biggest factors that determines whay keys to sing in is the point at which you need to change between your normal and your singing voice (known as the head voice). With most people, these two voices do not meet, and there is a range of notes between the top of your normal voice range and the bottom of your head voice range (this can be eliminated with vocal training). For this reason, even if your voice is high, you may find it necessary to transpose songs in order to find a key in which your missing range is not required.
Pretty well put. I too find it difficult when I get around my switch over from straight singing to falsetto. This is why I find something like Pigs (3DO) actually easier to sing than something like Two Suns In The Sunset. I do the "Big man, pig man" part in my straight singing voice like Roger, and the "whoo!" in my falsetto. Likewise in the chorus "you're nearly a laugh but you're really a" in my regular voice and "cry" in falsetto. But in Two Suns In The Sunset he just screams "You'll have no recourse to the law anymore!" which I believe starts on a high B, which I can't hit in my normal voice. This is why I maintain Roger was a good singer... there was virtually no difference or switchover for him. He just kept going higher as needed.
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Old 04-19-2005, 12:43 PM
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Re: I can't sing PF songs on that KEY

Some people sound better in certian keys. Like Neil Diamond (I think it's Neil) writes a lot of his songs in the same key. It really depends on your range and your comfort. IT is important to be able to hit the notes. My band has had to do cover songs in drop C...tuning is a bitchh!
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